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Nets vs Celtics odds – Saturday, February 27, 1:00 PM ET

The Nets have lost four in a row since a rare win, at Charlotte of all places, and the Bobcats are one of the best home teams in the league, so anything is possible, to quote Kevin Garnett. The Nets fought hard to make it interesting in a 102-93 loss at home to Portland on Tuesday, and that’s one thing that you have to give New Jersey, is that they aren’t just rolling over and letting teams rout them. They are out there trying in what has been a very tough season. Courtney Lee and Devin Harris had 28 points for the Nets, and they also got 17 points and 10 boards from Brook Lopez, but no one else scored more than six points, and New Jersey allowed Portland to shoot 54.1% from the field.

The Celtics will first face Cleveland at home on Thursday, and they could be without Paul Pierce for that game as “The Truth” hurt his thumb last week against the Lakers. They didn’t need him in a 110-106 win over New York on Tuesday in the debut of Nate Robinson, suiting up against his former team after missing three games with the flu. Robinson scored four points in 16 minutes of action for the Celtics, who were led by Ray Allen’s 24 points and a big block late in the game. Allen had been averaging 21.8 points in his last five games ahead of the Cleveland game, and he looks more relaxed now that all of the trade talk that surrounded him is over. Allen is out to prove that he can still be productive on a playoff team, and he’ll get more shots with Pierce out.

You’d probably get better odds in a super casino than you would get for the Nets to win in Boston, where they’ve lost five in a row. Overall, the Celtics have won a whopping 12 straight over the Nets, including three games this year. Allen has averaged 17.7 points against the Nets this year, while Lopez has put up 20.0 points, and the Nets actually played the Celtics tough in a 96-87 loss in Boston on February 5th, powered by 26 points from Allen. The Nets just have no idea how to win this year, and the Celtics will have enough in the tank, even without Pierce.

NBA betting pick: Boston

Las Vegas Odds – Sunday, February 28, 2:00 PM ET

Jimmie Johnson (+400) is proof of the old saying, “you have to be good to be lucky, and lucky to be good”, and the four-time defending champion showed why at California. Granted, he led a race-high 101 laps en route to the checkered flag, but he was in danger of going a lap down after he was caught in the pits on a yellow flag. He beat the timing line into the pits, and instead, came out the race leader. Johnson has been a force here, winning three straight years from 2005 to 2007, and he led 92 laps last year before fading to 24th.

It was Jeff Burton (+1500) who Johnson just beat out for the lead, and the No.31 driver has a pair of wins at Las Vegas, although they haven’t come since 1999 and 2000. However, Burton finished third here last year, and his 9.8 average in 12 races is the best among active drivers.

Kyle Busch (+700) won the pole here last year, and then won the race while starting at the back of his hometown track because of a changed engine. Bookmaker odds (bookmaker reviews) for the No.18 driver are usually pretty solid, as he may have the most pure talent in all of NASCAR, but he can be hit-and-miss, especially when he has a bad car. To his credit, Busch’s car was terrible in California, and he drove it to a 14th-place finish.

Two drivers to watch if you’re looking for some sportsbook value are Matt Kenseth (+2000) and Joey Logano (+3000). Kenseth won here in 2003 and 2004, and he’d like to avenge last year’s trip to Vegas, when he was a favorite in your gambling software to win after taking the checkered flag at Daytona and California, but a blown engine ruined his chances just seven laps in. Logano finished 13th here in his first trip to Vegas last year, and that was as a wide-eyed rookie. Logano has a year under his belt and his coming off a fifth-place run at California last week, two spots ahead of Kenseth.

Burton is the safe play here at +1500, and he was catching up to Johnson last week before Harvick got in the mix. Burton has a good track record here, and is one of just four drivers to have raced in all 12 of the races held here.

Bet on sports: Jeff Burton +1500

Lakers vs Grizzlies odds – Tuesday, February 23, 8:00 PM ET

The Lakers have been off since Thursday, but Kobe Bryant has been out since February 5th with an ankle injury. Bryant really needed the time off as he was also battling a bad back and a broken finger, but the Lakers have fared surprisingly well without their superstar, going 4-1 in the five games he missed, including impressive wins at Portland and Utah, and in those five games, Lamar Odom, Pau Gasol (twice) Shannon Brown and Ron Artest all took turns leading the team in scoring. The Lakers can sometimes get sucked into “isolation time for Bryant” mode, and this has to give him even more confidence in his teammates, which was the key to last year’s run to the championship. Bryant has averaged an outlandish 42.5 points in two meetings with Memphis this year.

