My, how the tables have turned.

On Monday, Commissioner Silver was a guest on The Boomer & Carton Show in New York, and went into significant detail about his opinion of "Legalizing Gambling."

What I'd like to do now is review what he said ...

Listen: I get it, Roger. You are protecting the brand, the NFL's partnerships, sponsors, and the "integrity of the game." You also seem like someone who still uses a flip phone, but, hey you're the commissioner of the most popular pro sport in the country — so, I guess you're entitled to do things that make completely no sense.

Other than Gooddell living in the stone age, there are issues that ALL commissioners have to take into account before publicly advocating their support for legalized sports gambling. The most important, BY FAR, is that gambling can be a HORRIBLE addiction/disease for people — to the point it single-handily ruins lives. Arguably more so than drugs/alcohol. Thus, all it takes is one viral story of someone who lost everything everything they had — legally betting on the over/under in a random Celtics/Raptors game, ends up doing something REALLY bad to themselves, and this whole thing completely backfires. Yes, it is the responsibility of the bettor to bet within their means — but, tell that to the family of the guy who hangs himself from the George Washington Bridge after gambling away his kid's college tuition.

My solution: Opt-Out clause. This shouldn't be: "OK, THE BILL PASSED – GAMBLING IS LEGAL FOREVER WOO!!!" There's too much at stake. Like any standard contract, the "sports gambling legalization" bill should be voted on yearly. This way, if shit hits the fan ... we can either get rid of it, or, amend the process.

"Because they have all that data, they're able to monitor it," Silver said. "And if there's any irregular activity whatsoever, it's like tracking insider trading on the New York Stock Exchange. If there's a blip, if there's unusual activity, they know to investigate. So first the issue for us is if all this betting is going to go on anyway, we should be able to monitor it. And then, No. 2, if all this betting activity is going to go on anyway, make it legal."

I love Adam Silver more than anyone, but, I'm not sure he realizes what he's getting himself into here. I gamble on sports ... A LOT. One thing I've learned from being plugged into this industry every single day is that people will do ANYTHING to win a bet. That includes:

* Bartering for inside info on players/coaches/injuries/whatever
* Taking advantage of bad, stale spreads
* Advertising a play on social media in hopes of getting people to bet it, and then secretly betting the other side — once they got enough people to inflate the opponent's number.

If gambling is legalized: What is stopping someone with a lot of money on the game from running on to the floor and disrupting the outcome/injuring a key player? Yes, gambling is already legal in Europe and degenerate hooligans attempting to influence the result has rarely occurred, if ever (as far as we know) and that can technically happen in the US now as is — but, if gambling is ever legalized and has nationwide-consumption ... the number of alcohol-infused, irrational "degenerates" in attendance at professional sporting events is going to increase 1000 times over, and you are naive if you think this isn't a very realistic possibility — especially with fans being within arms reach of players on a basketball court, on top of the dugout at a baseball field, or, even with field access during football games.

I don't have any data or studies to prove this hypothesis, I'm simply sharing my experience from inside the trenches.

In addition, who's running these "legal" sportsbooks? If they're legal, that means the audience is going to be MASSIVE – and at some point, something such as a "Peyton Manning Knee Injury, OUT this weekend" report is going to be tweeted by Adam Schefter/out-of-nowhere ... and $ will FLOOD in like water does after those talking trees break the dams at Isenguard in 'Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.'

If the Sportsbook isn't quick enough to update the line for that week's Denver Broncos game against, let's say: the Steelers (+7) — and MILLIONS pour in on the (+7) line before they're able to update it to the appropriate, adjusted spread: Steelers (-1) ... does the government honor the bets on (+7), or, do they cancel them? Today, bettors are at the mercy of their bookie in this scenario — but, if 'spread gambling' is ever legalized ... this is one of MANY things that needs to be addressed BEFORE players are allowed to wager ... otherwise, there will be a mutiny on town halls across America unlike anything you've ever seen before.

"It's good for business, I don't want to hide from that," he continued. "Putting aside whether or not we're actually actively involved in any of the betting, it creates more engagement. We all know as fans if you have, even like a gentleman's bet or a $5 bet with your friend on a game, all of a sudden you're a lot more interested."

Silver nails it here. I can't tell you how many times I've been sitting around on a Saturday night, doing nothing, and bet the Hawaii College Football game that starts at Midnight. (Side note: I really need a girlfriend). In addition: I can't tell you the name of one player who has been on Hawaii's football roster the past decade, yet, I will consume the NCAA College Football brand/Hawaii Athletics WEEKLY if I have money on it.

The same scenario applies for all sports — including the NBA. There are a ton of fans in attendance, nightly, who wouldn't classify themselves as "die-hards". The only reason they may be in the arena is because they were given a free ticket. Ultimately, what Commissioner Silver wants to do is give these people a/ANY reason to come back and spend money on his product, even if they "don't like professional basketball."

In his eyes: the bait that hooks the most amount of fish — is gambling ... and I'm with him.

This is a reprint from thebiglead.com. to view the original, click here.