Adam Silver's bet on legal gambling shows NBA chief has the golden touch

Don’t let his mild-mannered appearance and measured legalese fool you: NBA commissioner Adam Silver is a genius.

His latest round of news-making is just further proof. With one well-timed editorial in favor of legalizing sports-related gambling, Silver once again turned the US sports world upside down.

Since replacing David Stern as NBA commissioner in February, Silver has shown an uncanny knack for making a bold stance at the exact right time. He has shown a shrewdness in picking causes which cement his reputation as the most forward-thinking commissioner in major pro sports while positioning his league to benefit financially. This is not an entirely easy thing to do: just ask Roger Goodell.

It’s hard not to think that Silver spoke for many fans in the editorial for the New York Times in which he argued in favor of legalized gambling. The commissioner wrote:

There is an obvious appetite among sports fans for a safe and legal way to wager on professional sporting events. Mainstream media outlets regularly publish sports betting lines and point spreads. Voters in New Jersey overwhelmingly voiced their support for legal sports betting in a 2011 referendum …

Outside of the United States, sports betting and other forms of gambling are popular, widely legal and subject to regulation. In England, for example, a sports bet can be placed on a smartphone, at a stadium kiosk or even using a television remote control.

In light of these domestic and global trends, the laws on sports betting should be changed. Congress should adopt a federal framework that allows states to authorize betting on professional sports, subject to strict regulatory requirements and technological safeguards.

The main reason Silver wrote his editorial should be obvious: legalized gambling would benefit the NBA. More money on games means more interest in games. More people watching, bigger television ratings, etc. All of which means more money for the NBA.

The gambling demographic, of course, has always driven sports. It is as Silver notes a growing part of mainstream media coverage. But this is the first time in recent US history a commissioner has decided to court it.

It may seem like a no-brainer for a major sports league to back legalized gambling. But Silver clearly saw the NBA was in the perfect position to take the lead. We are not going to see the NFL’s Goodell take anything that could be even remotely considered a controversial stance this season, or possibly ever. MLB, at least since the 1919 Black Sox scandal, has made “thou shalt not gamble” its main commandment.

And the NHL? Commissioner Garry Bettman offered the following dismissive reply to Silver:

Do you want people at football and basketball games rooting for the spread or rooting for their favorite team?

Of course, this is already happening, even in NHL. The fantasy sports phenomenon has trained a generation of fans to root for both their own team and unrelated outcomes, never mind March Madness brackets or Super Bowl prop bets. Sports gambling is interwoven into the American calendar.

Nevertheless, some will argue that supporting gambling is effectively supporting gambling addiction. While Silver’s editorial ends with the hope that legalization would mean sports-related wagering being “brought out of the underground and into the sunlight where it can be appropriately monitored and regulated”, there is also the argument that more gambling would just mean more risk of corruption.

The Toronto Blue Jays president Paul Beeston, an anti-gambling advocate, reacted strongly:

Why would you put yourself in a position where you could have any type of question about the integrity of your game, whether [betting] is regulated or not regulated?

Such points of view may be boosted by the fact that some of Silver’s most vocal support has come from disgraced referee Tim Donaghy, who spent 15 months in jail for providing information to professional gamblers information on games in which he officiated.

In reality, though, Silver would not have spoken if he didn’t think the odds were in his favor. He will certainly upset people, but that’s not out of the norm. It’s the same combination of smarts and guts he showed when he made the move to ban the former LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling permanently from the league.

The result? Silver earned newfound respect from most of the public and a clean break from the legacy of Stern, and the league got a massive PR boost. And remember – the Clippers sold to Steve Ballmer for a record-shattering $2bn. There is big money in NBA. It’s easy to take risks when the upside means making even more .

Silver also has perfect timing. Just last Thursday, Silver found himself on the defensive, fighting claims from new players association chief Michele Roberts that the NBA salary cap was “un-American.”

If Silver’s op-ed hadn’t appeared on Friday, quite possibly the basketball world would now be discussing potential labor strife. Instead, the focus is on a topic that could make the league even more profitable.

There’s a good chance this is just a case of coincidental timing. If not? Are we so sure “genius” isn’t the right term here?