11/13/2008 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Since it's an odd year in the NBA, it wasn't really a stretch picking the San Antonio Spurs to win an NBA championship.
After all, the club's last three championship rings came in 2003, 2005 and 2007.
But, any hopes of regaining championship hardware in the Alamo City revolved around the team's big three -- Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili -- having big seasons.
When Ginobili injured his left ankle late last season and then aggravated it in Beijing playing for Argentina in the Olympics, it put the talented swingman on the shelf for at least two months. Certainly not a best case scenario for Gregg Popovich's club but some were able to spin the situation as a positive.
The Spurs certainly had enough talent to tread water while waiting for Ginobili to return and the NBA's best sixth man would be all rested and ready to go for the all important stretch run.
But, when Parker suffered a severely sprained ankle against Miami last week things got even dimmer. The French star will miss a month's worth of action and Popovich's starting backcourt for the foreseeable future will be rookie George Hill and Roger Mason Jr.
Duncan is still as solid as it gets but San Antonio may have trouble keeping it together without its quarterback.
In fact, Popovich may have to scrape his preseason plan and hope to garner the seventh or eight spot in the West.
Once the playoffs start, it's a new season and it's hard to imagine anyone -- even a 65-win Los Angeles Lakers team -- wanting to face off with a playoff- tested trio of Duncan, Parker and Ginobili.
T-MAC FINDS HIS STROKE
Tracy McGrady is one of the best pure scorers in the NBA and is as tough a matchup as you will find but a sore knee was certainly affecting the superstar.
During a convincing Lakers 111-82 win over the Rockets on Sunday, McGrady was limited to three points on 1-of-11 shooting and was a woeful 1-for-16 over two games.
After seeing a doctor Wednesday morning, T-Mac went out and had his best offensive game of the season, scoring 22 of his 27 points in the second half as the Rockets routed Phoenix, 94-82, in a game marred by a fracas toward the end of the third quarter.
With 27.6 seconds left in the third, McGrady hit a three-pointer to give the Rockets a commanding 74-55 advantage, but a melee broke out thanks to the Suns' Matt Barnes and Houston's Rafer Alston. To the right of McGrady, Barnes appeared to shove Alston, who was setting a pick. After the play, Alston came back and had some words for Barnes.
"(Barnes) took a cheap shot at me," Alston said after the game. "If you look at the replay, the ref is standing there watching it. It was a dirty play. There was no call for my reaction really, but sometimes when someone goes at you like that, you just react."
McGrady came in to defend his teammate and shoved Phoenix guard Steve Nash to the floor. Suns policeman Shaquille O'Neal immediately came in and pushed McGrady to the floor.
"It was just a shoving match," O'Neal said. "I saw somebody push (Nash), and so I came to his aid. It wasn't anything good."
The Barnes push was apparently in retaliation for a screen McGrady had set earlier, which caused Nash to suffer a gash on his neck. Nash, O'Neal and McGrady all received technical fouls, while Alston and Barnes were ejected.
McGrady shot 11-of-18 from the floor and 4-for-5 from long range for the Rockets,
It's tough to say the fracas let a fire under McGrady since T-Mac was dominating before it even started but the chippy play against a tough opponent certainly seemed to help the seven-time All-Star's energy level.
DOOR SLAMMED SHUT
Mark Cuban is the kind of owner you want as a fan. The mercurial billionaire will never rest until his team wins a title but let's be honest, the door has slammed shut on this version of the Mavs.
Three short years ago, the Mavs were in the NBA Finals, losing to the Miami Heat. Dallas was heavy favorites to win the championship following an incredible 67-15 regular season in 2006-07, but then came a shocking first- round loss to Golden State in the playoffs. Last year, it was the same song and dance...another first-round ousting, this time in New Orleans.
Sick and tired of not reaching the pinnacle, Cuban unloaded Avery Johnson in the offseason and brought in a former Coach of the Year in Rick Carlisle but things have been ugly early on and the Mavs are off to a miserable 2-5 start.
