After a week of dramatic, defence-oriented basketball, the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat are knotted up at two games apiece in the 2011 NBA Finals. Game 5 goes tonight in Dallas, and the stakes feel about as big as they could possibly be for a non-deciding game.
Dallas has stayed alive in this series thanks to the heroics of Dirk Nowitzki, who led a furious fourth-quarter rally to steal Game 2 and battled through a 102-degree fever to score the winning basket in Game 4. Outside of his performance, it’s been a pretty bleak series for the aging Mavs, who have looked physically outmatched by the Heat’s Big Three. Jason Kidd and Peja Stojakovic have been invisible, Jason Terry can’t make a shot, and J.J. Barea seems to have lost his magic. Dirk is the only player that scores consistently, and Udonis Haslem has been making it hard for him.

Dirk knows his team is hanging on by a thread and heading to South Beach down 3-2 would be a virtual death sentence. He called tonight’s game “our Game 7,” likely hoping to set a fire under his underperforming supporting cast.

But if there’s anyone under more pressure to perform tonight than the Mavericks, it’s LeBron James. Fairly or not, this Finals has turned into a referendum on his career, legacy, and manhood. He was largely invisible in the fourth quarter of Game 3, deferring on offence to Dwyane Wade and focusing on defence. CBSSports.com’s Gregg Doyel decided that was an opportunity to inject himself into NBA news headlines, accusing him in the post-game press conference of “shrinking” in big moments.

Doyel was rightly ridiculed, but then LeBron absolutely disappeared in Game 4, scoring only eight points. Now critics are asking if he’s tired, if he’s scared, or if he’s damaged by all the criticism. In a strange echo of last season’s what-happened-to-LeBron blog rumours, Stephen A. Smith has now started a wildfire of speculation that he’s distracted by “personal” issues.

Like Dirk, he’s recognized the importance of Game 5, calling it the biggest game of his career. Not only is it a chance to all but bury the Mavs and claim his first NBA title, it’s a chance to silence the critics that so desperately want to discredit him.

If James channels all these frustrations and comes out on the attack, driving into the paint as only he can do, the Mavs are finished. If he tries to shut people up by launching jump shots, the chorus of critics will only grow louder. He has the chance to put the finishing touches on his first championship season, and the guess here is he does it.
Led by LeBron, the Heat take Game 5, and polish off the Mavs at home in Game 6.

While 2011 Preakness Stakes betting players are preparing for the “Run For The Black-Eyed Susans” next weekend, the NBA playoffs are still going strong and we’re almost ready for the conference finals. In the West, Dallas is waiting after a massive sweep of the two-time defending champions from Los Angeles, and they’ll be playing the winner of Oklahoma City-Memphis. Those two will meet on Friday night in Memphis with the Thunder taking a 3-2 series lead into the game, and they’re not going to find it easy to get rid of the Grizzlies.

Thunder Grizzlies Betting – Friday, 9:00 PM ET

Look for the Grizzlies to be the favorites at home, although the line won’t be very big as the two split Games 3 and 4 in Memphis, including Game 4′s triple-overtime marathon which was taken by the Thunder. The Grizzlies are 4-4 SU and 3-5 ATS in their past eight games at FedEx Forum against the Thunder, with four games falling under the posted total. Memphis has been great for NBA betting players in the postseason, racking up a 7-3-1 ATS mark along with a 6-5 SU record. The Thunder are 7-3 SU and 5-4-1 ATS in their 10 playoff games so far this season, so this is going to be a fight,especially as the Grizzlies don’t want to go home yet.

These young teams are at the forefront of the changing of the guard in the NBA, and it’s a shame that one of them have to be eliminated. It’s going to be a tough pick to make at your favorite betting website.

Even Kentucky Derby betting players will looking at past trends to try and give them an edge in the big race, and NBA betting players will be doing the same as the second round of the playoffs is almost underway (Oklahoma City is waiting for the winner of San Antonio-Memphis).

