Heat no slam dunk

The basketball betting excitement in South Beach is at a feverish match at the moment. The Miami Heat are not only the talk of Florida, but also of the NBA odds world. Additions of LeBron James and Chris Bosh have made basketball odds fans very high on the Heat to contend for a championship this season.

Sports Betting currently has the Heat at 6 to 4 to win the NBA title, almost unseen odds when you consider where they were last season, a middle-of-the-road team that went out of the postseason without much of a fight. In fact, Miami is actually the same NBA betting odds right now as the champion Lakers. Go figure. Before they even tip it off, the Heat are on par with Los Angeles?

The talk around the Heat has been the possibility of making defenses guard both LeBron James and Dwayne Wade at the same time, a seemingly impossible task. Both players are gifted at driving to the net and at spreading the ball around. There’s no disputing their skill level or their tantalizing possibilities as teammates.

However, where the Heat are lacking is in the middle. They have a mix and match of budding career backups and over-the-hill vets that have seen better days. There really isn’t much of a threat for 48 minutes in the middle. When you consider how the Boston Celtics lost game seven of the NBA finals this past June (lack of rebounding), you have to wonder just how good of a bet the Heat are to win the NBA championship in their first season together.

Another angle to consider is the international one. We’ve seen American basketball teams go to the Olympics and the Worlds and win, but we’ve also seen them lose. Other countries figured out a way to compete with and beat the U.S. stacked squad, so why wouldn’t other NBA teams be able to do the same with Miami? At this point, 6 to 4 odds to win it all seem a little premature. The smart money is still on the Lakers.

Shaq a Celtic

The demise of the Boston Celtics has been written over and over this NBA betting offseason. It seems many are giving the Miami Heat the best basketball odds to reach the NBA finals. Did we miss something here? Aren’t the Celts bringing back, essentially, the same team that was a few points away from winning the title?

Boston has been called aging and finished by the critics for a couple of years now. Still, their veteran stars continue to perform at a high level. NBA odds are starting to skew towards the Heat and all of their new acquisitions. However, basketball bettors at Sports Betting shouldn’t overlook the Celtics.

Boston had a very quiet offseason. They re-signed both Paul Pierce and Ray Allen, two of their key veterans. Boston also managed to replace the retired Rasheed Wallace with Shaquille O’Neal. In Shaq, Boston loses some of the outside shooting ability that Wallace brought, but they now have less of a risk of technical fouls and they upgrade their rebounding ability. Boston was terribly outrebounded versus the Lakers in the final postseason game last year and knew they needed to correct that element.

Meanwhile, point guard Rajon Rondo continues to emerge for the Celtics. Each year, he becomes more critical to the Celtics success and his game becomes more well-rounded. If he can develop a reliable outside jump shot, Boston will be able to match up with anyone in the league, including the Miami Heat.

It’s almost criminal to think that the Celtics are only a 10-1 shot to win the NBA title. Now is the perfect chance to get in on those favorable NBA odds. With Miami and the Lakers listed as 6-4 co-favorites to win it all, the respect for Boston has waned considerably. Look for this experienced team to use this as motivation in their quest to get back to the finals and finish what they couldn’t this past June.

Nevertheless, the team worked out Tracy McGrady recently and gave him a physical.

Clips GM Neil Olshey didn’t reveal much when asked about how the session with McGrady went as he said it went well and both sides would continue to evaluate their options.

According to ESPN, the Clippers are doing their homework when it comes to a deal with T-Mac.

“You’re talking about one of the greatest offensive talents in our game, and if Tracy is motivated and he’s right, and he wants to be with us … how could you not bring him in and take a look?” he told ESPN last week.

McGrady has been hampered by a number of injuries in the past few years, including to his knee.

If the Clippers don’t sign McGrady could the Chicago Bulls?

According to an ESPN Chicago report, the team is looking into McGrady but is not actively pursuing the free agent — they are not “committed to the idea of pursuing McGrady but are simply one of the team’s analyzing the possibility” says the report.

The Los Angeles Clippers are listed as +7500 longshots to take the Western Conference title this upcoming season.

The Chicago Bulls are listed at +600 to win the Eastern Conference.

While the Heat were able to re-sign Dwyane Wade and add Chris Bosh and LeBron James, guard Derek Fisher decided against joining Miami in favor of his old team, the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers.

“My free agency was a time for me to re-evaluate my position in the league, reflect on my accomplishments individually and as a teammate, and determine what new goals I want to achieve in the future,” Fisher said on his official website.

“I have decided to continue with Kobe, continue with our teammates and the fans of Los Angeles. While this may not be the most lucrative contract I’ve been offered this off season, it is the most valuable.”

“I am confident I will continue to lead this team on and off the court. Let the hunt for six begin…”

According to ESPN, Fisher’s deal is for three years for $10.5 million with an option in year three and also reports that Fisher met with Miami Heat brass on Saturday in Miami.

With or without Fisher, the Over/Under on the total amount of championships the Miami Heat will win in the next five seasons is 1.5.

There are many rumors as to where James will end up.

Some say he, along with former Toronto Raptor Chris Bosh, will head to the Miami Heat to play with Dwyane Wade and if that happens, it will pay out at -149.

The New York Knicks just added Amare Stoudemire from the Phoenix Suns and some are thinking LeBron would love New York.

