NBA Betting Odds

Coming off of a historically bad season are the New Jersey Nets. After this season, they need whatever they can get to bounce back from their struggles. A Russian billionaire, their new owner, also seems dedicated to making the changes necessary to bring the Nets towards the top of the league.

The Nets, current online sportsbook favorites, have two major pieces of the puzzle fit into their team. At the point guard and center positions are those team pieces. Their point guard, Devin Harris, is an All-Star caliber player but he did not come through last season. He did not show the ability to break down defenses like he had in years past. It is difficult to see if his talent level is slipping or if this was because of a poor game plan. Brook Lopez was a force underneath for the Nets. In a game last year, he averaged nearly 18 points and 9 rebounds.

By the addition of Evan Turner if the Philadelphia 76ers allow him to slip, these two players could greatly benefit. If not, for the New Jersey Nets at the 3rd spot, it seems that Derrick Favors, the power forward out of Georgia Tech.

As Philadelphia 76ers are rumored to favor in many ways, the Nets have got to be crossing their fingers. If they can get Evan Turner at the 3rd pick and some experts consider this to be a “two player draft”, they will be the big winners of the draft.

The Washington Wizards, sport betting favorites, were the winners of the lottery for the 2010 NBA Draft. If any team needed this sort of a boost, it was probably them.

Last season was full of craziness in the Wizards organization. Their star player, Gilbert Arenas, was charged with gun possession in the locker room and ended up with a suspension that took him out for the rest of the season.

Their other star caliber players, Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison, were dealt during the season to other teams that were contending for the NBA title. They did receive promising compensation in the form of Josh Howard. Unfortunately, Josh Howard sustained a season ending injury just four games into his stay at Washington.

With all of that having taken place, the Wizards needed a boost. John Wall, the point guard out of Kentucky, is just what the Wizards are looking for. Wall is an athlete that can handle the ball with the best of them. His speed burst and vertical leap give him the ability to get to the rim on nearly every play. He was only a freshman last year at Kentucky, but he demonstrated the ability to take over games in stretches. His court vision is also above average for a scoring point guard. The only questions for him will be surrounding his jump shot. He never relied too heavily on it at Kentucky.

Wall will join Andray Blatche in Washington. Blatche really broke out last season after the team crumbled around him. With John Wall joining a young player in Blatche, the Wizards have the opportunity to build around a young core of talent.

Boston Celtics traveled to Los Angeles for Game 6 of the 2010 NBA Finals, on Tuesday, June 15th. Riding a huge wave of momentum, Boston came in to the Staples Center, having won two games in a row over the Lakers. Unfortunately, for the Celtics, that wave of momentum came crashing down around them on Tuesday night, as the Lakers crushed them by 89-67.

On defense, Boston was horrendous and was sluggish on offense. When their starting center, Kendrick Perkins, went out with a sprained right knee, Boston’s bad luck was made even more clear. Ray Allen scored 19 for Boston and Kevin Garnett had a solid game too, scoring 12 points and grabbing 6 rebounds. Although Paul Pierce had 5 turnovers, he scored 13 points.

In Game 6, the Lakers managed to stifle Rajon Rondo, holding him to 10 points and only 6 assists. Scoring 26 points and grabbing 11 rebounds, Kobe Bryant was spectacular. Pau Gasol was also back in top form, scoring 17 points and getting 13 rebounds. Ron Artest added 6 rebounds and 15 points as well. By the end of the night, the Lakers had out-rebounded the Celtics 52-39.

To force a Game 7, the Lakers did everything they needed to do in Game 6. The players around Kobe stepped up both offensively and defensively and he played incredibly well too. It is not easy to play your best when in a must-win situation, but the Lakers did their best to make it seem like child’s play.

For Game 3 of the 2010 NBA Finals, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics met up in Boston, on Tuesday.

NBA betting odds favorite, the Lakers, dominated Game 1, but Boston won Game 2. Boston came in with momentum on their side after winning Game 2 and the advantage of playing in front of their home crowd. Unfortunately, for them, they were unable to capitalize and ultimately fell to the Lakers 91-84.

In Game 3, the things that betting online favorite team, Boston had to do were obvious. First, Kobe Bryant is needed to slow down. Second, they needed to find a way to slow down Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum defensively. While Kobe was held by Celtics to just 10-29 from the field, he still managed 29 points. The second part of their plan failed as well, as both Gasol and Bynum snagged 10 rebounds.

