Copyright theage
The AFL typically looks to the NFL for its lead: using a salary cap, the draft, the “any given Sunday” principle where any team can win, and Snoop Dogg as appropriate half-time entertainment. But it is the NBA they should be looking at right now. You might have read and glossed over – or glazed over, looking at a story on a sport for seven-foot blokes that doesn’t engage you – but the NBA is dealing with a gambling scandal that touches the biggest name in the biggest basketball competition in the world. A coach, a player and a former player turned coach face federal criminal charges over betting. One of them, Chauncey Billups, the ex-player turned coach, is also linked to a Mafia-controlled poker scam ripping off celebrities. But let’s keep things to the basketball for now. Another key figure involved, Damon Jones, is a former teammate of LeBron James – the biggest name in the sport and one of the best players ever. Jones was also James’ friend and his shooting coach.
