The National Basketball Association announced Monday that it has secured new "preferred" prediction market deals with Kalshi and Polymarket. The league also signed a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission to manage these relationships. This expansion comes as the NBA faces ongoing scrutiny following gambling-related scandals.
Alongside the new agreements, the NBA stated it is expanding its existing deal with DraftKings to include prediction markets. The organization indicated that further expansions with other partners will be announced soon. These developments follow a period of significant financial decline in the league's digital assets.
NBA Top Shot, the league's NFT marketplace, saw sales drop to $762,781 last month. This figure represents a 99.66 percent decrease compared to the February 2021 peak of $226,350,843. The contrast between the collapse of the NFT platform and the growth of betting partnerships highlights a shift in the league's commercial strategy.
The timing of these announcements coincides with legal issues for NBA players. Jontay Porter recently pleaded guilty to conspiracy, adding to the scandals currently surrounding the league. The NBA's move to deepen ties with prediction markets and regulatory bodies signals a continued commitment to integrating gambling into its ecosystem, despite recent controversies.