{
  "id": 18919755,
  "title": "An N.B.A. Player Got Hooked on Sports Betting. Soon, He Became the Bet",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/08/an-n-b-a-player-got-hooked-on-sports-betting-soon-he-became-the-bet",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-11-08T11:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The New Yorker",
    "slug": "the-new-yorker",
    "url": "https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2026/11/16/the-nba-player-who-got-hooked-on-sports-betting"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Jontay, the fourth of eight children, grew up in Columbia, Missouri. His family viewed basketball as the way to college; all eight children eventually received scholarships. By age sixteen, Jontay stood six feet ten inches tall. He joined the University of Missouri men's basketball team as a high school senior, becoming the top recruit in the country. N.B.A. scouts thought he could be the next Kevin Durant. Jontay's fame skyrocketed when his father got a job at the university, but the hype became overwhelming. Jontay wanted to be part of the frenzy and skipped his senior year of high school to join the team.",
  "summary": "Jontay Porter got deep into FanDuel, and in debt to the wrong people. The only way out, it seemed, was to gamble on himself.",
  "key_points": [
    "Jontay, an N.B.A. player, developed a sports betting addiction",
    "Grew up in Columbia, Missouri, as the fourth of eight children",
    "Became top recruit in the country, destined for N.B.A. stardom"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}