The Grizzlies beat the Lakers on February 1st, and not counting Sunday’s game in New Jersey, Memphis is 1-6 since, and that lone win came in an upset overtime win in Toronto. It’s almost like the Grizzlies have just decided to stop playing defense, allowing 104.9 points per game, which is more than their season average. The Grizzlies are reverting back to doing all the things that many thought they would be at the beginning of the season, as they’re not sharing the ball on offense, and they’re not helping out on defense, and that will get you nowhere in the sportsbook race in the Western Conference. Zach Randolph has put up 21.5 points and 16.0 boards against the Lakers this season.

The Grizzlies should be favored at home, but not by much, seeing as they’ve lost four in a row at FedEx Forum since beating the Lakers 95-93 behind 23 points from Rudy Gay, ending a five-game skid against the defending NBA champions. Bryant had 44 points as he set the franchise record for points scored, but a team approach should be the focus of Tuesday’s game, especially with Bryant just coming back into the fold. The Grizzlies have no confidence in themselves or each other, and this is the wrong team to go into a game with your head down, because the Lakers will smell blood and end it quickly. We’ll see what kind of team Memphis really is on Tuesday.

NBA betting pick: Lakers

And they are the only teams to prepare their wallet to spend big in the summer.

The Knicks acquired Tracy McGrady yesterday in a three-team trade that also involved the Houston Rockets and the Sacramento Kings, told The Associated Press a source aware of the negotiations.

The deal left to being able to offer two contracts with the maximum salary possible the group of free agents of 2010, which would be headed by James.

The Knicks will also receive the Spanish Sergio Rodriguez of the Kings, but the great attraction of the transaction is McGrady and his $ 23 million contract that expires at the end of the campaign.

The Rockets will guard Kevin Martin and forward Hilton Armstrong of Sacramento, in addition to the eaves Jordan Hill, Jared Jeffries and draft picks in 2011 and 2012 in New York.

Amare Stoudemire could be on the market if it decides to go to Phoenix, where once again conclude the tournament after his name was mentioned in the rumors of swaps in the weeks before the deadline transactions.

Both Bulls and Wizards and Kings reduced their payroll enough to get rid of some players to be able to pay a superstar.

But are the Wizards actually worse? Or more importantly, can they be any worse?

Overall, the Wizards are 18-33 and they have amassed a small win total with all of those players around. Can they be much worse?

Now a lot of their youth will start to get some minutes, including Andray Blatche, JaVale McGee, Randy Foye and Nick Young will get big minutes.

Meanwhile, the Raptors are in a different mindset as they are working towards the playoffs. They are coming off a tough home loss to the Memphis Grizzlies and will look to bounce back on Saturday.

Toronto Raptors @ Washington Wizards

Bodog Odds (Bodog): Raptors -3

NBA betting fans know that the Raptors are 22-11 in their last 33 games and they have turned out to be a quality team after starting 7-13.

The Raptors may not be the best team in the East but they appear to be building good chemistry. They struggle on defense and they struggle to rebound, but they are a high-scoring outfit that is having fun playing together and is winning games. That’s a big key.

The Wizards know about this because they were at the opposite end of the spectrum prior to the trades. Now they are a young team once again searching for an identity.

This is a bit of a mismatch for Washington and they are going to struggle for a little bit while they find their feet. The good news for them is that they actually have five capable starters now who are going to grow into good players, but they aren’t there yet.

The Raptors are hungry for a win and they need one in a bad way to get back on track. After losing to Memphis, they’ll be focused and they’ll outrun Washington on the road with a healthy win.

NBA Betting Pick: Raptors

Auto Club 500 Odds – Sunday, February 21, 2:00 PM ET

Edwards joins teammate Greg Biffle at +1000, while defending champion Matt Kenseth is rated at +1500. All three Roush-Fenway drivers finished in the top seven in this race last season, and all three have been a part of Roush-Fenway’s five-year streak in the spring race at Auto Club Speedway. Kenseth has three of those wins, with one going to Biffle and Edwards, and a win here would help erase the memory of last week’s win in the Daytona 500 by Jamie McMurray, who was dropped by Roush-Fenway in the offseason and even used a push from Biffle to do it.

Roush-Fenway will have to deal with the Hendrick stable of Jimmie Johnson at +450, Mark Martin at +750 and Jeff Gordon at +800. Johnson has a startling six top-fives in eight spring races here, but only one of his four wins at Fontana have come in the spring race, and that was back in 2002. Like Johnson, Gordon is a California boy and he has three wins in this race, the last of which came in 2004. The No.24 driver also finished second to Kenseth last year. Martin won the second race at Fontanta after Gordon’s win in 1997, and he has six top-10s in 13 spring races here, although he also has four DNFs, including last year’s blown engine, so he’s a risky sportsbook choice despite his solid record here.

