Magic the Gathering player, hockey and basketball lover. Its all about the Gathering. Then, the magic comes into play. Oh and sometimes I am funny too.
This is why the Giannis–Kalshi situation is troubling.
When an athlete has equity in a platform where people can bet on outcomes tied to his own career, the issue is trust.
Fans are being asked to believe the system is fair even when Giannis can make money from speculation about his own future.
Prediction markets make more money when more people speculate, regardless of the outcome. That means Giannis benefits financially from more rumors, more uncertainty and more betting on his career.
Once insiders can profit from prediction markets, fans aren’t betting in a neutral system. They’re betting against people who may know things they don’t.
When insiders know and fans are guessing, that’s not a fair market. It’s extraction.
And when fans feel they might be exploited for money, it undermines the belief that what they’re watching is real.
In sports, the perception of integrity is the integrity.
ICYMI, I built a contracts tool that projects what every player in the NBA is worth vs what they are paid. Here's what it says about AD (bad value) and Coby White (good value).
Tool is free, zero ads, for the community. Play around with it here! https://t.co/lQ9XM0MUEo
Victor Wembanyama’s full comments today on the shooting of another civilian by federal agents in Minneapolis:
“PR has tried, but I'm not going to sit here and give some politcally correct [answer]. Every day I see the news and I'm horrified. I think it's crazy that some people might make it seem like or make it sound like it's acceptable, like the murder of civilians is acceptable. I read the news and sometimes I'm asking very deep questions about my own life. I'm concious also saying everything that's on my mind will have a cost that's too great for me right now, so I'd rather not get into too many details. It's terrible. I know I'm a foreigner, but I live in this counrtry and I am concerned.”
(Questions via @tom_orsborn, @mikefinger, video via @HectorLedesmaTV)
LEAP YEAR: The Atlanta Hawks’ Jalen Johnson has continued his rise with triple-doubles on consecutive nights in his last two games, including one completed before halftime. He has tied the franchise single-season record with four triple-doubles. In his fifth season, the 23-year-old forward is averaging career highs of 23.4 points, 10.5 rebounds, 7.9 assists and 1.6 steals – the only NBA player achieving all four marks.
@Sam_Vecenie Do you think that it makes sense for them when they have JJ to build around? I understand, that this on the other hand might be a once in a lifetime chance to get an MVP player.