posted February 13, 2009 at 15:00 EST in NBA Props
NBA set for All-Star Festivities
by Ian James
The NBA may be taking a break this weekend due to the All-Star game, but you don’t have to take an NBA betting break with the slam dunk competition and three-point shootout both receiving odds.
It will be tough for Dwight Howard to top his performance in last year’s slam dunk competition, but Superman will fly again in Phoenix on Saturday to try and defend his title. Challenging Howard this time is another former dunk champion, Nate Robinson, as well as Rudy Fernandez and J.R. Smith. Rudy Gay was supposed to take part, but an injury forced him to withdraw and he was replaced by Smith. The only participant without previous slam dunk contest experience is Fernandez. Smith took part in 2005 when the contest was won by Josh Smith.
Not surprisingly the big favorite is Howard at -135 on the NBA odds. After the popularity of The Dark Knight last year maybe Howard will trade in his Superman cape for a Batman cowl to try and shake things up. Whatever tricks Howard does pull out he will be the one to beat.
Following Howard on the NBA odds are Robinson and Fernandez, both at +350, while Smith is the underdog at +400.
In the three-point shootout Jason Kapono returns to try and become the first player since Craig Hodges to win the competition three years in a row. Last year Kapono capped off the competition by scoring 25 points in the final round, tying the all-time single-round record.
Five other shooters will try to keep Kapono from making the three-peat this weekend, but only two of them have taken part in the shootout before. Those two are Mike Bibby, who took part back in 2000, and Rashard Lewis, who was part of the shootout in 2001 and in 2004. Filling out the rest of the lineup are Daequan Cook, Danny Granger, and Roger Mason.
The favorite is of course Kapono at +185 on the odds list. He’s followed by Granger, Lewis, and Bibby, all at +350. The longshots appear to be Cook and Mason, both at +600, despite the fact Mason currently owns the best three-point shooting percentage this season among the competitors.
