I think almost everything in the current market can be called gambling. Especially in cases where a person, not understanding the issue, acts on a whim after reading exclamation headings about NTF.
90% of NTFs are not bought and are useless. Those that buy usually buy 1 or 2 times. This is a beginner trap.
You are right that many people make their decisions just based on another's advice, without their own research and understanding of the situation. People just enter the game to make money on it, they buy expensive things like axies in Axie Infinity, this way they spend 1200$, but they are not interested in the game itself, so it is a real risk when you don't understand and just follow the crowd.