Heat Celtics Betting (Sunday, 3:30 PM ET)

The Celtics should be the favorites in the first game of a series that everyone has been waiting for, and it has the potential to be the best of the entire postseason. Boston has won 10 in a row at home against the Heat, and two straight since Miami put together their version of the “Big Three”. In those 10 meetings, Boston is 7-3 ATS and have covered the last five games.

Hawks Bulls Betting (Monday, 8:00 PM ET)

The Bulls definitely be favored in their series opener against the Hawks on Monday night, but Atlanta is actually 3-2 SU and ATS in their last five trips to the United Center. They were one of five teams to beat the Bulls in Chicago this season, so they’re definitely capable of pulling off an upset, especially as they’re confident after getting rid of their playoff nemesis from Orlando.

Mavericks Lakers Betting (Monday, 10:30 PM ET)

The Lakers will be favored at home against the Mavericks as they’re 8-2 SU in their last 10 at the Staples Center against Dallas, who are 6-4 ATS. The Mavericks tailored their team to compete with the Lakers, so be very wary of any long lines at your sports betting sites.

Despite making a WWE-style “heel” turn by taking his talents to South Beach, LeBron James’s star has only gotten brighter this year. Earlier this month, it was announced that sales of his No. 6 Miami Heat jersey surpassed even those of Kobe Bryant, who for years reigned supreme in the NBA’s merchandise wars.

So The King now reigns supreme at Foot Locker, but is he better on the court than future Hall-of-Famer and five-time NBA champion Bryant?

Let’s take a quick look at how they match up.

Shooting

For years, Kobe has been one of the best mid-range shooters in basketball. No wing player is better at creating his own shot and converting baskets with multiple defenders in his face. Watch his conference finals performance against the Suns last year to witness a dazzling array of step-backs, pull-ups, and turn-arounds. As age and injuries reduce his explosiveness, he’s come to rely more and more on that deft shooting touch to get his scores.

LeBron’s jumper, on the other hand, is only slightly better than it was when he entered the league. It’s good enough that he has to be guarded fairly closely out to the three-point line, but it’s not exactly a weapon.

Edge: Kobe

Athleticism

This one’s not close, which isn’t meant as a dig on Kobe. LeBron is simply a once-in-a-lifetime athlete, built like a defensive end with the speed of a cornerback. He can alternately overpower, run past, or jump over just about any defender. In his prime, Kobe was as explosive as any wing player in the league, but these days he relies on his incredible skill set and finesse to get his points.

Edge: LeBron

Passing/Ballhandling

Like Magic Johnson 20 years ago, LeBron is a point guard in a forward’s body. With remarkable court vision and great hands, he’s capable of highlight-reel passes both in transition and in half-court sets. He’s not going to cross up too many defenders, but doesn’t really need to. His first step is so quick he’s past his man and inches from a dunk before they can even react.

Kobe, on the other hand, is a bit more of a ballhog, preferring to break down his defender and find his own shot. He handles the ball well, and can certainly pass when he needs to, but it isn’t the main focus of his game.

Edge: LeBron

Defense

As his eight first-team All-Defense selections would attest, Kobe is a ferocious on-the-ball defender capable of shutting down a team’s best wing player, even switching on to quicker point guards when need be. He’s also a willing team defender, drifting over to offer weak-side help when required.

LeBron isn’t quite the man-to-man defender Kobe is from game-to-game, but has a tendency to step up his intensity on that end in bigger games and when matched up against other star players. He has the size and athleticism to guard just about anybody, making him extremely useful in managing match-ups. His greatest strength on D is his shot-blocking, particularly his knack for flying in to block shots when his opponents are running in transition.

Edge: Kobe (though it’s getting closer)

Intangibles

Kobe isn’t exactly the most likable guy, with his habits of calling out teammates, demanding the ball, and generally acting surly on and off the court. But the fact remains that he’s as fiery a competitor as the sport has seen since Jordan, a maniacal hard worker with an undying will to win.