Los Angeles' Pau Gasol had 22 points and 11 rebounds, and converted a critical three-point play with 23.1 seconds remaining, helping the Lakers remain unbeaten with a 106-99 win over the reeling Mavericks in Dallas on Tuesday.
Jason Kidd logged his 101st career triple-double with 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, but the Mavericks fell to 0-3 at home for the first time since 1993-94, when they lost their first 19 home games.
"It is early, but at the same time we need to start getting some wins under our belt," said Kidd. "We can learn from this game and understand that we are not that far off. We just need to stay together and keep fighting."
CHAMPIONSHIP CONTENDER?
Most consider New Orleans a legitimate championship contender but the Hornets came up short in their first chance to prove it when they failed to hold serve on their homecourt in a 93-86 loss to the Lakers Wednesday.
Star guard Chris Paul did extend his amazing record of at least 20 points and 10 assists in all seven games this season, finishing with 30 points, seven rebounds and 13 assists, going 13-of-19 from the field. "The Big O" Oscar Robertson had the previous mark of five in a row to start the 1968 campaign with the Cincinnati Royals.
David West added 21 points and 12 rebounds, but accounted for six of New Orleans' 17 turnovers. Peja Stojakovic tallied 10 points, but was 3-of-13 from the floor, for the Hornets, who have dropped three of their last four games.
When the Hornets went 7-0 in the preseason and then won their first three games in the regular season, things looked bright for New Orleans and this is certainly a 50-win team but I have a feeling the lack of depth is going to hurt Byron Scott.
An impressive starting five of Chris Paul, West, Stojakovic, Morris Peterson, and Tyson Chandler is supplemented by veteran James Posey and little else.
MAYO GIVES GRIZZLIES HOPE
The Grizzlies are still an afterthought in one of the toughest divisions in the NBA but rookie O.J. Mayo, the third overall pick in the 2008 draft, has locals thinking things may finally change.
The USC product is averaging a team-best 20.6 points per game and has the look of a natural scorer that will eventually challenge for an NBA scoring title.
If only Mike Conley Jr., the fourth overall pick in '07, showed similar promise, coach Marc Iavaroni might have something.
Instead, Conley has taken a huge step back in his second NBA season and Iavaroni is frustrated, calling out his point guard after an embarrassing 132-103 loss to New York at home on Wednesday.
"He's not playing with confidence," Iavaroni said. "He has to play harder. When he plays hard, he's a good player. When he doesn't play hard, he's average."
Ouch.
Conley is averaging just 5.3 points and 3.8 assists while shooting a miserable 31.6 percent from the field in the team's first nine games.
He's never been a great jump shooter but had the speed and quickness to break down a defender. Lack of effort will always hamper that skill, however.
<< Seeing is Believing
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Like many college football pundits, I have
watched Texas Tech put up gaudy offensive numbers over the years and chalked
it up as a gimmick offense much like Hawaii under June Jones. I had never
been a fan of
<< Fourth-ranked Bruins battle RedHawks in 2K Sports Classic
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The fourth-ranked UCLA Bruins and Miami-
Ohio RedHawks meet up in Pauley Pavilion this evening in second-round action
of the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer.
The Bruins opened up their 90th
<< Twins sign Gardenhire to extension
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota Twins manager Ron Gardenhire has
signed a two-year contract extension that will keep him with the club through
the 2011 season.
Gardenhire will begin his eighth season as Twins skipper in 2
<< Sharks try to bounce back with home test vs. Flames
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A record-setting effort wasn't enough for San Jose to
continue its home dominance. Coming off their first loss at HP Pavilion this
year, the Sharks host the Calgary Flames tonight.
San Jose won its first nine home games of
Yankees announce 2009 coaching staff >>
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees named their coaching staff
for the 2009 season, and it includes the return of five members, while Mick
Kelleher is the lone new addition.
Pitching coach Dave Eiland, hitting coach Kev
Knee surgery ends Van Nistelrooy's season >>
Madrid, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Real Madrid striker Ruud van Nistelrooy will
miss the rest of the season after undergoing surgery on renewed injury problems
in his right knee.
