Picks

Preakness betting players don't have to worry about a tournaments-style format, as they're one race and out. The NBA is down to their version of the Final Four, and there is something for everyone (unless you're a LeBron James fan).

Boston vs Orlando

The last two Eastern Conference champions will face off with the Magic taking homecourt advantage. The Magic are favored at -260 after winning three of four against the Celtics during the regular season, including both games in Boston. The Celtics will be out to avenge their exit at the hands of the Magic in the second round of last year's playoffs, and they'll be boosted by their fantastic performance against James and Cleveland, who had the NBA's best record. Meanwhile, the Magic are 8-0 in the playoffs, and are coming off a historic blowout four-game sweep of Atlanta.

Phoenix vs Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers are favored at -320, but it's the Suns that have won their last two playoff meetings with the defending NBA champions, taking the Lakers out in the first round in 2006 and 2007. Since then, the Lakers have won nine of their last 12 against the Suns, including three of four during the regular season. Both are coming off impressive sweeps over tough opponents (Los Angeles over Utah, Phoenix over San Antonio), and the rest is a good thing for both teams, especially former MVPs Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash. Check the totals before making your sports bet for this game, as they have gone over the posted total in half of their last 10 meetings.

Sports News - Are Long Layoffs Between Playoff Series A Bad Thing?

Are Long Layoffs Between Playoff Series A Bad Thing?

The Orlando Magic proved critics wrong as they were able to easily thwart the Atlanta Hawks in the first game of round two 114 - 71. By blowing out the Hawks by 43 points, the Magic led by 'Superman' Dwight Howard, proved that a long layoff between opponents was not necessarily a bad thing. The layoff was a result of the Magic defeating the Charlotte Bobcats in four straight games, eight days ago on April 26 by a score of 97-90. With such dominance over their last five games the Magic appear to be getting stronger. While the Celtics and Cavaliers look to be headed in a long grueling second round matchup, there is no reason to believe that the Magic do not have the best NBA Championship Odds.

Great Pitching Leading to Great Results for Padres

The San Diego Padres pitching staff led by ace Kevin Correia is second in the major leagues to the St. Louis Cardinals for top staffs. The strong pitching has allowed for the Padres to go 17 and 10 leading the National League West division. If the Padres can continue this early season surge, fans can begin to get their hopes up when participating in MLB betting online. Padres fans initially had reason to fear the worst for the next few years with their ball club after management traded away staff ace Jake Peavey to the Chicago White Sox of the American League. However, replacing Peavey was the key signing of former White Sox staff ace John Garland who many expected to be the ace of an inexperienced pitching staff in San Diego. With the emergence of Kevin Correia this early in the season, and the Padres sitting in second overall for all pitching staffs in the entire MLB, fans can see the light in a tunnel that appeared pitch black last year.

Mavericks vs Suns Betting Odds – Dallas to Take Season Series

For everyone watching the Super Bowl XLIV odds and waiting for next week’s game, pause to watch a matchup between two former NBA MVPs in Steve Nash and Dirk Nowitzki. Winners of four of their last five games, the Dallas Mavericks meet a team going the opposite way when it faces the Suns, in Phoenix. Having lost seven of the last nine games, Nash and company are looking to turn things around at home before heading out on a four game road trip.

What: NBA Betting

When: Thursday January 28^th – 10:30pm EST

Where: US Airways Center - Phoenix, AZ

Key Stat: Suns are 17-6 at home while the Mavericks are 16-8 on the road.

The Storyline - Mavericks vs Suns betting odds breakdown
Leading the season series by winning their only matchup of the season in December, the Mavericks can take the series with a win on the road. This will be the sixth game away from the big D in seven games for the Mavericks who can gain some ground on idle Denver in the race for second in the Western Conference. The key to the game will be which team can bend the game to match their playing style.

Offensive Matchups - Mavericks vs Suns betting odds breakdown

The Suns are going to put up points as they average 113 points a game at home thanks to their run and gun offence, and shooting a league best 41 percent from downtown. Their problem as of late has been fourth quarter scoring. For a team that scores at a pace of 27 points a quarter, they have averaged just 18 points in their last three losses. Sophomore guard Goran Dragic has stepped up in the past three games, averaging 21 points including 32 on Monday, and is one of the better sleeper fantasy projections for the next month.

Scoring almost 10 points a game less than the Suns, Dallas will have to run a bit more than usual, but with athletes like Shawn Marion, Jason Terry and Josh Howard, they are very capable. Terry has added a boost to the Mavericks offense since being inserted to the starting line-up, scoring 20 plus points in three of four as a starter. Dirk Nowitzki will need to score more than his team high 25 a game if Dallas wants to keep this game close.

