Adam Silver

The National Basketball Association has banned Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter for violating the league’s betting rules.

We are shocked that a basketball player took a gamble on making a quick and easy score.

The 24-year-old tipped off a bettor about his shaky health status. The guy then placed an $80K bet that the Raptors would have a lousy game. Bingo!

Porter made 13 bets from January and March and tailored his own play according to the wagers that he made on Toronto games.

In announcing the Porter ban, NBA commissioner Adam Silver rolled out the dusty old chestnuts about protecting the integrity of the game, and dishing out the most severe punishment to players who break the gaming rules.

He sounded like Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, who was appointed the first commissioner of Major League Baseball in the aftermath of the 1919 Black Sox Scandal.

But it’s hard to take Silver seriously. Tough-as-nails Landis was hired to clean up baseball.

Silver has invited legalized gambling companies into the NBA family.

The NBA website has an NBABet section that features the odds, betting insights and predictions for each game. That information is golden for a person who wants to place an illegal bet with a bookie who lives down the street.

The NBA is in bed with FanDuel and DraftKings/Sportsbook, its official gaming partners.

The NBA lineup for authorized gaming operators includes BETMGM, ESPN/BET, Caesars Sportsbook, theScore|BET, betwaysports, POINTSBET, bet365, Bally, 888Sport, Fanatics Sportsbook, intralot, HardRock Sportsbook, betsson, and BETRIVERS.

It’s a pretty safe bet that Porter won’t be the last NBA star to wager on a basketball game.

Press releases that you pray never need to be written… The Diocese of Brooklyn, as part of its April 16 agreement with New York attorney general Letitia James regarding its mishandling of sexual abuse cases, has promised to issue a press release any time it decides to remove a priest or other clergy member from active ministry due to sexual misconduct.

James’ probe found that the Diocese failed to uphold its own standards and procedures for investigating and responding to abuse cases.

There were cases when the Diocese found allegations credible but then failed to disclose the information to the public and to sufficiently monitor the accused priests.

The Diocese claims that from 2003-2021—during Bishop Nicolas DiMarzio’s tenure—it released public statements about investigations that resulted in booting 27 priests from their ministries.

Since Bishop Robert Brennen took over in November 2021, two priests were removed. He also appointed Elizabeth Harris, a former Manhattan child abuse squad detective, to monitor all defrocked priests.

The agreement with James calls for an independent monitor to review the Diocese’s management of sexual abuse complaints and allegations for at least the next three years.

The monitor will issue a public report each year to evaluate the Diocese’s compliance with the agreement. The report is to be posted on the Diocese website.

Let’s hope the Diocese’s PR department is savvy enough to publicize the annual findings.

Full transparency must replace the Brooklyn Church’s history of secrecy and deceit. That’s the only way to move forward from the clerical legacy of depravity and abuse.

Be careful what you wish for… Trump Media & Technology Group is calling its Truth Social platform “yet another of president Donald J. Trump’s iconic American brands.” Yikes!

Truth Social joins the roster of brand flops that include Trump University, steaks, ice cubes, airline, magazine, vodka, chocolate, game, home furnishings, menswear, casinos, etc.

The company’s stock has tanked more than 60 percent since it went public last month.

Yet CEO Devin Nunes says he’s ready for the “next big phase for Truth Social.” I must have missed Phase One.

The company is launching a streaming platform that focuses on live TV, including news networks, religious networks and family-friendly content that has been cancelled or is “being suppressed on other platforms and services.”

The former California Congressman wants Truth Social to be the permanent home for news and entertainment that can’t find a home elsewhere.

There’s good reason why content gets scrapped. It is junk, just like a diploma from Trump University was.