Sports
An N.B.A. Player Got Hooked on Sports Betting. Soon, He Became the Bet
When Jontay Porter was ten, his father woke him up most mornings before dawn. He and his siblings piled into the family's Sprinter van and drove to an empty field house off the highway. Then, while their friends slept, they ran basketball drills with their father. "All I remember is it still being pitch-black outside, and the two dreaded double doors on the side of the building that would always be left open for us," Jontay told me recently. In the bleary moments just before one of his siblings tugged the field-house doors open, Jontay always secretly wished that they'd be locked. And, one morning, they were. Jontay smiled as he climbed back into the van and drifted off to sleep. But his brother Michael, Jr., who was seventeen months older, was furious. "Michael was the opposite," Jontay said. Jontay grew up in Columbia, Missouri, the fourth of eight children. His father, Michael, Sr., worked in Christian ministry, and his mother, Lisa, homeschooled the children. Both had played college basketball--Lisa, as a high-school senior, had averaged a nearly impossible fifty-eight points per game--and they saw the sport as their children's ticket to college. All eight of the kids eventually got basketball scholarships. By the time Jontay was sixteen, he was six feet ten. In most families, as a five-star high-school recruit, Jontay would have been the main attraction. In 2010, their father got a job on the coaching staff for the women's team at the University of Missouri. The men's coach spotted Michael shooting alone in the arena one night and offered him a full scholarship; he was still in seventh grade. When he accepted it, as a high-school senior, he was the top recruit in the country. His highlight reels had racked up millions of views on YouTube. N.B.A. scouts believed that he could be the next Kevin Durant. "He's a game-changer," a league executive told the New York . Big state schools turn their best athletes into local celebrities, but the hype that followed Michael to Missouri's campus on his recruiting visits was closer to Beatlemania. Fans asked for autographs and took selfies. Jontay, who came along, was seduced by the hysteria. "Frat houses are putting up posters, and he's literally treated like a king," he recalled. "I wanted to be a part of that circus." He skipped his senior year of high school to join the team, too. The brothers were best friends. Still, it was sometimes hard to be one of the top players in the country but just the second best in his family. "He got all the attention," Jontay said.
How to watch Atlรฉtico Madrid vs. Barcelona online for free
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Is Pures subscription worth it compared to AdultFriendFinders Gold membership?
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How to watch Crystal Palace vs. Liverpool online for free
Say More Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Mashable Selects Trending Now Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List Safety Net Mashable @Home In My Bag Versus Creator Playbook Getting Technical with Mashable All Series How to watch Crystal Palace vs. Liverpool online for free Live stream select fixtures from the Premier League without spending anything. Joseph Green is the Global Shopping Editor for Mashable. He covers VPNs, headphones, fitness gear, dating sites, streaming, and shopping events like Black Friday and Prime Day. All products featured here are independently selected by our editors and writers. If you buy something through links on our site, Mashable may earn an affiliate commission.
Moon phase today: What the Moon will look like on November 8, 2026
Say More Look Up Mashable's Best: E-readers, robovacs, laptops, earbuds, smart home and more Mashable Selects Trending Now Gift Ideas For Everyone On Your List Safety Net Mashable @Home In My Bag Versus Creator Playbook Getting Technical with Mashable All Series Lois Mackenzie is a freelance reporter at Mashable. Over the years she has written for many publications, covering everything from the local news to the best pair of running shoes. You can find bylines in publications including Fit&Well, Metro, and Coach magazine, usually covering deals on everything from earbuds to TVs, or guides on how to beat your half marathon time. There's barely any of the Moon visible tonight as it approaches the New Moon. With less than a sliver illuminated, there is nothing for us to see in the way of lunar features.
Hot fridges, a fake nuclear alert and a 6bn heist: are we in the foothills of a hacking epidemic?
Hot fridges, a fake nuclear alert and a $6bn heist: are we in the foothills of a hacking epidemic? Alex Pearce was doing the morning rounds at his fruit and vegetable wholesale business in London on Monday last week when he noticed something odd. The defrost light on refrigeration unit 2 was on, and the panel reading was 150C. Unit 4 was the same. As he approached his biggest unit, its defrost light also blinked on.
NYT Strands hints, answers for November 8, 2026
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How to watch Australia vs. Samoa online for free
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Standing in the way of slop bowls: the woman blocking food delivery robots
Carolyn Marvin stages protests against delivery robots because she wants to remind people that they have a say. Carolyn Marvin stages protests against delivery robots because she wants to remind people that they have a say. Semi-retired professor Carolyn Marvin became a local celebrity facing down Philadelphia's growing robot delivery army: 'It's my first amendment right to protest' "One of you needs to be on the lookout for cops, while I block the robot, OK?" It is a crisp fall morning in Philadelphia . Tucked away in a dingy alley, opposite a garage called Patriot Parking, 78-year-old Carolyn Marvin is laying out some ground rules for a robot-disrupting expedition. Once a suitable target is identified, we will follow it to a busy sidewalk and Marvin will stand in front of the robot, blocking its way.
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