This weekend is as jammed as sports weekends can be, with the Daytona 500 odds and NBA betting colliding during the NBA All-Star Weekend.

So many events to ponder now, so I’ll cut right to the chase with my basketball betting picks here.

ROOKIE GAME: Basically, it’s Derrick Rose vs Kevin Durant. The Sophomores have won six straight, but I’m calling an upset here. Rose, Mayo and Oden will lead the way for the rooks. Pick ‘em at your sportsbook!

SKILLS CHALLENGE: Online betting fans should go with Tony Parker. No pressure on him and he can handle the ball with the best of ‘em.

H-O-R-S-E: Kevin Durant. The NBA betting community will awaken to his skills this weekend.

THREE-POINT SHOOTOUT: Kapono just doesn’t seem to have it this year, so why bet on him? Try Rashard Lewis or Danny Granger. Let’s go with Granger.

DUNK CONTEST: When superstars play in this contest, they usually win. So NBA betting fans should stick with defending champ Dwight Howard here and hope he pulls off a nice followup to this:

ALL-STAR GAME: LeBron runs this show now in the NBA All-Star game lines…he’ll team up with Howard and D-Wade to lead the East to its fourth victory in five years.

Or at least he will be. Sports betting fans should have Daytona 500 betting, NCAA basketball odds and the NBA All-Star game circled on their calendars over the next little while. Sadly, TNT’s coverage of the All-Star game won’t feature Sir Charles. Chuck has been hidden away since he was nailed for a DUI last month while driving to ‘get a blowjob’.

Barkley will return, however, once the festivites close. Here’s a taste of what we can look forward to once he returns.

March Madness betting fans wait every year for the tradition – the NCAA Tournament. That’s because everyone loves the upsets.

Here’s an update on all the key dates for the 2009 March Madness Tournament:

Selection Sunday: March 15, 2009 – NCAA basketball odds will be posted

Opening Round Game: March 17, 2009 – Play-in game

First Round: March 19-20, 2009 – That’s the day when 12 seeds upend 5 seeds on the college basketball point spread

Second Round: March 21-22, 2009

Third Round: March 26-27, 2009

Fourth Round: March 28-29, 2009 – Final Four odds will be posted

Final Four: April 4 & 6, 2009 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan.

Every year, sportsbook players and casual fans alike argue over who should have made the All-Star team and who should have not. With the rosters set for 2009 NBA All-Star betting , here is a look at the All-Snub Team for this year (all statistics are from February 2).

Center – David Lee, New York

Lee is putting up 15.9 points and 11.7 boards, and has probably put himself at the top of this year’s free-agent list. Lee’s never said an ill word while playing his heart out in the wasteland that is the Knicks’ franchise, and while he’ll miss the All-Star game, he’ll be rewarded this summer.

Forward – Al Jefferson, Minnesota

Jefferson is one of three players in the league to put up 20/10 numbers (23.2 points, 10.6 boards). If the Timberwolves can hold onto Jefferson and rookie Kevin Love, Minnesota will have one of the best young post duos in the league.

Forward – Kevin Durant, Oklahoma City

The reigning Rookie of the Year will probably take his frustrations out in the Rookie game, and the lanky forward is the highest-scoring player left out of the All-Star game. His team is just too terrible, but if Durant continues to improve, an All-Star nod will be the least of his accomplishments by the time he’s through.

Guard – Ray Allen, Boston

It’s hard to feel bad for an 8-time All-Star, but Allen’s probably been the most consistent of the Celtics’ “Big Three” this season. Allen is putting up 18.0 points and dropping treys at a 41.1% clip, as well as 49.7% from the field and 94.0% from the foul line. Allen can take consolation in the fact that his Celtics still have great NBA betting odds to repeat as world champions.

Guard – Mo Williams, Cleveland

Williams is probably the top off-season acquisition of the campaign so far, becoming a valuable second option to LeBron James for the Cavaliers. Williams’ ability to run the team while James is on the bench will leave Cleveland’s MVP fresher for the postseason, which will be a huge boost to the Cavaliers’ NBA betting odds.

Yesterday, I compared the Pittsburgh Steelers to the eventual NBA champions, the Boston Celtics. I’ve been thinking about this super bowl betting matchup, and I’ve concluded that the Arizona Cardinals are the NFL’s version of the Atlanta Hawks.

