After one of its worst seasons in franchise history, Canada’s only NBA team now has the indignity of seeing one of its players kicked out of the league. 

Driving the news: Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has received a lifetime ban from the NBA after an investigation found he broke the league’s gambling rules by betting on games and, more seriously, manipulating games that he played to benefit sports bettors.

• In one particularly egregious instance of bet-fixing, a bettor wagered US$80,000 that Porter would fail to achieve certain stats in a game.
  
  
• Porter feigned illness to leave this game early to ensure the bet would hit. It would have netted $1.1 million… if the activity hadn’t been flagged as suspicious. 

Zoom out: As the widespread legalization of single-game sports betting hit Canada and the U.S. in recent years, there has been a correlating spike in sports betting offences. 

• At least a dozen NFL players have been suspended since 2018 — the year the U.S. Supreme Court opened up sports betting — for violations relating to gambling. 
  
  
• The NHL handed out its first sports gambling-related suspension since the rollicking 1940s earlier this season, suspending Ottawa Senator Shane Pinto for 41 games.
  
  
• And the MLB is still abuzz after a criminal investigation concluded that the interpreter of superstar Shohei Ohtani embezzled money from his boss to gamble on sports.

Why it matters: It’s become clear that pro sports have a very real gambling problem that is beginning to infect the integrity of the product. As fans are bombarded with an endless stream of sportsbook ads, they can no longer trust if they’re watching a clean game.—QH

Details released on gold heist arrests. Police arrested six men and are searching for three others in connection to last year’s heist of ~$23 million in gold and cash — the largest in Canadian history — at Toronto’s Pearson airport. Two of the men alleged to be involved are Air Canada employees. No word yet on whether Netflix is trying to option the story for a movie. (CNN)

TikTok testing Instagram rival in Canada. TikTok has given select users in Canada and Australia access to Notes, its photo-sharing app meant to compete with Instagram. The homepage is reportedly split into two sections, with one side showing posts from people you follow and the other a “For You” page showing recommended posts. (The Verge)

Alberta close to securing a deal with family doctors. Danielle Smith’s government is closing on a new compensation model for family doctors that she says will make Alberta a national leader in attracting and keeping scarce family practitioners. One remaining point of contention is that the funding will only go to doctors with at least 500 patients. (CTV News)—QH, LA

Business at Adidas is booming this year. If you’re wondering why, just go for a walk around town and count how many pairs of Sambas you see walking the street.

What happened: Shares in the German sports giant hit a two-year high — fully recovering from the financial tumult caused by their break-up with Kanye West in 2022 — after a smashing first quarter led by sales for its retro Samba, Gazelle, and Campus sneakers.

Catch-up: The Samba — the oldest Adidas model, originating in 1949 — exploded in popularity after going viral. That fire has kept burning in stores and on the resale market. The resale site Depop reported that searches for Sambas were up 142% since the start of 2024.

Zoom out: It’s not just Adidas that has reaped rewards from retro styles. New Balance has gone from ‘#1 choice for out-of-touch dads’ to ‘fave of Taylor Swift’ thanks to its classic 550s. GQ posits that the next big shoe trend is old-school tennis shoes, with Nike leading the way.

Why it matters: The continued rise of the Samba is about more than just looking like Harry Styles. Shoe brands’ reliance on retro faves to drive sales at the expense of new designs is part of a broader trend in consumer culture of looking to the past, per some fashion experts. 

• Just like how Hollywood won’t make a movie these days unless it’s based on existing IP, brands are avoiding risks by sticking to products they already know people love. 

Yes, but: We may have reached Peak Samba, with overexposure — best exemplified by the deeply uncool U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak rocking them — hurting their hip factor.—QH

The feds are hoping Canada’s top pension funds will consider spending a little more of their ~$2 trillion in assets at home. 

Driving the news: Ottawa is enlisting former Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz to spearhead a new working group tasked with getting Canadian pension funds to invest more in their own backyard, particularly in housing and infrastructure.

• Just last month, nearly 100 business leaders signed an open letter urging the feds and provinces to force pension plans to invest more domestically.

• Investments in public Canadian companies currently make up just 4% of Canadian pension funds holdings, a steep decline from 28% in 2000. 

Why it matters: The feds have a tough balancing act on their hands. While the economy could certainly benefit from the pension funds' cash, forcing domestic investments could quickly sour returns, which would be bad news for, well, every Canadian who wants to retire. 

• Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec — one of the few funds with a mandate to invest domestically — has seen its returns suffer as a result. 

Bottom line: By framing the working group as an olive branch and not a threat, Ottawa seems open to changes that could let funds invest in domestic businesses and infrastructure without sacrificing results for their members.—LA