Betting Edge: Suns

Defensive Matchups - Mavericks vs Suns betting odds breakdown
Phoenix has never been associated with having a strong defence in the past couple years and that trend is continuing. Holding the distinction of second worst defence, the Suns are allowing over 107 points per game. With a fast paced offence it allows for a lot of possessions which will boost the total points in their games. They just hope to outscore opponents every game.

The Dallas defence has gone under the radar this season. The fourth best shot blocking team, 5.8 per game, is holding opponents to 97 points per game. The Mavericks are also showing discipline by gathering 7.2 steals per game while only committing an average of 19.2 fouls, good for best in the league.

Betting Edge: Mavericks

Notable Injuries - Mavericks vs Suns betting odds breakdown
Suns guard Leandro Barbosa is out for the next month after having a cyst in his right wrist removed. The loss of Barbosa will take 10 points out of the line-up and force Jason Richardson and Dragic to eat up the extra minutes. Barbosa has only played 29 games this year so the Suns have gotten accustom to playing without him.

Mavericks Center Erik Dampier has been battling a sore knee but he was still on the court for 34 minutes on Tuesday. He is expected to play but in the unlikely instance that he does not, Drew Gooden is a very capable backup who tallied 18 points and 16 rebounds on Sunday in the absence of Dampier

Betting Edge: Mavericks

Betting Prediction - Mavericks vs Suns betting odds breakdown
Phoenix is 4-15 when held to 105 points or less while Dallas is 17-3 when scoring 100 plus points. This is a good sign for Dallas since the Suns are allowing nearly 108 points a game, while the Mavericks have held opponents under 105 points in nine of their 13 games this month.

CRAIG’s Pick: Mavericks

Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds – Kobe shines again at MSG

NBA Odds – Pick Lakers

Online betting players should know better than to wager against Kobe Bryant at Madison Square Garden, where he’s played very well in the past. Bryant leads his Lakers into the mecca of basketball on Friday night to face a Knicks team that has struggled on offense as of late, and combined with their inability to stop Bryant, it should be another loss to the defending champions for New York.

WHAT: NBA betting

WHEN: Friday, January 22, 8:00 PM ET

WHERE: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

KEY STATS: Los Angeles has won five straight against New York

The Storyline - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

The Lakers (32-9 as of Thursday) kick off an eight-game road trip with a showdown in Cleveland on Thursday, and then they head to MSG, where Kobe Bryant went for 61 points in last season’s visit to the Big Apple. The Knicks (17-24) have dropped four of their last six, but they’ve scored 100 points or more in just one of those games.

Offensive Matchups - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

The Lakers have been looking for players to step up as Bryant has suffered through a painful finger injury, along with back spasms. Andrew Bynum has averaged 18.0 points over his last five games, and even Shannon Brown is dropping 13.2 points in increased minutes for the Lakers. Pau Gasol just returned from a hamstring injury, and the Lakers should have plenty of weapons.

The Knicks are going through an offensive slump for their standards, and sometimes, they fall in love with the three-point shot, which they’re hitting 34.2% of the time. But how about the progress of Danilo Gallinari? The Italian has more than doubled his productivity to 14.8 points, and even though he takes some ill-advised shots, that’s to be expected in Mike D’Antoni’s system.

Betting Edge: Draw

Defensive Matchups - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

Only one of the Lakers’ last five opponents has scored 100 points or more, and that was in San Antonio. Led by the tenacity of Bryant, the Lakers are a very disciplined team, and they’ve improved since the beginning of the season. When they decide to lock down a team, the Lakers are unbeatable.

The Knicks are actually getting better at this end of the floor, but there’s not really one player that you could call a stopper. David Lee surely works hard on the boards, pulling down 11.2 rebounds per game. But who is going to try and slow down Bryant?

Betting Edge: Lakers

Notable Injuries - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

Bynum (flu) may sit out Thursday’s game in Cleveland, but he should be fine for the Knicks. Sasha Vujacic (hamstring) doesn’t play that much, while Bryant (finger, back) and Gasol (hamstring) will play.

Eddy Curry (knee) is done for six weeks after surgery, but now the Knicks will be even more hard-pressed to get rid of his massive contract.

Betting Edge: Knicks

Betting Prediction - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

The Lakers should be favored in your Sportsbook as they’ve won five in a row over the Knicks, and seven of their last 10 at MSG. The Knicks will be praying that Cleveland wears down the Lakers on Thursday night, but the Lakers are a respectable 7-3 in the second half of back-to-back games. The Knicks must get out and run early to try and take advantage of a tired Los Angeles team, but Bryant usually comes up big at Madison Square Garden, anyway.

Craig’s Pick: Lakers

For more tips and analysis in NBA basketball, check out Craig’s picks in BetOnline’s The Betting Edge. For more on the Lakers vs Knicks matchup, please visit our sports section.

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