What is a prop bet? And why was Green's night in Warriors-Cavs game under investigation?
Klay Thompson's return to an NBA court was cause for celebration for the Golden State Warriors, but also caused a rumble in the sports book market.
Sports bettors cashed in around the country on Sunday night when Draymond Green made an appearance that lasted under ten seconds in Golden State’s win over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Some of those who made the prop bet had their payout postponed until a full investigation was completed.
Restrictions loosened on sports gamblins since 2018
The world of sports betting is quickly gaining ground around the country, as restrictions on gambling have become looser and looser in the past years. In 2018 the Supreme Court denied a federal ban on sports betting, and left it up to each individual state to decide if it will allow sports fans to put bets down.
There are 22 states, and Washington D.C. that allow both online and offline sports gambling, and nine other states that allow people to make wagers in person at specific locations but not online. There are a handful of other states where the decision has either yet to be made, or is yet to be implentmented which leaves just 16 states in which betting on the big game is completely outlawed.
Draymond under bets, a rare guarentee in the world of sports betting
In those states where it is legal, some gambling men and women took advantage of a tid bit of information that slipped past the sports books eyes in order to win big bucks on a prop bet in the Cavs vs. Warriors game.
A prop bet is any bet that doesn’t have to do with the final score or total points of a particular game. Generally, prop bets revolve around players statistics or a certain event occurring or not occurring during the course of a game. The most famous night for prop bets is the Super Bowl when you can bet on anything from number of yards for a quarterback, all the way down to what color Gatorade the winning team will dump on their coach.
Many are new to the gambling world, and if you are one of those who are confused as to why your have’t received your pay out just yet this is the event in question.
Sports books pulled offer, but in many cases too late
The controversy revolves around Klay Thompson’s return to the court after nearly 1,000 of being on Golden State’s injured list. Thompson last played in Game 6 of the NBA Finals back in 2018 in a game where he tore his ACL. On his recovery road the Warriors sharp shooter tore his achilles, and had missed a total of 941 days since his last game in the NBA.
To celebrate the occasion, Draymond Green wanted to be a part of the special night, so he suited up despite battling a calf injury. Golden State’s Twitter feed posted a tweet at 8:31 ET, nine minutes before the game was set to tip off, stating that Green would be there for the opening tip, but would then sit out the rest of the game.
Bettors took this hot tip and jumped on the Drayond Green prop bets for that night, taking the “under” on Green’s total points (7.5), rebounds (8.5) and assists (8.5). Many sports books pulled those offers off the table within minutes, but for the very attentive few, they were able to make and place the guaranteed wager.
Draft Kings settle after investigation
It was a prop bet that cost casinos and sports books millions of dollars. Many books paid the winners of the bets immediately, but Draft Kings released a statement saying the bets on Green were "under review and bet settlements are currently on hold pending an investigation."
In the end Draft Kings announced it was accepting those under bets on Green’s night and giving cash refunds to anyone who took the over in those bets.