Once again, the size difference was obvious as well. Gasol simply plays bigger on the court, while Kevin Garnett is only an inch shorter than Pau Gasol. However, Garnett did managed 25 points in Game 3. From the Celtics, Ray Allen had an abysmal game, managing only 2 points and going 0-13 from the field and missing all 8 of his three point tries.

If Boston can figure out a way to stop the Lakers’ big men and Kobe, they have a good chance to even the series in Game 4 on Thursday. If not, to a second straight NBA Championship, it looks like the Lakers are going to cruise.

On June 3rd, Thursday night, the 2010 NBA Finals began. At the Los Angeles Lakers, the Boston Celtics were playing, and both teams came into the game with high hopes and a wave of momentum. The Los Angeles Lakers made those hopes a reality, while the Celtics had their hopes slightly diminished.

In Game 1, the Game 1, but the Lakers looked even more dominant than the score lets on. Kevin Garnett was tasked with guarding Pau Gasol and he looked like he had no idea what to do with him. Gasol ended the game with 23 points, 14 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Finishing with 30 points and 7 rebounds, Kobe Bryant was very good as usual.

There were a couple bright spots for the Celtics in Game 1, despite the loss. There were a couple bright spots for the Celtics in Game 1 and there were a couple bright spots for the Celtics in Game 1 in only 18 minutes. Kevin Garnett also did pretty well on the offensive side of things, ending with 16 points and 4 rebounds.

One thing was painfully clear, regardless of the few bright spots for Boston. Before Game 2 on Sunday, if they are unable to fix the holes in their defense, it is going to turn out the same way that Game 1 did. Before Game 2, the Celtics simply have to figure out a way to stop the Lakers’ 1-2 punch of Gasol and Bryant, or the 2010 Finals will be a very short series.

On Saturday night, May 29th, the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers squared off in Game 6 of their series. Going into Game 6, the basketball betting favorite, Lakers held a 3-2 series lead. The Phoenix Suns had the advantage of playing at home on their side, but it ultimately made no difference as they lost 111-103, sending the Lakers to the NBA Finals for the 2nd year in a row.

Despite the fact that the Suns were in a must-win situation, they came out flat, getting out-scored 91-74 through the first three quarters. However, they came back in a hurry in the 4th quarter, but they were unable to overcome their slow start. Kobe Bryant was especially effective for the Lakers, putting up 37 points. Lamar Odom was also great off the bench, grabbing 12 rebounds. Amare Stoudemire stepped up for Phoenix, scoring 27 points, and Steve Nash chipped in 21 points, but it simply was not enough.

In Game 5, the Suns lost a heart-breaker on a last second shot by Ron Artest, and it looked like there was a lot of carry over from that in Game 6. The Suns should have come out fiery and ready to play; instead, they were sluggish from the opening tip. They simply did not have an answer for Kobe Bryant, and the Lakers proved that they were the better, deeper team. If Phoenix could have played the whole game like they did in the 4th quarter, it could have been a different story.

The Boston Celtics were formed in 1946 and in 1949; they began play in the NBA.

Celtics dynasty was formed when Auerbach was hired to coach the team in 1956. Point guard Bob Cousy was acquired by Boston. Auerbach got center Bill Russell forward Tommy Heinsohn.

they won their first championship in 1957 and in 1958, they returned to the championship series only to lose to the St. Louis Hawks.

In 1959, the Celtics reclaimed the championship.

as coach, Auerbach retired and Russell was named player-coach after the 1966 championship. In the NBA, he was the first black coach and won the championship in the 1968 and 1969 season.

In 1974 and 1976, Boston Celtics won the championship series twice.

The Celtics was joined by Larry Bird of Indiana State for the 1979-80 seasons. in the NBA, to form the best frontline, he teamed with forward Kevin McHale and center Robert Parrish. They became to be known as “The Big Three”.

in the same year, Magic Johnson and Magic Johnson joined Los Angeles Lakers and Celtics. NCAA Championship Game of 1979, the two famously met, in which Johnson’s Michigan State Spartans narrowly defeated Bird’s Indiana State Sycamores.

For Boston, the worst decade was 90s. Because of cocaine overdose Len Bias died, after being drafted. for Boston, tragedy struck again in 1993 as forward Reggie Lewis died too. Boston fell from its spot at the top of the Eastern Conference, and eventually struggled, with the Big Three aging.

