In 1961, Connie Hawkins was expelled from the University of Iowa. He was not expelled for poor grades or misbehavior. Indeed, he had done nothing wrong but was the victim of a false rumor.
Hawkins was a freshman on a basketball scholarship and his name had surfaced in a college basketball “point shaving” gambling scheme centered in New York City where he lived. Hawkins was a well-known high school basketball star in New York City and that had earned him the scholarship at the University of Iowa. He adamantly denied involvement, a denial subsequently confirmed by independent investigators but too late. Indeed, even if he had wanted to “shave points,” it would’ve been impossible for him to do so since, in those years, a freshman could not play on the varsity team.
His expulsion effectively blackballed him from playing basketball for any college or university. The head of the National Basketball Association(NBA) piled on, saying he would not be allowed to play in the NBA.
Connie Hawkins was not only a good player but, by all accounts, may have been the greatest player of his generation. If Nike had been around in the 1960s, there might have been a shoe line known as the “Air Hawks,” a precursor to the “Air Jordans” of more recent times.
The intersection of gamblers and sports figures is concerning. Did Sonny Liston take a dive in the first round of his heavyweight championship fight with Muhammad Ali for the benefit of gamblers? Did Pete Rose take his foot off the gas pedal because he was betting on baseball games? No matter that Pete (Charlie Hustle) played as hard as always. Because of his gambling, he will never be admitted to the Baseball Hall of Fame where he belongs as one of the best players of the 20th century.
But 1961 is not only some 60 years ago, it is the Pleistocene age when compared to the present day. Back then, no one would have dared suggest that a professional sports team be located in a place such as Las Vegas.
The most recent version of the Super Bowl was played in Las Vegas. Las Vegas now has an NFL football team (Raiders), a WNBA basketball team (Aces), a NHL hockey team (Golden Knights) and it’s about to get a MLB baseball team (Athletics). The Commissioner of the National Basketball Association has just announced that Vegas is at the head of the queue for an NBA franchise when expansion occurs, and LeBron James has indicated that he would like to be the owner of that franchise. What could possibly go wrong when professional athletes are in the gambling mecca of the United States?
You really have to wonder about a city whose motto is: “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!” Most cities call attention to their museums, their restaurants, their historic sites, their waterfront and the like. Vegas calls attention to the “sins” that can be committed there and adopts a “see no evil, speak no evil” attitude. That’s not exactly a message that you want to give to your children or, for that matter, to almost anyone.
There are surely upright citizens in Vegas, but it clearly leads any location in the United States for the per capita number of gamblers, grifters, hookers, touts and con men. In short, it is a place where things can run amok.
I suppose we should have seen it coming. Anybody watching a televised professional sport in the last few years has been inundated with ads from gambling websites (FanDuel, DraftKings, MGM, Caesars, etc.). You not only can bet on the game you’re watching before it starts but you can make bets on the game as it is progressing. Who was in favor of this? Well, obviously the gambling companies but maybe, not so obviously, the professional sports leagues and the state governments which take a slice of the take. Maryland took in $6.5 million from sports betting in the month of December 2023 and expects to make not less than $40 million a year. Basically, everybody gets a piece of the action.
Things are so out of control that children are now encouraged to use their smart phones to place bets with the equivalent of Monopoly money. The National Football League (NFL) and Nickelodeon launched a kid’s site which has sport betting elements, www.legalsportsreport.com. Sponge Bob, the animated Nickelodeon character recognized by all kids, can now help to pick the winner of the Super Bowl. Presumably, once schooled, kids can then graduate to the real deal.
Well, is this the end of the Country as we know it? Probably not, but I am not comfortable when sports and gambling are so chummy. The genie may be out of the bottle, but the least that the professional sports leagues could do is pump the brakes every once in a while. For instance, get out of the business of hooking kids.
In the end, Connie Hawkins did play in the NBA and was a star. But he only succeeded by bringing a lawsuit against the NBA for its role in denying him the opportunity to play. The NBA relented when it was clear that its defense was going to fail, and it arranged a settlement which awarded Hawkins today’s equivalent of $10 million and the right to play. He had lost at least five good years because of the NBA’s intransigence but still he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
The NBA has now forgotten about its old objections as it readies entrance into the Vegas sweepstakes because that’s where the money is. The NFL is already there along with Nickelodeon.
Who knows but it may be a possibility that, in another 60 years, Sponge Bob is inducted into the Football Hall of Fame.