Charles Barkley’s proclivity for chasing seven-figure gambling wins led him to quit for two years before he changed his mindset to a more moderate approach.
An NBA Hall of Fame player, Barkley claims to have incurred losses of at least $25 million over the course of his gambling career. Days after an NCAA committee approved a proposal that would permit student-athletes to bet on professional sports, Barkley slammed the proposed rule change.
“Anybody who thinks that’s a good idea should have their head examined,” Barkley told AL.com earlier this week. “We’ve already got an issue with kids gambling now, when they shouldn’t be gambling.”
Ban on college wagers would remain in place
Next month, Florida will face Arizona on 3 November at the Hall of Fame Series in Las Vegas. The hoops showdown will take place adjacent to the world’s largest sportsbooks. By then, players likely will be able to wager on professional sports.
The rule change, approved 8 October by the NCAA Division I Administrative Committee, must also be ratified on the Division II and Division III levels. If approved, the rule will take effect on 1 November, per an NCAA press release. The change will also allow athletics department staff to wager on pro sports.
In September, the NCAA issued statements regarding separate betting violations on consecutive days. First, the association announced the permanent ban against two former Fresno State players and a San Jose State upperclassmen for a bevy of sports gambling infractions.
A day later, the NCAA announced that its enforcement staff began processing alleged violations against 13 former players from six different schools. The NCAA still prohibits student-athletes from wagering on college sports.
Fallout from Iowa investigations on NCAA betting
The driver of the modified rule appears to stem from an investigation of two prominent Iowa schools a few years ago.
While prosecutors obtained guilty pleas in more than two dozen misdemeanors, felony charges against several individuals were dropped over questions whether a state investigator used legally approved betting detection technology. None of the players from the University of Iowa or Iowa State were accused of match-fixing, although some of their wagers were on college sports.
Last year, Mark Hicks, the NCAA’s managing director of enforcement, told ESPN that the NCAA conducted a comprehensive overview on the most effective ways to educate student-athletes on the new climate for sports betting.
Barkley’s ties to betting beyond NCAA
There is sentiment among some in the sports betting community agreeing with Barkley’s stance on the potential amendments. This year, each Division I school can make direct payments of up to $20.5 million to its student-athletes, with several top athletes earning seven-figure deals through endorsements. There is potential for unintended consequences from the proposed rule if losses on pro sports wagers begin to accumulate, according to one analyst.
Barkley has covered the NCAA tournament for CBS and Turner for more than a decade. As an NBA studio analyst on TNT, Barkley typically makes nightly picks on a pre-game FanDuel segment.
In March, Barkley expressed interest in joining an investment group that would own a majority interest in a new Alabama casino. However, a bill that sought to legalize casino gambling and sports betting failed in the Alabama legislature weeks later. Alabama is one of 12 states that does not have legal sports betting.
Pro basketball Hall of Famer Charles Barkley strongly disagrees with the likely rule change