This is Mike Woodson’s fifth year coaching the Hawks, but he’s improved every season, taking the Hawks to the postseason last year when they pushed Boston to seven games, while Ken Whisenhunt has guided the Cardinals to the Super Bowl in his second season. Both teams were steadied by veteran arrivals (Kurt Warner for the Cardinals, Mike Bibby for the Hawks), and both have a ton of athletes, such as Larry Fitzgerald of the Cardinals, and Josh Smith of the Hawks, and a pair of explosive young players like Steve Breaston of Arizona and Al Horford of Atlanta. The only difference is attention to defense, in which Atlanta has the edge in. This could be the reason the Cardinals fall short in this super bowl betting matchup.

Super Bowl XLIII betting can’t come quickly enough. The NBA is annoying me, damn it. I want trades. I want to see a Bulls firesale. It’s fun! But we’re waiting on the Brian Colangelo and Pat Riley to finish their courtship.

Pat, do you really think seeing Jermaine O’Neal playing two games looking healthy is going to “convince” you that he’s a safe target? You either want him or you don’t. It’ll be interesting to see what happens if or when the deal gets made…it could start a flurry of activity that really alters some teams’ NBA betting odds.

Until then, I’m reading up on the 2008 Super Bowl odds.

…or Roy’s gonna take some heads. Seriously though, Danny Granger of Indiana is ballin’ out of his mind right now. The fourth-year small forward is putting up 26.4 points, good for fourth in the league, and he just dropped a career-high 42 points (yeah, it was against Golden State, but it still counts). Last year was just a glimpse into Granger’s talent, and now he looks ready to muscle his way into the NBA’s elite. You never know, Indiana may actually have good NBA betting odds next year because of Granger.

It’s been a while since Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, has been in the news for making his feelings known about the NBA’s officiating. Well, wait no more, because Cuban lost it during the Mavericks’ 99-97 loss in Denver. Cuban allegedly swore at an official who, he thought, made a bad call on Dallas guard Jason Terry, sending the Nuggets’ Chauncey Billups to the line to make the game-winning free throws. Watch the game highlights and you can make the call:

Cuban also confronted Denver swingman J.R. Smith at halftime for an elbow thrown at Dallas’ Antoine Wright. Smith responded by sending Cuban a pair of signed sneakers, while Denver coach George Karl made his feelings known about Cuban talking to his players. But he should know….Cuban doesn’t care one bit. This is a dude who has been fined 13 times for a total of almost $1.7 million. Look at his commitment; the Mavericks don’t even have good NBA betting odds, and he’s still gettin’ on the ref and the opposition. Nice work Mark Cuban, Roy Jordan salutes you.

Hardly a year passes by without Tracy McGrady landing on the injured list, which puts a huge dent in Houston’s NBA betting chances. T-Mac has never played a full 82-game schedule in his 12-year career, and his season high of came back in 1999-2000, his last year in Toronto. Now, a knee injury has sidelined McGrady for at least two weeks, but some wonder if his heart is still in Houston.

McGrady has admitted he hasn’t been the same player lately, even saying he was scared to jump off his injured knee. But it’s always something with T-Mac. It may not be his fault, he could have some sort of mental issues, he could be just snakebitten by injuries. But it’s not right that a player as talented as McGrady has never reached the second round of the playoffs. He seems destined to leave Houston during the offseason, as his body language has been less-than-optimistic to Rockets’ fans. All I know is, if the Rockets don’t make it to the second round, we may need to put a watch on McGrady.

I’m actually quite upset that I’m even talking about Darius Miles. His career in a nutshell: failed the SAT, drafted 3rd by the clippers in 2000, traded to Portland three years later before needing microfracture surgery. The surgery was serious enough to classified as career-ending, meaning the Blazers could get compensation for him. But Miles came back with Boston and Memphis, and his return means that the remaining $18 million of his salary would stay on Portland’s books. So Portland has sent an email to teams around the league, basically threatening them not to sign Miles, as two more games would put his salary on the books.

First off…..why is anyone even trying to sign Darius Miles? He wasn’t even good when he was healthy, and he’s definitely not raising your team’s NBA betting chances.

Second, the Blazers are just begging for a Western Conference rival to sign Miles, as that would kill their chances in the 2010 bidding war.

Third……….IT’S DARIUS MILES, PEOPLE! COME ON!

Probably the most lop-sided cover in Sports Illustrated history.