Parker "surprised" and "shocked" at NBA scandal

(AFP)
Updated: 2007-07-26 09:58

French basketball star Tony Parker on Wednesday expressed his "surprise" and "shock" at the NBA's alleged match fixing scandal involving referee Tim Donaghy.

"For the moment we can't talk too much about it because we don't really know what happened exactly.

"But I was surprised and shocked, I didn't think that it could still happen," said the San Antonio Spurs playmaker, who this year became the first European to be the most valuable player in the NBA finals.

American daily, The New York Post, on Friday reported the FBI were investigating Donaghy, who supposedly worked with mobsters to fix margins and outcomes of NBA games to pay off gambling debts.

"Sporting bets is a huge thing in the United States, in Las Vegas you can bet a lot of money on the game, but I thought the referees were on the level." said Parker, who recently married "Desperate Housewives" star Eva Longoria.

Donaghy resigned earlier this month after a 13-year career following allegations he bet on the games he was officiating in.

No specific games in which he was involved have been revealed as being under scrutiny, although among those he handled was a game in the San Antonio-Phoenix playoff series.

San Antonio beat the Suns and swept to the NBA crown over Cleveland in the finals.



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