Can Vegas Bookies Save Sports?

Sports that once slammed betting are now playing ball with Vegas bookies, the Wall Street Journal reports. Pro and college leagues hire advisers to spot odd bets and the players or refs who may be shaving points behind them."It's a way for them, I think, to be able to tell their athletes: 'There's someone in Vegas watching you,'" says a rep at Las Vegas Sports Consultants.
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Such companies have set spreads for years, helping casinos profit on what is called "equal betting flow." But sports leagues opposed gambling for years, until a spate of scandals forced them to reach out. "The leagues have a public stance that, 'We don't like gaming,'" says one better. "But the reality is that without Las Vegas and without sports betting, their giant empires would crumble." (More NBA stories.)