NJ Governor Phil Murphy Approves Betting on NBA Games in Atlantic City’s Golden Nugget

The sports betting figures for the next Q already stand more than positive chances to break all the record, as New Jersey Governor, Phil Murphy, made a ground-breaking decision. He has signed a bill which enables the Atlantic City’s Golden Nugget Casino (GN) to allow punters to place wagers on most National Basketball Association (NBA) games.

The prohibition on all NBA bets had a huge (negative) impact on the Nugget’s NJ sports betting business. Even though wagering on football and some other sports was already permitted in this establishment, a punter wanting to bet on basketball would have to visit some other venue, which decreases the likelihood that he or she would consider the Nugget at all for sports betting.

Grateful and Appreciative

Texas billionaire, Tilman Fertitta, who is the owner of Golden Nugget Casino…

… is among the ones to benefit the most from this decision, as he also owns the NBA’s Houston Rockets team. When NJ lawmakers approved sports betting last year, a provision in the law strictly prohibited team owners to place or accept bets on any games involving their sport.

The newest stats show that GN contributed with $15m, making the parlor a leader for online gaming growth.

Steve Scheinthal, general counsel for the GN’s parent company, Houston-based Landry’s Inc., commented on the bill as follows:

“We’re grateful and appreciative that people eventually realized this was an overreaction. It allows us to compete. It was like going into a boxing ring with one arm tied behind your back. You just can’t compete that way. It gave everyone a year’s head start on us.”

Murphy’s Words and Predictions

In April this year, Governor Murphy held a significant speech during USA’s largest sports betting trade event and conference, Betting on Sports America. He played a crucial role in greenlighting sports wagering in NJ shortly after PASPA was overthrown.

Predicting that NJ will beat Nevada in figures…

…as early as the next year, Murphy pointed out that his vision is centered around making the Garden State both “the intellectual and technical capital of online sports wagering in the US.”

Nugget s Forces with Operators

Atlantic City’s venue is also a significant contributor regarding the expansion of online and mobile sports betting. Following up on their launch of a sportsbook meant for in-person wagering only, Nugget teamed up with SBTech to diversify the offering.

The activities continued to expand rapidly…

…boosted with the Big Time Gaming’s partnership with GN. The Scientific Games’ top-performing network partner BTG will bring the content to the venue via the renowned Open Gaming System (OGS) platform.

Source:

“New Jersey Governor Signs Bill which Allow Golden Nugget to Take NBA Bets”, Niji Narayan, europeangaming.eu, September 18, 2019.