We took a week off from promos, and the gambling gods smiled upon our act of humble mercy with a monster week...err, and hard work probably helped, too!
So, this week, back to some mild promo action (just grin and bear it, though I know you guys just gloss over this part).
First, the longer term stuff - the last few months have really illustrated the need to follow a capper for more than 4-5 days. We rocked from August through November, had a 3-week stretch of mostly mediocre results, and now are bouncing back. With that in mind, why not check out the
DAN BEBE MONTHLY FLEX PACKAGE - a tremendous deal that gets an entire month for the price of, roughly, 8 days of plays. Think about it, won't you?
And, second, the daily package - I have a Bowl Game I've been waiting for ALL WEEK tonight! Let's add to that insane 11-2 2* and 3* extended run (since September!) that we put together in CFB, with this GOW play tonight!
Now, read the darn blog!
Sports Wagering: NBA
New York Knicks @ Orlando Magic (-7.5) with a total of 210.5;
No rest for the weary - the Knicks come off a tough game with the Heat and have to tackle the other Florida club, and one that is absolutely crushing with its new crop of players. Orlando has won, and covered, 4 straight games, and the new guys appear to be settling in nicely, especially on offense. We know New York stays mostly competitive with just about every opponent, so covering more than 7-8 is very tough against the Knicks without top level pick-and-roll defense. Having Dwight Howard inside is a huge help, but Miami, the team New York just faced, might be the best pick and roll defensive team in the League, and I'm inclined to think the Knicks have a little more success on the offensive end in this one than they did on Tuesday. I know Orlando is the red hot club, and I know Handicapping 101 says to just back a hot team, but in this one, I'm inclined to think it ends up as a relatively close game, with New York starting to get some mojo back. Lean to the KNICKS and the OVER.
San Antonio Spurs @ Dallas Mavericks with a total of N/A;
The health of a few Dallas players is going to weigh heavily on this game, as both Dirk Nowitzki and Caron Butler are banged up, but both are day-to-day. Thus, we just might not know a whole heck of a lot about this game until close to tip. Obviously, early news would be great, but I don't expect it. What I do expect, though, is that San Antonio is going to bring it from start to finish. The Spurs have lost just 4 games all season long, and one of those four came against these Mavs, at home. So, the Spurs are on home revenge, and I don't see them having any issue trying to beat Dallas "when they're down," if in fact the stars don't play. The Spurs are rolling, they play great team defense, and I think this game is going to be decided late. Given San Antonio was a 4-point home favorite in the last meeting, I believe Dallas will be a short home favorite in this one (injuries pending), and if we can get 3 points with the road team (which, thanks to injury, seems unlikely), I'll say right now that I'll probably bet the SPURS, and I lean UNDER.
Utah Jazz @ Portland Trailblazers with a total of N/A;
Certainly, Utah's results with the Clippers will play a small role in how we break this one down, but the stronger angle is the recent history revenge. Utah beat Portland here a month back, and Portland got revenge with a win in Utah just a few short days ago. But Utah was in a terrible spot, not having played at home in ages, and was clearly sluggish from the Christmas Holiday, and Portland was able to take advantage of that with a pretty ugly game. Now, Utah is rested and back in the flow of the season, Portland is coming home off a tough 3-game road trip through altitude, and remains a team that has all kinds of trouble scoring reliably. I'm rather curious where oddsmakers bring this line out, though, as Utah was a 7.5-point home favorite, so this one should be pretty close to a Pick, barring a monster adjustment for a reason I haven't yet noted. Revenge is big, as is shaking off the rust, and Utah has taken care of both. The last game featured a very low final score, but it was also about as ugly as a game can get. Lean to the JAZZ and the OVER, though we'll see about where that total opens.