LeBron, on the other hand, wants to be a “Global Icon”, and seems to consider hanging with his pals at South Beach to be just as important as working on his game. Kobe seems to add a new element to his game every year; LeBron still has no post game and his jumper still kind of sucks.

Edge: Kobe

Overall

A couple of years ago, before a decade of playoff runs, grueling regular seasons, and international ball robbed him of his elite athleticism, Kobe was still the best wing player in basketball. But at this stage of his career he’s more of a crafty veteran scorer than a dominant offensive player – and he’s still prone to stopping the ball and taking questionable shots.

LeBron is the best athlete in the world and has translated that into absolute dominance at both ends of the floor, and at 26 is just entering his prime. The King has the crown.

Edge: LeBron

1) Carmelo Anthony

Anthony has told the Nuggets that he has no intention of re-signing with the team, and while that news hardly came as a surprise to Denver GM Masai Ujiri, it might help to accelerate the process of finding a suitable trade partner. While the New Jersey Nets have the most interesting package of young talent to offer the Nuggets, the New York Knicks figure to have a say in the talks given the fact that New York is Anthony’s most desired destination. There have been rumors of contending teams being prepared to acquire Melo as a rental player for a championship run, but that seems unlikely. A team such as Dallas could make such a move, but they would run the risk of disturbing a winning team for a player that may only play half a season for them. The Knicks could offer young forwards Wilson Chandler and Anthony Randolph with Eddy Curry’s huge expiring deal thrown in to make the money right, while the Nets have supposedly put rookie forward Derrick Favors and standout guard Devin Harris on the table. The Nets have more to offer Denver (and higher draft picks), while the Knicks have more to offer Anthony. As the Nuggets get deeper in the NBA schedule, the more talks will heat up.

2) Richard Hamilton

The Pistons and their star guard seem destined for a split now that Hamilton has plainly expressed his distaste for Coach Jon Kuester and the organization of what is now a sub-.500 team in the NBA standings. Hamilton is stuck competing for playing time with fellow guards Rodney Stuckey, Ben Gordon and Will Bynum and has struggled to find his way as the offense no longer runs through him. A natural suitor for Rip would be Utah, who has long coveted a scoring 2-guard. Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan would appreciate Hamilton’s work ethic, high basketball I.Q., terrific shooting and championship credo. Hamilton himself would naturally be inspired by a change of scenery, especially a move to a contender. Utah could offer a package of C.J. Miles and former Piston Mehmet Okur and the team also has over $5 million in trade exceptions.

3) Andray Blatche

The young power forward has admitted that the trade rumors have troubled his mind, which is to be expected of a player who has spent his entire career in one city. Blatche is currently putting up good numbers for a bad team and a big man who scores could certainly be used by a large percentage of the league. The fifth year Syracuse native also has a favorable contract at $5 million per year. Cleveland, searching for any kind of frontcourt scoring assistance, has expressed interest. The Cavs would most likely offer a combination involving backup point guard Ramon Sessions (who would immediately fill the void left by Gilbert Arenas as Washington’s third guard), a small forward and draft picks.

4) Baron Davis

Davis’ contract is one of the worst in the league, given the point guard’s poor performance in his hometown and his apparent disillusionment with the profession of playing basketball in general. Still, when on his game B. Diddy is one of the NBA’s best players, as proven by his surreal run with Golden State three years ago. In the right situation Baron could revert to his explosive self and help a squad make a deep run in the playoffs. Davis’ placement on the market has been pushed by the play of rookie guard Eric Bledsoe, so it appears as if the Clippers would be searching for young players and cap space as compensation. As it stands now, few teams would be interested in acquiring an albatross contract such as Davis’, despite the prodigious talent he has displayed in the past. Rumors have swirled detailing a possible return to Charlotte for Diddy, but the rift between the guard and current Bobcat coach Paul Silas might be irreparable – even for Michael Jordan himself. The Bobcats would likely offer a combination of Matt Carroll and DeSagana Diop, but those contracts run three and two more years; hardly a relief for the Clips. A more logical trade would be for the Atlanta Hawks to ship Marvin Williams and Mike Bibby to Los Angeles. Atlanta would instantly streamline into a fast and athletic unit, improving defensively, while L.A. would escape from the daunting $13 million per year Davis is owed while acquiring a decent young starter in Williams and a proven veteran presence in Bibby.

