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08/04/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Conventional wisdom says the Chicago Bulls failed this offseason.
After all, the Bulls were supposed to be in hot pursuit of the game's biggest prize, LeBron James, and came up empty. In fact, when one ill-informed ESPN talking head proclaimed Chicago the favorite to land the narcissistic one, dozens of lemmings fell in line to drink the Bristol Kool-Aid, convinced the Windy City would land LeBron.
Instead, King James took his throne to South Beach and the Bulls were forced to scramble and cultivate a Plan B that included signing power forward Carlos Boozer away from Utah, and inking a number of complimentary parts like Ronnie Brewer, Kyle Korver and Kurt Thomas.
The moves certainly weren't sexy. but if you look at what new coach Tom Thibodeau has at his disposal, Chicago now looks like a player in the revamped Eastern Conference.
Thibodeau, a defensive mastermind, inherited a pair of elite frontcourt defenders in Joakim Noah and Taj Gibson, the game's best young point guard, Derrick Rose, and a solid small forward in Luol Deng. The addition of Boozer, Brewer, Korver and Thomas to that mix looks tailor-made.
Rose will be able to play pick-and-roll all day with Boozer, and the former Jazz stalwart is also a top-tier scorer with his back to the basket, meaning the Bulls will be a much tougher team to defend in the half-court come playoff time.
Meanwhile, Thomas brings toughness on the glass, Korver, one of the game's best pure shooters, will help space the floor, and Brewer is the type of slasher that could excel running the floor with Rose.
"We've got basketball players," Rose told Bulls.com. "I don't know about everybody else's team, but my team is ready to fight. We've got guys that just want to win. They aren't about their stats or anything. We've got legit winners."
Steve Kerr, the sharp-shooting guard that was a part of five NBA championship teams, including three with the Bulls, is impressed with what's going on in Chicago.
Kerr, who has returned to the broadcast booth with TNT after serving as the general manager of the Phoenix Suns, recently gushed over the Bulls talent.
"They've got two unbelievable frontcourt defenders with Noah and Taj Gibson, they've got the great point guard play of Derrick Rose and now you've got the low-post scoring that Chicago has been lacking for years with Boozer," Kerr said. "They've done a nice job of quietly putting some pieces in there on the wings. They've got a really deep mix of players and I think they are going to be really good."
Good enough to compete with a Heat team that has quietly added veterans like Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Juwan Howard and Eddie House to its Superfriends trio of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh?
"Obviously, Miami has the most talent but when you look at Chicago's mix, I just really like it," Kerr said. "I actually think that (the Bulls) are the most well-rounded team in the East."
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ASHBURN, Va. (AP) -On the seventh day, Albert Haynesworth rested again.This time, he had some company.The fitness of the Washington Redskins defensive lineman remains unresolved one week into training camp. Haynesworth did not attempt the team's con
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<< Fever will keep Lookin At Lucky from Travers
Saratoga Springs, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Haskell Invitational winner Lookin At
Lucky will miss the $1 million Travers at Saratoga Race Course on Saturday,
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Trainer Bob Baffert announced
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Chestnut Hill, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston College women's basketball coach
Sylvia Crawley has been rewarded with a two-year contract extension through
the 2014-15 season.
Crawley has a record of 40-27 in two seasons with the Eagles.
Montreal's Calvillo tops CFL Players of the Month >>
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Montreal quarterback Anthony Calvillo and
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Saskatchewan slotback Andy Fantuz have been selected as the CFL's top
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Strasburg could return next Tuesday >>
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Washington Nationals rookie Stephen Strasburg
could return to the rotation next Tuesday.
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Boone, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Just as former Appalachian State star Armanti
Edwards is making the transition from quarterback to wide receiver in the NFL,
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Trey Elder, a fou
Motte placed on DL, Cardinals recall Salas >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The St. Louis Cardinals placed reliever Jason
Motte on the 15-day disabled list on Wednesday due to an AC sprain of his
right shoulder.
Motte has excelled out of the Cardinals bullpen this season, pi
Rule No. 1 in the gamblers' handbook states, "Avoid sports betting on meaningless games."
When you're drowning in a sea of baseball monotony, however, things change. Even a hint of pro football betting can persuade the most disciplined bettor to break a few rules.
The NFL preseason is around the corner, with a tempting Hall of Fame match kicking off on Sunday. But bettors must stay vigilant. Wagering on NFL exhibition games is an entirely different beast than the regular season. Most fans don't recognize the players on the field because starters get as much action in August as Warcraft fans get on Prom night.
The only certainty about the NFL this time of year is uncertainty – and yet there are some who say betting in August can be a gold mine.
“I actually feel the NFL preseason presents solid profit opportunities for sharp bettors and handicappers,” Sports Expert Steve Merril explains. “My experience has been that the sportsbooks fear the preseason, which is evident by lower limits and massive moves.”
The line moves are attributed to the limited knowledge available regarding playing-time distribution. One team’s top unit out on the field for one more series has an impact on the pointspread. Setting lines in the preseason often is a shot in the dark.
“We base the betting lines mostly on public perception,” Pete Korner, founder of the Sports Club in Las Vegas, says. “It’s very tough to predict, almost a guessing game.”
The preseason is all about figuring out who’s in and for how long.
“It becomes a race between bettors and oddsmakers to find out how long the quarterbacks are going to stay in,” Korner admits. “If a sharp gets the information first, he could exploit an early line. I’m a full believer in moving the line in the preseason if the books find out something late in the week.”
Determining what each team’s motive is can help bettors handicap. To do this you must pay close attention to the philosophies head coaches employ in exhibition play.
“You need to know what a coach is trying to accomplish,” says Covers Expert Bryan Leonard. “Sometimes a new coach will want to instill a winning attitude. Others just want to make sure their starters don’t get hurt."
So how do you distinguish who’s playing scared and who’s playing for keeps?
“Head coaches on the hot seat or new coaches trying to implement a winning attitude usually try harder to win in the preseason,” Merril says.
Cleveland Browns head coach Romeo Crennel fits this criteria. He’s entering his third season as the sideline boss and has yet to lead the Browns to more than six wins.
Cleveland is an enticing bet as well because of the unresolved quarterback situation. General manager Phil Savage sacrificed the Browns’ first-round pick in next year’s draft for Brady Quinn, but the former Notre Dame quarterback hasn’t signed or reported to training camp yet.
Charlie Frye and Derek Anderson split time at QB last season and it looks like either player (or even Quinn) could be the opening-day starter.
“If a team has quarterback depth and the pecking order hasn’t been decided, it’s a big advantage,” Leonard says.
Even in the third week of the preseason when starters generally play the most, the final outcome of the game is in the hands of fringe players. A team's talent, all the way down to the last man on the roster, is something to consider.
The New England Patriots have long been considered one of the deeper teams in the NFL and coach Bill Belichick has said in the past he’s unafraid of stars getting hurt in games with nothing on the line. He shocked his colleagues in 2003 by playing some of his starters on special teams in the preseason.
“We want to have the team ready to play a tough, physical game and preparation has to go into that and I imagine a certain amount of injuries go with it,” Belichick told the Providence Journal in August 2003.
Bettors can only hope to find more teams that share the Pats' business-like approach to the preseason (New England is 17-9-3 against the spread since 2000) and take advantage of teams who detest the exhibition schedule.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on football needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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