Watch out for the Busch brothers, Kyle and Kurt, at +900 and +1200, respectively. Kyle finished third in last year’s spring race here after winning the Trucks and Nationwide races, and he has four top-10s in five spring races at Fontana, not including a win in the 2005 fall race. Kurt has five top-10s in nine spring races, including a win in 2003, and his finishing average of 9.2 is just a little bit better than Kyle at 9.8.

Edwards is far past due for a win after failing to visit Victory Lane in 2009. If someone would have told you that Edwards would go winless after taking nine checkered flags in 2008, you would have had to slap them, but Roush-Fenway just didn’t have the horsepower to catch up to Hendrick, and then Edwards broke his foot in the second half of the season, which surely hampered his efforts in the Chase.

Internet betting pick: Carl Edwards +1000

"He has great ability and has shown his level. He lacked nose for goal, but this soccer betting season he is finding. Therefore should be considered with these players," he said.

Regarding the clash, Ferguson criticized the performance of their own during the first 20 minutes. "That's when we could do a lot of goals but then we improved our image and it was just luck. From that moment we played well," said the coach.

Soccer betting lines and odds at Bodog Sportsbook

Foot Locker Three-Point Shootout

Contestants: Chauncey Billups(Denver), Daequan Cook(Miami), Stephen Curry(Golden State), Channing Frye(Phoenix), Danilo Gallinari(New York), Paul Pierce(Boston)

Those who do bets know Cook is returning as the defending champion and will have to deal with a whole new batch of shooters as he is the only returning contestant from last year. Billups has been in the competition twice already and is still looking for his first win. Gallinari is leading the league by hitting 2.6 shots from downtown while shooting over 40 percent from behind the arc. Pierce is a clutch performer that should perform well and the same can be said about Frye who is the only big-man in the competition. The wildcard will be Curry. An outstanding shooter in college with unlimited range, he is still shooting very well in the NBA as an undersized guard. With no defenders in the competition, he could put up a big score.

Pick: Stephen Curry

Taco Bell Skills Contest

Contestants: Brandon Jennings(Milwaukee), Steve Nash(Phoenix), Derrick Rose(Chicago), Deron Williams(Utah)

If doing NBA betting you should know rookie point guard Jennings will be in tough to advance in this year’s competition. Not only is he going up against three past champions, and the fastest time record holder, but his passing is not the strongest part of his game. While he and Rose are hovering around six assists a game, Williams and Nash are at 9.8 and 11.1 per contest. Defending champion Rose will have to hope his athleticism can help him the way it did last year if he wants to repeat however neither Williams nor Nash competed in that contest.

Pick: Steve Nash

Sprite Slam Dunk Contest

Contestants: Shannon Brown(L.A. Lakers), Nate Robinson(New York), Gerald Wallace(Charlotte) and either DeMar DeRozan(Toronto) or Eric Gordon(L.A. Clippers)

Dunk-In: Gordon and DeRozan will compete in a one round dunk-off during halftime of the Rookie Challenge to see who will move on to the Dunk Contest on Saturday. With Gordon playing in the actual game, he may be tired, and being a shorter contestant it might affect his dunking abilities. Those who bet college basketball will know DeRozan is an amazing athlete and should be able to come in and move on to the Dunk Contest.

Dunk-in Pick: DeMar DeRozan

Dunk Contest: Robinson will have a tough time winning the competition for the third time. At this point the judges know what he can do so he will have to really step up his game in order to get the big scores. Wallace is more of a slasher and in-game dunker and has not really shown that much finesse that will be needed to win the competition. He is also the tallest competitor which will hurt his scores. Brown and DeRozan are both incredible athletes and first time competitors. They have the explosiveness to really do some damage in this competition.

Dunk Contest Pick: Shannon Brown

According to reports today , the persistence of a sore right wrist that affects him from the lobby of the Australia Open, will force the world number five to stay at least a month without playing.

The absence of Del Potro complicates planning of Argentine Davis Cup captain, Modesto Vazquez, who is left without its main letter to the challenging for the World Group clash against Sweden, to be played in Stockholm from 5 to 7 March.

In addition, the other usual singlista Argentine David Nalbandian, coming off a lengthy lay off after a hip operation and subsequent abdominal injury. Now is expected to number 140 on the scale to compete again next week at the ATP Buenos Aires.