NBA betting online enthusiasts looking for the latest edge over the have come to the right place.

Each season, several telling trends form for basketball sports betting handicappers to consider. Through almost half of the 2010-11 seasons, here are several trends we have noticed.

Straight Up Trends:

In a rather intriguing revelation, it was discovered that home teams had a higher win percentage at 58.79 percent than road teams at 38.14 percent. Essentially through the first quarter of the season, away teams had a win loss record of 222 to 360. Meanwhile, home teams formed a record of 348 wins and 234 losses.

What’s perhaps most astounding were the straight up stats between favorites and underdogs. Thus far in the season, bettors taking the favorite, would have won their bets with a win percentage of 66.01 percent. Yet if you took the underdogs in that same span, you would have only won 31.84 percent of your games.

Moreover, home and away favorites shared almost identical win percentages thus far in the 2010-11 NBA betting season. For instance, home favorites had a win loss record of 279 – 136, good enough for 67.23 winning percentage. While the road favorites had a win loss of 90-54 good enough for a win percentage of 62.50 percent.

Against The Spread Trends:

When it comes to point spread betting trends, fans should expect a little closer of a win percentage between away and home teams. For example, so far this season, road teams have a record of 274-271-14 against the point spread for a win percentage of 50.28.

On the other hand, to find the home team’s record against the point spread, simply reverse the wins and losses for the road team. This would form a record of 271-274-14 good enough for a win percentage of 49.72 percent.

1. Dwight Howard

• Howard would be a top-three fantasy selection if it weren’t for his abysmal free-throw shooting. Despite being the most dominant big man in basketball, Howard has failed to make any huge leaps in the last two years. After spending a portion of the summer working on his game with the legendary Hakeem Olajuwon, though, expect Howard to have a couple new tricks up his sleeve this year. Howard is a surefire bet for boards, field-goal percentage, and blocks, and can be expected to score around 20 points per game. If he can improve at the line and cut down his turnovers, he could have a breakout fantasy year.

2. Pau Gasol

• Technically a power forward but able to slide over to center, Gasol can fill up the box score like almost no other big man in the game. Last year he averaged around 18 points and 11 rebounds a game, while throwing in nearly 3.5 assists and two blocks just for good measure. How his body holds up and how much Head Coach Phil Jackson decides to play him once the Lakers establish themselves will help determine his statistical output this season. With his excellent percentages and consistency, Gasol is a very worthy choice in the late first-round.

3. Amare Stoudemire

• Many basketball analysts hated New York’s decision to sign Amare to a max deal this summer. Critics bemoaned his inability to score without an elite point guard orchestrating the pick-and-roll, as well as his sub-par defence and questionable attitude. This preseason, though, Stoudemire has looked

  unstoppable, and should help New York improve its place in the NBA standings. While Amare has always been a scorer first and a defender second, he manages to pick up about a block per game to go along with nine or so rebounds. Worth picking up as a secondary star option late in the first round.

4. Brook Lopez

• Lopez has been hailed by new Head Coach Avery Johnson as the cornerstone of the Nets franchise for a reason. The big man out of Stanford has increased his production steadily over the past two years. He’s an excellent free-throw shooter and is nearly unstoppable when he catches the ball deep in the post. New Jersey might not put up the highest basketball scores in the league this year, but Lopez will certainly get his. Expecting 20 and 10 for the season isn’t unrealistic, and Lopez will help out with some blocks as well.

