NBA Vows Suit on Ore. Lottery

The NBA will sue if the Oregon Lottery Commission goes ahead with plans to include professional basketball in its Sports Action betting game, the league’s commissioner warned.

David Stern, in an interview Thursday with a Portland radio station, said the league would file suit against the Oregon Lottery because the betting game would “seriously compromise the integrity of our league.”

Lottery Director Jim Davey said that Stern’s warning was no surprise and that the state is prepared to defend its game in court.

Davey said he is confident that the Lottery Commission will approve adding the NBA to the betting game when it meets Monday in Salem.

Stern, who voiced his concerns at a meeting of the Lottery Commission last month, told radio station KGW-AM that he knew that the NBA’s opposition to the plan would have little or no effect.

But, he asked, “why should somebody, in this case the Lottery Commission, change the relationship between our fans and us without our permission and without our consent?”

Davey said he will propose that the state not include the Portland Trail Blazers in the Sports Action betting.

“We’re simply doing that as a courtesy to the Trail Blazers,” he said. “I think it’s going to cost some sales by leaving them out, but it seems like the appropriate thing to do.”

Davey said Fred VanNatta, a lobbyist who has been hired by the NBA, telephoned lottery officials Thursday to tell them of plans to sue if the proposal is approved.

The Oregon game, the first of its kind in the country, allows people to wager at least $1 on three to 14 NFL games. To win, a person must pick all games correctly against point spreads set by a Las Vegas odds maker.

Since the game began in early September, sales have totaled $5 million, with $1.9 million distributed to help fund intercollegiate sports at the state’s colleges and universities, Davey said.

He estimated that the NBA game would generate $3.5 million. He said the game would begin in January.

Davey repeatedly has said that if the NBA and other professional sports leagues are serious about cracking down on wagering, they should target Nevada, where gambling is legal and much more widespread.

“I’m still puzzled at why they will sue the State of Oregon and they never have taken any action against the State of Nevada,” Davey said. “Nevada probably has $1.5 billion annually on this type of wagering. In Oregon, if we reach $10 million to $15 million it would be about max.”