The irony is that Jackson did it against the team that runs another legendary, and perhaps much better teacher than him, as is Larry Brown, the "wanderers" of the NBA Betting , which has dedicated itself to teaching the fundamentals of basketball both college and professional level.

But statistics are what count and Jackson, who first came to the Lakers in 1999, to leave in 2004 and returned a year later, in 2005, with 534 victories surpassed Pat Riley (533), His eternal rival both on and off the field.

Jackson, who has been fortunate to lead, first to the Chicago Bulls with Michael Jordan of the legendary figure, then the Lakers, with Shaquille O'Neal duo with Kobe Bryant, and now incorporated the Spanish power forward Pau Gasol, Shaq replacing veteran, acknowledged that leading this team is "special".

"The fact we had some great teams, like players, you always have to give credit to them." Jackson reiterated that his mind was the concept of an individual record of achievement but a team.

The coach of the Lakers, who already in the Hall of Fame, also won 545 games in six league titles in nine seasons he was with the Bulls, Jordan until he retired.

Jackson came after the Lakers to win three straight titles with O'Neal-Bryant partner and last year won the fourth to take the help of Gasol.

The mark of 10 league titles is the best in NBA betting history to overcome the nine that won the legendary Red Auberbach, with the Boston Celtics.

The Lakers coach also ranks fifth on the list of all-time wins (1,079) after overcoming the early season Brown himself, who has run no fewer than 10 professional teams, two in the defunct American Association Basketball (ABA).

However, Jackson is the winningest coach in the finals and the only coach to win more than 70% of the games of the regular league competition.

Jackson's new brand comes two days after Bryant also unseat the list of leaders of all time scorer for the Lakers to the legendary Jerry West, his mentor and protector since joining the team.

Two teams that could be a big factor when the tournament comes around are two Big Ten powerhouses: Michigan State and Purdue. Those two teams will get reacquainted on Tuesday in a Top 25 matchup that will take place at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan. Home court advantage could be key for the Spartans as they are 13-0 on their own court to this year.

Purdue Boilermakers @ Michigan State Spartans

Online Betting Odds: Michigan State -3

The Purdue Boilermakers went through a rough stretch earlier this year and they will be very familiar with what the Michigan State Spartans are currently enduring.

The Spartans have lost two straight games and right now, the top team in the Big Ten is slipping. They started the year 9-0, which is the best start in school history, then they followed it up with two straight losses, which has provided a reality check.

Sparty lost to Wisconsin in blowout fashion and then fell to Illinois as well. Now they are back at home and have some questions to answer.

The Spartans may be without the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, Kalin Lucas, who has not coincidentally been injured in the last two games. Lucas sprained his ankle against Wisconsin and then didn’t play against Illinois. Those looking for betting tips should know that the Spartans head coach, Tom Izzo, suggested that Lucas will play on Tuesday, although he may not be 100%.

Meanwhile, Purdue also endured a rough stretch earlier this year but is playing very well right now. The Boilermaker lost three straight in early January but have bounced back with five straight wins. The trio of JaJuan Johnson, Robbie Hummel and E’Twaun Moore has been one of the best in the nation and they are always a load to deal with.

But there is a good reason to expect the Spartans to bounce back. First off, the Boilermakers haven’t won in East Lansing since 1998. Secondly, the Boilermakers tend to struggle when they lose the battle of the boards and Michigan State happens to be the best rebounding team in the Big Ten.

Look for the Spartans to bounce back with a big home win on Tuesday.

Bet College Basketball Pick: Michigan State -3

Miami Heat (24-26, 8th in Eastern Conference) @ Chicago Bulls (23-24, 7th in Eastern Conference)

Betting Tips:

Spread: Bulls -3

Over/Under: 194

Money Line: Bulls -175, Heat + 145

Key Storylines

Bronze Medal: Who will stop Deng?

• Bulls SF Luol Deng is having a great season, improving his three point shooting significantly (career: 30.9%, 2009-10: 42.6%) and his overall shot and shot selection. Deng is now crashing the boards more than he ever (7.7 rebounds per game) and has added a physical nature to his defensive game. The Heat start Quentin Richardson at small forward who is 6-5…maybe, and will have no chance guarding Deng. I expect Dwayne Wade to cover Deng a bit, but that means Derrick Rose gets to feast on Rafer Alston’s exceptionally poor defensive game if he does. Deng averages 17.7 points a game and has become a coveted player throughout the league.

Advantage: Bulls

Silver Medal: Who steps up for Joakim Noah?