The 32-year-old Dutchman had traveled to the United States f
Double trouble for Chelsea's Drogba >>
London, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chelsea striker Didier Drogba faces both FA
and police investigations over his actions in throwing a coin toward Burnley
fans during the Blues' shock Carling Cup fourth round exit at Stamford Bridge.
Th
Hibernian agrees to deal with Johansson >>
Edinburgh, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hibernian has agreed to a deal to sign
former Rangers and Charlton Athletic striker Jonatan Johansson in January.
The 33-year-old Finland forward will join the Edinburgh club on a free transfer
when
American Idol Betting Odds: Season 6
The online gambling websites are in the process of deciphering each American Idol contestant and his or her chances of winning Season 6 to come up with the early American Idol betting lines.
Tim Dalton of MySportsbook.com has been locked away in a soundproof room coming up with all the latest tallies, we are told. "American Idol has become one of the most significant betting events of the year," claims Jack Black of MySportsbook.com. "Last year, millions were bet during the season across the globe, not just in America.It's tough early on since we really do not have a glimpse as to how well each of these individuals will perform solo on a week-to-week basis. It's like Week 1 of the NFL. Pre-season means nada!
We do know the 24 finalists however.
Sanjaya Malakar is the young man whose sister failed to make it into the Top 24. He's very low key but - unless he totally flubs - will probably win over the young girlie vote for a few weeks anyway. He's too young to go all the way, according to Payton O'Brien.
Brandon Rogers - Who?
Phil Stacy is the military guy who missed his daughter's birth because of the Memphis audition. He should go a good distance.
Chris Sligh - He's got the humor and in many ways he's the Anti-American Idol much like last year's winner Taylor Hicks was. And this is why he'll probably get pretty far in this competition. He's chubby, white with a big curly afro....but more importantly, a great voice! People love "real", not "real cute" to go all the way.
"Blake Lewis should go far because of his uniqueness and looks. He's the boy next store with a twist - he beat boxes. But on top of this, he's a great singer, and I adore him," Payton O'Brien relayed.
A talented beat-boxer Blake Lewis was a hit during the group sing in Hollywood but Simon explained that this is a singing contest just before he told him he was “in.”
Paul Kim has caught our own roving reporter, Jenny Woo's eyes.
"I love the fact that there is a Korean American on the show and he is bound to get more Asians tuning into the show," Woo said from her Miami Beach estate. "There has never been a major presence of Asian-Americans on American Idol in the past. He's a hottie with a nice voice so that should help to take him far. Expect heavy betting action from the Asian community."
Sundance Head - He's not perfect, but he's got the personality that will take him through a few weeks, plus he's got the lineage (son of Roy Head - whose 1965 single, "Treat Her Right," hit No. 5 in the charts)
And the others:
Rudy Cardinas
AJ Tabaldo - the 5th time is the charm
Nicolas Pedro
Chris Richardson
Jared Cotter
The girls
"Melinda Doolittle has one of the best voices," says MySportsbook.com Reporter and an acclaimed dancer in her own right, Destiney Lewis. "It is great to see a back up singer step out like she has. The girl needs to gain more confidence but that can also be a positive. I think she will go far."
Alena Alexander - Those tears (she never seems to stop bawling) should get her far.
"Single mom Lakisha Jones I suspect will be a pretty big favorite entering Week 1 of the competition," says Destiny Williams. Jones is an excellent singer and down to earth. "She'll have a wide appeal," echoed O'Brien.
Nicole Trellis - Seems to exert confidence.
Amy Krebs - a powerful singer.
Antonella Barba
Gina Glocksen
Hailey Scanardo
Jordan Sparks
Stephanie Edwards
Leslie Hunt
Sabrina Sloan
MySportsbook.com is offering a 20% signup bonus with an initial deposit (i.e. open your American Idol betting account with $300, receive another $60 in which to bet with).
Last two contestants will be?
1 Male/1 Female +100 (a $10 bet pays $10 plus your initial $10)
2 Males +170 (a $10 bet pays $17 plus your initial $17)
2 Females +130 (a $10 bet pays $13 plus your initial $10)
MySportsbook.com is an online sportsbook accepts Visa Credit Cards and online sportsbook accepts Mastercard Credit Cards for easy American Idol betting lines.
