That's correct poverty is the main reason many people engage in gambling at first, it could be sport betting or casino games, poverty is the main reason they play because they want to get extra income. lottery wins comes with big money than sport betting or playing slots games in the casino. People believe they can win that's why they keep playing.
I know someone in my country that has never won a lottery ticket before but he keeps on playing and hasn't stopped. The person is good with sports betting but instead of putting efforts in that type of gambling he prefers wasting money on lottery ticket and always fails.
The chances of winning with lottery are impossible, I only hear of stories of how someone from some part of the world won millions in lottery ticket but I haven't seen one myself. It feel some of this stories are fake just to make people to continuously buy the lottery tickets.
Your frien, the habitual lottery player, is an interesting case. It's as if he's caught in the web of lottery's seemingly immense but rare rewards rather than focusing on sports betting where his skills can actually bring in steady wins. A classic case of ignoring a stream of small fish for the chance of landing a whale, I'd say. I feel rebelliously empathetic for him.
When it comes to lottery winning stories, I can't deny being sociologically absorbed. These narratives do seem overblown, dont they? Its like fishing tales where the fish keeps getting bigger with each telling. Rather than being sucked into this whirlpool, it's more constructive to develop a balanced approach, understanding the risks involved and not being overly swayed by the elusive mega jackpot.