“The Big Three”, second rendition was formed with the combination of MVP Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen, combined with veteran Celtic Paul Pierce. in 22 years, Pierce, Garnett, and Allen led Boston to their first championship in 2008.

they are currently playing against the Orlando Magic, in the Eastern Conference Championship. after upsetting the number one seed Cleveland Cavaliers after a lackluster second half of the season, Boston appears to have found their stroke back in them.

The Miami Heat was the first to enter the league and two teams have been produced from Florida and a part of the National Basketball Association. Florida and are in the Eastern Conference, they are based out of Miami. Erik Spoelstra, team’s head coach and it is owned by Micky Arison. Pat Riley manages the team.

The Miami Heat was first formed as an expansion team into the NBA, in 1988. 13 out of 21 seasons is their franchise records. Winning one NBA Finals in 2006, they have won seven division titles in the Southeast Division.

The Heat started off with a young roster including the likes of Ron Seikaly, Pat Cummings, and Scott Hastings. In 1993, Glen Rice was acquired next year and had a winning season. Alonzo Mourning as well as Tim Hardaway is other notable players.

In the 2000’s, the Heat started to make some significant changes. They picked Dwayne Wade as one of their best drafts picks ever. He was given a few key players to help him build his team when the heat acquired Shaquille O’Neal from the Los Angeles Lakers in 2004.

The Miami Heat improved their season record to 59-23 and achieved the second best season record in franchise history, in 2005, behind Shaq and Wade and this really improved their basketball betting odds. In 2005 they would go far into the post season, before being ousted in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Heat would come back with a vengeance and would end up winning the NBA finals against the Dallas Mavericks in 2006, the very next year.

In the most recent season, 2010 prove to be too little as they were beaten in 5 games by the Boston Celtics.

The Eastern Conference Semi Finals between the Orlando Magic and Atlanta Hawks is an interesting one. However, all odds suggest that Orlando will easily breeze through this series.

First of all, there is a lot at stake for both teams. There is plenty of pressure on the Magic to defend their championship, while the Hawks are trying to make franchise history by reaching the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time.

Frankly, the Hawks’ lineup can’t match the Magic’s firepower. Joe Johnson’s solo efforts cannot outmatch the combinations of powerful and accurate scoring by Vince Carter and Dwight Howard.

The first round series also plays a role on the outcome of this clash. The Magic swept the Bobcats, while the Hawks barely got through the Bucks in game 7. Orlando surely comes into the Eastern Conference Semi Finals as the fresher team with more energy, while Atlanta is still somewhat fatigued. This is evident by the outcome of the first game of the series, as the Magic crushed the Hawks 114-71, one of the most convincing victories in the 2010 NBA playoffs so far.

Home court advantage proved to be a major factor, as the Magic used its crowd to intimidate and defeat the Hawks in Game 1 and Game 2. Lewis, Carter, Nelson, and Howard each scored more than 20 points in game 2 to beat the Hawks 112-98. Atlanta’s center Horford scored more points than the team’s star player Johnson, which is not a good sign.

So what are the dynamics of Game 3 of this series? to start with, Atlanta will finally have the home court advantage on Saturday night, as well as for Game 4. The Hawks must win Game 3 to have any hopes for competing in this series. However, at this point it seems that not even Atlanta fans can lift up the Hawks to a victory.

The Utah Jazz will try to pick up their first win of their Western semifinal series against the Los Angeles Lakers when the teams play Game 3 in Salt Lake City on Saturday.

Game 2 between the Lakers and the Jazz followed a nearly identical script to that of Game 1.

The Jazz jumped to another quick early lead but were overwhelmed by a flurry of Laker possessions that quickly built the lead, until an early fourth quarter meltdown allowed the Jazz to nearly come back. The two unquestioned leaders in Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol then finished strong, ultimately putting away the Jazz 111-103.

Once again, the Lakers, basketball betting favorite had their way with the Jazz down low. From the beginning of the series the Jazz simply could not match up with the Lakers on paper, and have so far proven unable to come up with a solution. LA had 64 point in the paint, with a 58-40 rebounding advantage and an astounding 13 team blocked shots. Forcing the Jazz to shoot outside, they hit a woeful 39% field goal percentage.

In game three, the Jazz need to avoid getting caught in the paint with nowhere to go. They need to establish their patented pick and roll offense high on the key and make better use of cutting wing players for layups or jump shots away from the Laker’s bigs. Defensive stopper Andrei Kirilenko should be ready to return and will match up with Bryant, and the Jazz excel on their homecourt, making this the Jazz’s best chance to avoid the 0-3 deficit. The Lakers on the other hand need to put the game away at the end, avoiding costly turnovers.