While the NFL is the sport wagered on the heaviest, college football betting lines has become more and more popular as people realize it’s a game that can be beat. The NCAA football season gets longer each year with the addition of numerous bowl games and with that comes more opportunities for more money in your pocket, if handled correctly.
Betting on college football is not the same as with the NFL, so make sure you separate the two. Because of the vast number of teams, the parity between college football programs is slight and thus, you are going to see some high numbers in the NCAA. Teams favored by more than 40 points are not uncommon especially early in the season when teams playing their non-conference schedules.
The best advice when trying to tackle these enormous spreads and is to just stay away. A team that is favored by 40 points is favored by that many for a reason while teams getting 40 points are bad enough that they shouldn’t be touched. Set yourself a spread limit. Getting rid of these games will cut down on the number of contests that you need to handicap while staying away from backdoor or front-door covers.
What is a backdoor and front-door cover you ask? A backdoor cover is a team that is getting beat by more than the spread, but scores late to get within that number thus covering the spread. A front-door cover is just the opposite where the favorite scores late and covers the number they are favored by.
These front-door and backdoor covers are common when second and third string players enter games in college football and it can be the worst nightmare for some bettors. These players can also be your best friend, but ask any bettor and he will give you more instances on losing in this situation than winning. It just seems to work out that way even though everything evens out in the end.
College football betting has some of the softest lines of any sport and it’s being able to find these lines that will make you a successful college football handicapper. The NFL and NBA have the tightest lines around and while those sports can be beat by looking at situations and systems, college football doesn’t quite work that way. It’s much more manual, but when done correctly, it’s much more gratifying as well.
Getting into the nuts and bolts of college football means looking at the many stats in order to beat the number. As opposed to pro football, college football is less dependent on situations and angles and more on certain statistics. Rushing offense and defense, pass efficiency offense and defense and turnover margins are huge. These are vital in the NFL, but even more so when it comes to college football.
Being able to run the ball in college football has always been a key factor in the overall success of a team. The same adage also goes for teams who have the ability to stop the run. Putting these two factors together can produce some positive results in a team’s record both straight up and against the spread. These numbers show huge differences in teams and the spread may not take those into effect, which is where the value comes into play.
Passing yardage numbers both for and against can be a misinterpreted statistic. However, pass efficiency has always been one of the best ways to look at a teams’ passing game ability both offensively and defensively. But is it really a true indication of how they perform? I wouldn’t say so since they are raw passing numbers with nothing else taken into consideration.
I use pass efficiency ratings when doing my handicapping but I adjust my numbers based on a number of factors including power ratings, strength of schedules, personnel and injuries. This gives a much better picture of a team’s ability to pass effectively and also being able to defend the pass. Tweaking pass efficiency stats instead of raw passing yards is the key.
Turnovers are the single most frustrating, and at times the most gratifying, aspect of a college football lines, mostly because they are so unpredictable. They are part of the game and most of the time nothing can be done to control them. However, turnovers are contagious and they can carry over from game to game and season to season.
It’s important to know how to forecast these unforeseen events and how to use them to your advantage. You can find ways to give yourself an edge by looking at past histories of teams and coaches and how they have fared in turnover wars in the past. Instead of turnovers hurting you at the wrong times, find ways to use them to your advantage.
As you can see, college football handicapping is very labor intensive and isn’t just based on where teams are ranked in the AP and coaches polls. Experience, coaching and match-ups are all important since unlike the NFL, college teams turn over much more often with new personnel at most positions every single year. Keeping current on this information is vital.
Betting NCAA football can be lucrative if done correctly, but more importantly, it’s just plain enjoyable because it can be beat. College football is one of the best sports to watch with some of the best rivalries taking place in all of sports. The only downfall is that a championship isn’t decided on the field but on a computer-based system that is the Bowl Championship Series. That will change someday and we will all be better off for it.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your NCAA college football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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