According to Sportsbetting.com, there is a +100 chance that LeBron James will end up in the Big Apple.

With new Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov and Jay-Z backing the Nets, could LeBron James head to New Jersey?

+250 if that’s the case.

The Chicago Bulls were rumored not too long ago to be trying to swing a deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers for James and are listed at +150 to win the James lottery.

Then there’s James’ original team, the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Cavs have made some moves that were probably meant to entice the King, including the addition of new bench boss Byron Scott.

Cleveland is listed at -250 to retain the services of LeBron James.

More LeBron James-related betting here.

Despite taking the title though, the Lakers failed to cover as 7-point home faves and the Total, which was set at 186.5, went Under.

Kobe Bryant was named NBA Finals MVP and was awarded the Bill Russell MVP award, finishing Game 7 with 23-points, 15 rebounds and a pair of assists but he also went only 6 of 24 from the field.

“I wanted it so bad, and sometimes when you want it so bad, it slips away from you,” Kobe told the AP after the game.

“My guys picked me up.”

And that was indeed the case as forward Ron Artest chipped in with 20-points, Pau Gasol contributed 19 and Derek Fisher added 10.

Prior to the start of the championship, the Lakers were listed as -170 in series price betting and the Celtics were +150 underdogs.

The 2010 NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers comes down to one game and a seventh game at that.

The Lakers are 7-point home faves and the Total is set at 186.5.

The Celtics are 6-3 against the spread in their last nine games against the Lakers at the STAPLES Center while the Lakers are 17-3 straight up in their last 20 home games.

In the Lakers’ last eight games when favored by 8-points or less, they are 6-2 SU and 5-3 ATS and in the Celtics’ last nine at +8 or less, they are 6-3 SU and ATS.

The Celtics had an opportunity to win their second NBA title in three years and they blew it, losing 89-67 to the Lakers in Game 6.

Boston was a 6.5-point underdog and the series is all tied up at three games apiece (3-3).

The Lakers shot 41.8 percent from the field, as opposed to 33 percent for the Celtics, they made 89.5 percent of their free throws, while Boston only made 60 percent and they outrebounded the Eastern champs 52-39.

The Lakers are 6.5-point home faves for Game 7 while the Total is set at 188.

Perkins was trying to grab a rebound when he landed awkwardly and was subsequently helped off the court and taken to the dressing room for x-rays and will be re-evaluated tomorrow.

According to ESPN, Perkins sprained both his MCL and PCL and will try his best to play Game 7, especially since the next game after that will be next season.

He told ESPN he would give it a go on Thursday.

In the Celtics’ last nine games at the STAPLES Center, they have gone 6-3 against the spread and in their last nine when listed as underdogs of 8-points or less, they are also 6-3 ATS.

The story was similar for Lakers’ center Andrew Bynum, who has been plagued with knee injuries for a bulk of the playoffs.

Bynum left in the third quarter after, like Perkins, he was grabbing a rebound.

ESPN says that Bynum felt twinges in his injured right knee and Lamar Odom took his place.

Bynum says he will play Game 7 however, saying that he would play “no matter what.”

The Lakers are 17-3 straight up in their last 20 games at home.

Game 6 goes Tuesday night at the STAPLES Center and the Los Angeles Lakers have been installed 6.5-point favorites with the Over/Under at 188.

Back in 2008, the Celtics also defeated the Lakers 4-2 in the NBA Finals, although the game took place at the Garden in Boston.

In Game 5 on Sunday, the Celtics defeated the Lakers by a final score of 92-86.

The Celtics received solid contributions from all of their starters, including Paul Pierce, who led the team with 27-points.

Kevin Garnett and Rajon Rondo both chipped in with 18-points, Ray Allen netted 12 and center Kendrick Perkins was the only starter not to hit double-digits in points.

The Lakers’ starters weren’t as good as Kobe Bryant scored a game-high 38-points and forward Pau Gasol was the only other Laker to score in double-digits, contributing 12.

Going into Game 6, the Lakers will need to play better and everyone knows it, especially Bryant, who says the team shouldn’t need extra motivation to put out a better effort.

“Just man up and play. What the hell is the big deal?” Bryant is quoted as saying postgame by the AP.

“If I have to say something to them, then we don’t deserve to be champions. We’re down 3-2: Go home, win one game, go into the next one. Simple as that.”

Anytime Kobe puts a 40-burger on you, you’d have to think you’d be in trouble, but the Celtics are perfectly comfortable letting Bryant light up the scoreboard, and focus their energy on the players they can actually stop.

In game 5, the rest of the Lakers had 48 points to go along with Kobe’s 38. Gasol and Odom had nothing, and Artest couldn’t sink a jumper to save his life. That was great for the Celtics for this game, but it doesn’t bode well for the last two games of the series for Boston.

The issue for the Celtics is that Kobe will keep being Kobe, but the other four won’t stay quiet for game six.

Playing at home for the next two games, expect the Lakers to play cleaner ball. The Celtics won game 5 but did with a ton of turnovers and overall sloppy play. Unfortunately, they will probably have similar stats for game 6 – not terrible – but not good enough to beat this Lakers team at home.

NBA Finals Odds – Game 6
Boston Celtics @ L.A. Lakers Line: Lakers by 6

Tuesday June 15th, 9pm est.

Pick: Lakers -6