The National Basketball Association and DraftKings, the premier sports betting provider, have signed a multiyear partnership deal. This landmark partnership allows the Boston-based DraftKings to operate as an authorized sports betting partner of the NBA.
As part of this multiyear deal, the NBA will give its authorized betting data to DraftKings, and in turn, DraftKings will make this data available to sports bettors on both its sportsbooks and mobile platform. This will allow fans to make real-time bets on NBA games where mobile betting is legal.
The deal between the DraftKings and the NBA emphasizes the importance placed on official league data, delivered in real-time. This is especially true since the U.S. sports betting market has adopted in-play betting much more quickly than many in the business expected.
“We’re very excited to team up with DraftKings. They have established themselves as a top leader in the sports betting world here in the U.S. Even more important, DraftKings has a devoted NBA following,” said Scott Kaufman-Ross, NBA senior vice president, and head of fantasy and gaming.
Ezra Kucharz, DraftKings chief business officer added, “The connection between fan engagement and sports betting is proven. We look forward to the fantastic opportunities that, as an authorized gaming partner of the NBA, will have for our consumers.”
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How Does the DraftKings Deal Benefit the NBA?
The truth is, live betting on basketball is extremely popular on the DraftKings website, sportsbook and mobile app. In fact, it’s more popular than any other sport. Moreover, more than 70% of basketball bettors on DraftKings wager on live bets. This fact will increase NBA fan engagement via DraftKings. In addition to providing live-time data, the league will work closely with DraftKings to ensure the integrity of NBA games.
Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a law that prohibited sports gambling in most states. For many years, professional sports leagues rejected any relationship to gambling. However, in the past few years, professional sports leagues have embraced the trend towards legalized gambling. In fact, pro sports leagues have actively sought to profit from both wagerings on their games as well as fantasy sports.
“The fact is, people will watch a game longer when they have money on it,” Kucharz explained. “They engage more in the games when they’re financially involved. That’s it. You’ll continue to see the growth of sports betting in the United States, outside of the few states that currently have online sports betting.”
However, NBA fans won’t be able to use a sportsbook inside an NBA arena and place a bet. They will only be able to place bets where mobile betting is legalized and DraftKings has authorization. Right now, that’s in the states of New Jersey, Indiana and West Virginia where fans can use their mobile devices to bet on games. While there are other states where mobile betting is legal, DraftKings doesn’t currently have live betting authorized in those states.
In time, fans will be able to bet on NBA propositions, results, individual scoring, and other events from their mobile phones. For example, fans can now go to an Indiana Pacers game, download the DraftKings app, and begin immediately place bets from the arena. However, there is no sportsbook inside the arena.
Mobile Sports Betting is the Wave of the Future
Currently, only thirteen states allow sports betting, but not all allow online and mobile betting. New Mexico and Delaware are among the states that only permit sports betting to take place at brick-and-mortar sportsbooks. In contrast, New Jersey Nevada, and Pennsylvania, among others, allow sports bets to be placed online. However, the trend towards legalized mobile sports betting continues to sweep the nation, and professional sports leagues are eager to take advantage of the trend. And, as always, don’t forget to gamble responsibly.
