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NBA Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady Becomes BetVictor Canada Ambassador

NBA Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady has been in the news a lot lately, mostly for welcoming cousin and former fellow Toronto Raptor Vince Carter into the Hall a few weeks back. He’s also been backing his fledging one-on-one basketball tournament, called Ones Basketball League.

Now, on Wednesday, BVGroup announced that the seven-time NBA All-Star has joined their team as its new Safer Gambling Ambassador in Canada for its flagship BetVictor brand.

NBA Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady signs with BetVictor as its Safer Gambling Ambassador in Canada. Image/BetVictor

Responsible Gambling Message

“Tracy is a hugely popular ex-Toronto Raptor with a special connection to Toronto and Canada,” said Mark Harper, head of emerging markets for BVGroup, to Casino.org. “He will be helping BetVictor promote our safer gambling tools in Canada and will help BetVictor shine a light on the importance of responsible gambling and the safer gambling tools that we offer our customers. Tracy will help BetVictor communicate our safer gambling message in Canada.”

McGrady and Carter had some memorable times playing for the Raptors together in the late 1990s. Carter was drafted fifth overall by the Golden State Warriors in 1998, then traded to the Raptors. From there “Vinsanity” was born. Carter became a global star, winning NBA Rookie of the Year in 1999, followed by the memorable Slam Dunk Contest win at the 2000 NBA All-Star Weekend.

Jontay Porter Suspension Topped the News

McGrady joined the Raptors right out of high school in the 1997 NBA draft (ninth overall pick), forming a duo with his cousin. But it was only when he left the Raptors for the Orlando Magic in 2000 that his career really took off, becoming one of the league’s most prolific scorers. McGrady went into the Hall of Fame in 2017. On the other side, Carter would end up playing 22 years in the league and has gone into the Hall as a Raptor.

In a statement, McGrady said: “I’m delighted to continue my close partnership with BVGroup and become BetVictor’s Safer Gambling Ambassador in Canada.”

McGrady and Carter: Dynamic Duo

BetVictor offers an array of tools and services to help its Canadian customers bet and play safely and responsibly, across a host of sports betting markets and online casino games.

The NBA was in the betting news for all the wrong reasons last season after former Raptor Jontay Porter was banned from the league after an investigation showed that he compromised his play to help bettors win money on Raptors games on January 26 and March 20. Porter later admitted in court he schemed to take himself out of games to help get out from under large gambling debts.

 

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Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Becomes Illinois’ Only Recognized Tribe

The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation has become Illinois’ only federally recognized tribe.

Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation, Prairie Band Resort and Casino, Illinois, Chicago
Will we see a Prairie Band Resort and Casino in Illinois like the one in Kansas? The tribe has no immediate plans but is considering its options. (Image: Prairie Band)

That’s after the U.S. Department of the Interior announced Friday it had placed 130 acres of land 70 miles west of Chicago into trust for the tribe. This is the process that converts land into a sovereign tribal reservation, partially removing it from the jurisdiction of the state, a prerequisite for Indian gaming.

The Prairie Band is headquartered near Mayetta, Kansas, where it operates the Prairie Band Resort and Casino but has ancestral ties to the land in Illinois.

The tribe believes that the land was illegally auctioned off 175 years ago, while Chief Shab-eh-nay was visiting relatives in Kansas.

Righting Wrongs

“Our federal government unlawfully sold the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation’s land in Illinois,” said Prairie Band Chairman Joseph Rupnick, the fourth-generation great grandson of Chief Shab-eh-nay, in a statement. “The decision to put portions of the Shab-eh-nay Reservation into Trust is an important step to returning the land that is rightfully theirs.”

We have been asking for this recognition and for what is rightfully ours for nearly 200 years, and we are grateful to the U.S. Department of Interior for this significant step in the pursuit of justice for our people and ancestors,” Rupnick added.

The tribe did not say how it intended to use the land, other than it would “carefully evaluate” all possibilities. Back in 2016, shortly after the Prairie Band purchased the land, the tribe proposed a class II gaming facility, but it’s unclear if those plans will be revived.