5. David Lee

• Lee was the centerpiece of Golden State’s offseason renovation, and should step right into a major role with the Warriors. Lee hits the offensive glass at an unbelievable rate, and his mid-range game will allow him to flourish with speedy guards Monta Ellis and Stephen Curry on the floor. Lee doesn’t have the size to be a dominant shot-blocker, but gets his hands on loose balls to rack up a surprising amount of steals. A great primary option at center if the players above have already been taken.

I wonder what the sports betting odds were on how long it would take Allen Iverson to return to the NBA. “The Answer” made his return to the team that drafted him, the Philadelphia 76ers in a 93-83 loss to Denver, where Iverson was traded to last year from Detroit. Iverson played 38 minutes, going 4-of-11 from the floor for 11 points, while adding six assists and five boards for the 76ers. Quite frankly, this is the best scenario for Iverson, and for the 76ers’ NBA betting odds.

First, Philadelphia fans LOVE Iverson. I mean, the last time they were good, he was the reason for it. They’ll follow that dude through a fire if they have to. Second, Iverson seems to realize that it’s Andre Igoudala’s team, as Iggy had 31 against the 76ers. Now, I have no problem with Iverson playing major minutes….as long as he understands that he’s no longer a superstar and starts jacking up 30 shots a game. Iverson is an excellent complementary piece if he keeps his head together, and you never know: the 76ers could be an NBA betting darkhorse in your sportsbook if Iverson sticks to the script.

Cleveland is finally playing like the sportsbook favorites we allkknew they were, and they played very well in a 111-104 win over Miami on the road, their third straight win away from home. But that’s neither here nor there. I’m wonder if the kids still hang up posters on their wall, because THIS is the epitome of a posterization:

AND THEN…..he goes back to walk over him, Allen Iverson-Tyronn Lue style:

This has no bearing on either team’s online betting odds, but you may look back on this later in the season, and I’m willing to bet you won’t see a better posterization than that. Then, Anderson Varejao (Sideshow Bob) had the nerve to try and talk smack to D-Wade after the play was done. He got a technical foul for his efforts. You know, he’s a talented player, but someone needs to tell Bob to shut up sometimes. Actin’ like you’re worth $10-12 mil a season,  you know what that gets:

My pick for Saturday’s Pacquiao Cotto odds: Miguel will give him a run, but he doesn’t have the patience to hang with Manny, who will frustrate him into making a mistake.

So, the online betting season for NBA fans tipped off on Tuesday with a massive matchup between two of the title contenders, Boston and Cleveland. How did these two fare in Game No.1?

The Cavs got off to a quick start in the first quarter before the Celtics’ veteran experience kicked in, and they outscored Cleveland 30-17 in the second quarter. The Boston reserves outscored their counterparts 26-10, thanks in large part to Rasheed Wallace, who notched 12 in his debut. The pickup of Wallace is seen to be a boost to the Celtics’ NBA odds, as he can spell Kevin Garnett, who had 13 points and 10 boards. Paul Pierce has 23 and 11 boards to lead the way for the Celtics.

How about the Cavs, one of the trendy sportsbook picks this year? It was similar to last year. LeBron James had 38 and eight assists, but the next highest Cav was Mo Williams with 12, and he was only 3-of-8 from the field. Shaquille O’Neal had 10 and 10 in his Cleveland debut, and that’s all they really need from him. But they need secondary scoring, preferably from Williams and Anthony Parker.

So, what can we take away from this game? Not much. It’s the first game in a long, long season. All we know is, these two will be there at the end of the season, and this is just a prelude to a rivalry that’s gone from budding to full-on.

PS: I’m going to throw in World Series picks as much as I can. Take the Yankees in Game 1. Sabathia edges Lee in a pitcher’s duel, while Cleveland Indians fans slit their wrists.