Man pleads guilty in betting scheme that ensnared ex-NBA player Jontay Porter

NEW YORK (AP) — A gambler pleaded guilty Wednesday in a sports betting scandal that got NBA player Jontay Porter kicked out of the league earlier this year.

Long Phi Pham, also known as Bruce Pham, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud, admitting that he schemed to con sports betting companies, according to prosecutors and a court document. He could face anything from a no-jail punishment to 20 years in prison at his sentencing, set for April 25 in a Brooklyn, New York, federal court.

Messages seeking comment were sent to his attorneys.

Pham and three other men were charged in June with plotting to cash in on from a player’s secret plans to claim illness to pull out of two games early. The withdrawals ensured a payout for anyone who bet on him to underperform expectations.

The complaint didn’t name the player, but details made clear it was Porter, whom the NBA banned for life in April after conducting its own investigation.

One of Pham’s co-defendants induced the athlete to withdraw from games, according to a court complaint. The document said the conspirators were on track to collect over $1 million — and share some with the player — before a betting company smelled a rat and blocked collection of a lot of the money.

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Pham, who is in his 30s, was arrested as he boarded a flight to Australia with roughly $12,000 in cash, days after learning about the investigation, prosecutors said at the time. They suggested the Brooklyn resident was trying to elude their reach, but his lawyer said Pham was a professional poker player and was traveling for a tournament.

Porter, who was last with the Toronto Raptors, pleaded guilty in July to wire fraud conspiracy. He told a court that his own gambling debts drove him to bench himself so conspirators could win bets.

Porter withdrew from two games last winter after playing only a few minutes and saying he was hurt or sick. On both occasions, his points, rebounds and assists fell below sportsbooks’ predictions.

He is now awaiting sentencing, scheduled for Dec. 18.

Pham’s three co-defendants have yet to enter pleas.