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07/19/2010 - Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Raptors are moving in a new direction, the focus no longer on the talents of Chris Bosh, but on a collective approach to playing the game.
Bosh recently joined LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in Miami, leaving a giant hole in the Raptors' front court, a 24-point and 10-rebound-per-game hole that general manager Bryan Colangelo has been working feverishly to fill.
With Bosh out of the picture, the dynamics of the team will shift immensely and Colangelo has made it known that speed, athleticism and depth will become the hallmarks of the organization going forward.
With the long-anticipated trade that sent Hedo Turkoglu to the Phoenix Suns for Leandro Barbosa completed last week, the transformation process has begun. The 27-year- old Barbosa fits to a tee the type of player the Raptors will need to employ if they plan to successfully implement their new approach on the hardwood.
"His speed, quickness and scoring ability will mesh well with our desired playing style and talented young athletes,' said Colangelo in a news release following the trade.
"With the departure of Chris Bosh now real, this trade fits well with our plan of adding talent to the roster while establishing future salary cap flexibility."
Known as "The Brazilian Blur" because of his neck-breaking speed, the six-foot- three, 202-pound combo guard made a career out of backing up two-time MVP Steve Nash in Phoenix, while adding even more valuable minutes by his side at shooting guard.
During the 2006-07 season, his best as a pro, Barbosa averaged an impressive 18.1 points, 4.0 assists while sporting a .434 shooting percentage from three- point territory, numbers that landed him the NBA's sixth man of the year honors.
The 2009-10 campaign was a tough one for Barbosa. Hampered by a wrist injury that would eventually require surgery in January, he averaged only 9.5 points and 1.5 assists in 44 games last season in an off year for the Sau Paulo native.
If healthy, expect him to take a central role on a young Raptors squad where he will fit in nicely beside up-tempo wingmen DeMar DeRozan and Sonny Weems.
Colangelo's plan to re-tool the roster took another leap forward with the re- signing of multipurpose man Amir Johnson to a five-year $34-million-dollar deal. Johnson could end up being a bargain down the road, as there are few Raptors that can run and rebound with his tenacity.
Linas Kleiza, 24, of the Denver Nuggets is another player that may suit up with the Raptors next season, as the Nuggets are not expected to match an offer sheet put forward by Colangelo. Boasting a dynamic skill set, the six-foot- eight, 245-pounder could vie for a starting job next year at either small forward or power forward.
Add six-foot-11 rookie power forward Ed Davis and the Raptors are in the midst of building a roster full of tough and athletic bodies, capable of success at multiple positions.
Ultimately, it will be up to head coach Jay Triano to capitalize on this new depth and roster flexibility while employing a balanced scoring attack.
Barbosa's speed, vision and scoring ability will be an integral to that end, as the Raptors aim to succeed by running teams out of the gym next season. With Bosh no longer the team's offensive security blanket, the door is wide open for a facilitator to take charge, and Barbosa may be just the player to jump into that role.
<< Four finalists return to Buck Buchanan Award Watch List
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The race for the 2010 Buck Buchanan Award,
sponsored by Fathead.com, kicked off Monday with The Sportsbook Betting Lines's
announcement that four finalists from last season are part of a stellar 20-
player Watch List f
<< Breakers claim third successive win
Cambridge, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Boston Breakers earned their third
straight win on Sunday as they downed the Washington Freedom, 2-1, at Harvard
Stadium.
The Freedom took the lead just two minutes into the game through N
<< Mitchell and Krystkowiak join Avery Johnson in Jersey
East Rutherford, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former NBA head coaches Sam Mitchell
and Larry Krystkowiak have been named assistants for Avery Johnson with the
New Jersey Nets.
John Loyer, Popeye Jones and Tom Barrise were also named to Johnso
<< Pirates, Brewers renew rivalry in Steel City
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Pittsburgh Pirates are coming off perhaps their most
complete victory of the season. They'll need that momentum given their
struggles versus the Milwaukee Brewers this season.
The Pirates will try to snap a
AP Source: Rich Cho named new Blazers GM >>
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -A person with knowledge of the hiring process says the Trail Blazers have named Oklahoma City assistant GM Rich Cho as Portland's new general manager.The person spoke to The Associated Press on Monday on condition of anonymity b
Kovalchuk heading back to New Jersey >>
Newark, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ilya Kovalchuk is heading back to New Jersey and
will re-sign with the Devils.
According to the team's website, the Devils will hold a Tuesday afternoon
press conference at the Prudential Center to make it
Liverpool wins race to sign Joe Cole >>
Liverpool, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Chelsea midfielder Joe Cole has
agreed to sign a four-year contract with Liverpool, the club announced on
Monday.
The 28-year-old Cole left the Blues last month after he was not offered a
Padres extend manager Black's contract >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres announced Monday that
they have extended manager Bud Black's contract through the 2013 season with
club options for the 2014 and 2015 campaigns.
"I am really happy to announce that
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
“You play to win the game!”
Those are the words of notoriously intense head coach Herman Edwards. Unfortunately, from a bettors’ perspective, most coaches don’t feel that way about the NFL preseason. August is a time to evaluate young players, finalize the depth chart and pray your star players stay healthy.
The trick to making money during the exhibition schedule is identifying coaches – like Edwards – who can’t stand losing even when there's nothing on the line.
The New York Jets betting won 15 of 21 preseason games and went 14-7 against the spread (ATS) during Edwards’s five-year tenure with the club. In his first season as the Kansas City Chiefs field boss, the team improved from 0-4 to 2-2.
Identifying win-a-holics like Edwards is a good start if you plan betting the preseason – even though most say you shouldn’t ... but what the hell do they know anyway?
Here’s a brief rundown of two teams that have a habit of winning during the second-stringers’ season, and another club that has a good chance of exceeding this year.
Playing in the media hub of North America can be stressful but the press can’t write anything negative about the way Tom Coughlin’s boys play in the preseason. The Giants won and covered all four games last summer, improving their record to 7-1 both straight up (SU) and against the spread over the last two years.
Coughlin has shown he’s not afraid to give his starters more time in the second preseason game than most of his colleagues, no doubt one of the reasons his team has been so dominant.
Bettors can count on America’s team early on. The Cowboys are 14-6 both SU and ATS since 2002 in warm-up contests. Former coach Bill Parcells, the coach of the team the last four years, has an intimidating, in-your-face presence – surely a reason Dallas has had so much early success.
The Big Tuna won’t be strolling the sidelines with looks of disgust, but new coach Wade Phillips will be anxious to make a good first impression for owner Jerry Jones.
Dallas plays the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos before things get serious. They then face the Houston Texans in their third contest (the game starters see most game time) and finish off with the Minnesota Vikings.
Expect a Dallas team able to walk away with another 3-1 preseason record.
This team scored a league-worst 12 offensive touchdowns last season, so the rookies and veterans each have something to prove. There’s a bounty of first-unit jobs up for grabs and plenty of bodies competing for those slots.
First-time head coach Lane Kiffin will be eager to impress an owner who employs the philosophy, “Just win, baby!”
The 32-year-old Kiffin has to command respect from a locker room full of players older than him. All of these factors should lead to purpose in preseason.
Don’t forget: before playing like a team that belonged in NFL Europe, Oakland went 4-1 (both SU and ATS) in exhibition games.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football wagering needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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