posted October 14, 2008 at 12:22 EST in NBA Articles
Three Favorites from Each Conference Hasn’t Changed
The NBA is here! Doesn’t it feel like it just ended about a week ago or so? I distinctly remember the Boston Celtics making the Los Angeles Lakers look like a college team from the MAC going up against the North Carolina Tar Heels. The Celtics beat down the Lakers with impunity.
Well, guess what BetUS online sportsbook basketball betting fans? The Celtics are once again one of the favorites in the Eastern Conference to win the NBA Championship. That shouldn’t be a surprise to anybody.
Heck, the Los Angeles Lakers are one of the favorites to win the NBA Championship in the Western Conference. With their young center, Andrew Bynum, healthy that shouldn’t surprise any basketball betting fans either.
Let’s take a look at the three online betting favorites in each conference in the NBA.
Eastern Conference
Boston Celtics - - online wagering odds + 300 - - With the Big Three back - - Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce - - the Celtics should waltz into the NBA Championship and repeat easily, right? Well, maybe not. The Celtics actually will be without James Posey who did a lot of the dirty work in their defense while Allen and Pierce dominated on the offensive side. Garnett is a hall of famer and Pierce might be to, but Allen has lost a step, that’s obvious. This team is going to dominate during the regular season but once they get into the playoffs things could change from last season.
Detroit Pistons - - online wagering odds + 1000 - - General Manager Joe Dumars was so upset with his squad that he threatened to trade very single one of those guys during the off season. What he did do was fire Flip Saunders and bring in a fella to coach this uninspired team. Michael Curry should get more out of Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups. I like this team from an online betting point-of-view because the online odds are so much better than the Celtics’.
Cleveland Cavaliers - - online wagering odds + 1600 - - LeBron is awesome, but after LeBron there’s something missing from this team. They don’t have enough pieces to beat the Celtics or Pistons. I just don’t see it happening unless the Celtics and Pistons suffer catastrophic injuries. At 16 to 1 they are actually a play against.
Best long shot online bet in the East - - The Miami Heat at + 4000 get a healthy Dwayne Wade back and Shawn Marion can dominate. This team has enough pieces for Pat Riley to have fun with as a president. Wade is terrific.
Western Conference
Los Angeles Lakers - - online wagering odds + 350 - - The online odds on the L.A. Lakers to win the NBA Championship are where they should be. This team is going to be very difficult to beat this season with center Andrew Bynum healthy, Pau Gasol with a year playing with Kobe Bryant, and, well, the best player on the planet on their team. The Lakers should find themselves battling for the top seed in the West this season if Kobe stays healthy. Kobe Bryant, Bynum, Gasol, Derek Fisher and Lamar Odom - - this team is loaded.
San Antonio Spurs - - online wagering odds + 850 - - The Spurs are the Spurs. They will find a way to make it to the playoffs, although during the regular season they will be terrible against the BetUS online wagering spread, and then they will look like they are going to win it all only to suffer a string of defeats at the hands of some other Western Conference team. The key with the Spurs will be the health of Manu Ginobili. Supposedly, Ginobili will be out for the entire season. If that’s the case, then at + 850 this team really has no chance.
Houston Rockets/New Orleans Hornets - - online wagering odds + 1000 - - Both the Rockets and the Hornets will go into the NBA season as 10 to 1 online betting favorites. + 1000 makes them both the third favorite in the West to win the NBA Championship. The Hornets are the better team. The Rockets made a furious run to the NBA Playoffs last season but failed because of they didn’t have Yao Ming at center. This year they do. But will it matter? I don’t think so. The Hornets on the other hand signed James Posey. He adds a lot to a team that’s already very gifted in almost every position. I like the Hornets at those online betting odds.
Best long shot online bet in the West - - It has to be the Phoenix Suns at + 2000, right? They signed some terrific bench players and you have to respect Terry Porter, being a former point guard, as the new coach. Porter and Steve Nash should be on the same page all season and because they can slow the game down, they should save Nash, Shaq and Grant Hill for the playoffs. This team drafted a terrific defensive guy in Robin Lopez. He’s going to block a lot of shots this season. Maybe general manager Steve Kerr is smarter than the rest of us!