Room for Another Casino?

A casino so close to the Chicago metropolitan area might be an attractive option. But Illinois’ gaming landscape has been transformed since 2016. In 2019, Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) signed a gambling expansion package that would establish one big casino in Chicago and five smaller regional casinos in the southern suburbs. Another casino in the area could lead to saturation.

The tribe could operate class II gaming, such as electronic bingo and poker, under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act without the permission of the state. A class III casino, with Las Vegas-style slots and table games, would require compact negotiations with the state.

A bill filed in the Illinois House of Representatives in February would give more land to the Prairie Band. But it contains a clause that would require the tribe to maintain the land as a public conservation area – which might rule out a future casino — or face a hefty fine from the federal government.

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Snoop Dogg Becomes ‘Chief Ganjaroo Officer’ of Crypto Casino Roobet

Snoop Dogg is synonymous with marijuana, and the hip-hop legend’s newest gig puts cannabis directly into his job title.

Snoop Dogg cryptocurrency casino Roobet crypto
Snoop Dogg is joining an online cryptocurrency casino as a brand ambassador with the title of “Chief Ganjaroo Officer.” Snoop plans to bring his decades of experience in the music industry and his keen ability to build a brand to the casino called Roobet. (Image: Invision)

Snoop announced this week that he’s partnered with Roobet, an online cryptocurrency casino, to become their “Chief Ganjaroo Officer.” In the promotional role, the rap legend and NFT (non-fungible token) influencer will help market the online crypto casino.

Roobet is a subsidiary of Raw Entertainment B.V., an online gaming firm based and licensed in Curacao. The South American island country near Aruba is a hub for offshore iGaming and online bookmaking platforms.

Roobet is an online casino that allows players to gamble with cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin.

The site offers more than 2,000 slot machines and interactive table games. The casino says one of its more popular games is its proprietary roulette offering that simply challenges players to wager on what color symbol the pill will land on. Roobet also offers cryptocurrency sports betting.

Roobet is blocked in the US and throughout most of Europe.

Developing a Brand

Roobet co-founder Matt Duea explained that bringing on Snoop Dogg, a celebrity who rarely needs an introduction, is about building the crypto casino’s brand. Launched in 2019, Roobet claims to be one of the fastest-growing crypto casinos in the world.

“Since day one, our mission has been to push the boundaries of what a gaming brand can be, and Snoop’s a real visionary,” said Duea. “Together, we’re going to truly revolutionize the online entertainment experience.”

Duea explained that Roobet seeks to provide the “most exciting and immersive online casino experience” available.

“With Snoop by our side, the future of digital entertainment is looking brighter than ever,” Duea added.

Snoop said he was attracted to the sponsorship opportunity because of Roobet’s brand uniqueness.

These guys are doing something different,” Snoop said. “This partnership just feels natural, and we’re going to blaze a trail for the future of online entertainment.”

Roobet said Snoop will lend his entertainment industry and brand expertise to the casino enterprise.

Crypto Rebound

The December arrest of Sam Bankman-Fried, the co-founder and CEO of FTX, once a leading cryptocurrency exchange, devastated the crypto industry.

Prior to his arrest in the Bahamas where FTX was headquartered, bitcoin was trading above $20,000. Bankman-Fried being charged with wire fraud, commodities fraud, securities fraud, money laundering, and campaign finance law violations sent bitcoin into a nosedive, with the cryptocurrency trading below $17,000 just weeks later.

Bankman-Fried is alleged to have used customers’ FTX crypto holdings to make risky investments through another company he founded, Alameda Research. When reports surfaced about FTX funds being improperly used to fund Alameda, customers began withdrawing their crypto holdings, which led to FTX filing for bankruptcy when it couldn’t complete the requested transactions.

Some Wall Street observers felt FTX’s demise would permanently hurt the crypto markets, but prices have since rebounded. Bitcoin is trading above $23,300 this morning — though that’s about 47% below where the digital currency was trading at this time last year.

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