• Noah has been a big reason for the Bulls success of late with his defensive ability under the basket and his improved pick and roll game on offense. He will be out however up through the all-star break to rest his foot which has plantar fasciitis. Playing in his stead will be former All-Star C Brad Miller. Miller is a very different player than Noah as Miller is a good shooter and significantly less of a defensive threat. Miller plays away from the basket exceptionally well and can draw out bigs from under the basket allowing his skilled teammates to clean up on the offensive boards. Miller may be a better fit for Derrick Rose’s offensive game in much the same way Mehmet Okur compliments Deron Williams’. Expect Taj Gibson and Tyrus Thomas to split duties guarding the opposing big man threat on the Heat (which is the corpse of Jermaine O’Neal and the solid shooting PF, Udonis Haslem). The Bulls will play a more upbeat fast paced game without Noah and it may benefit them in this matchup.

Advantage: Bulls, Noah’s loss will force the Bulls to play a style that the Heat don’t play well against

Gold Medal: How do the Bulls stop Dwayne Wade?

• The short answer is they don’t. Wade is one of the premier players in this league and the Heat would be a lottery team without him. Wade is one of the toughest competitors the game has ever seen and does not shy away from trying to stuff dunks down the throats of power forwards and centers as well as swat their dunk attempts away. Wade is an average jump shooter, but is one of the best finishers at the basket in the game and is electrifying when he cuts to the hole. Wade has supreme instincts and seems to always find the passing lane on both sides of the ball. The Bulls will throw double teams at him when he goes down low with Kirk Hinrich certainly not enough to cover Wade alone. Luol Deng will have to step up at some point in the game and help out on Wade and that matchup will be exciting to watch. Wade likely will end the game with over 30 points win or lose, but he is the type of player that can win a game all on his own. The Bulls will not be able to stop him, but they can try to contain his ability to get the rest of his team involved on the offense.

Advantage: Heat

Prediction:

• The Bulls have been playing well of late and the Heat have stayed close against some of the top teams in the NBA including the Celtics and Cavaliers in the past week. I expect a back and forth game with two of the most exciting players the NBA has to offer in Derrick Rose and Dwayne Wade stealing the show. I like the Bulls to win this game at home, but it will be awfully close and regulation may not be able to decide it.

Final: Bulls 115 - Heat 109 OT. Take the over and the Bulls (money line) at home.

Bodog currently have the Colts listed as 5-point favorites versus the Saints, while the game's total is sitting at 56½.

The Saints defeated Minnesota 31-28 in overtime as a 4-point favorite in the NFC Championship Game. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under (54).

Drew Brees passed for 197 yards with three touchdowns for New Orleans in that win, and Pierre Thomas rushed for 61 yards on 14 carries with a TD.

The Colts defeated the Jets 30-17 as a 7.5-point favorite in the AFC Championship Game. The combined score went OVER the posted over/under (40).

Peyton Manning passed for 377 yards with three touchdowns for the Colts in that win, and Pierre Garcon caught 11 passes for 161 yards with a touchdown.

Saints vs Colts odds – Sunday, February 7, 6:20 PM ET

The Saints have been a tale of two teams during the playoffs. First, they destroyed Arizona thanks to the Cardinals’ awful secondary and a physical pass rush of Kurt Warner. This was also the same team for the first half of their game against Minnesota, but it was a different story in the second half as the Vikings were moving the ball at will, and the Saints couldn’t. The only thing that saved the Saints was five turnovers by the Vikings, and if you think that the Colts will make that many mistakes, head over to your online super casino and place your bets.

The Colts have looked the same all season long, outside of the last two games of the season in which they focused on resting their starters, which rookie head coach Jim Caldwell took a lot of heat for. But any time the Colts have went out to win a game with their first-stringers this year, they have, and it all starts with Peyton Manning, and with him, the Colts never feel like they’re out of it. The Colts are a bit worried by the ankle injury to defensive end Dwight Freeney, and it’s being reported that he won’t be effective if he plays. That said, the Colts have the depth and system in place that they can make up for the loss of Freeney.

The Colts have a 5.5-point edge in this contest, and you have to remember that the Colts have been here before, winning the Super Bowl over Chicago four years ago. The Colts haven’t blinked this year, whether they face one of the NFL’s elite, or a lower-tier team. The Colts prepare for everyone the same, and you can bet they have a gameplan for Drew Brees and his band of weapons. The Saints will be game, but when it comes down to the fourth quarter, give me Manning and the Colts.

NFL picks: Colts -5.5