Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting
02/13/2007 -
CLEVELAND (AP) -Sasha Pavlovic cocked his arm and awkwardly flung the new ball, which wobbled on its flight toward a laughing LeBron James standing at the other end of the practice court.
``Quack, quack,'' James said, teasing his teammate.
``It was the first time I ever held a football,'' Pavlovic, born in Serbia-Montenegro, explained later. ``You can see, I'm not so good.''
Lately, Pavlovic has shown off his skills with a leather ball he can handle.
Buried on Cleveland's bench for nearly three months, Pavlovic has gone from obscurity to necessity for the Cavaliers, who have been battling expectations while searching for an offensive spark all season.
Coach Mike Brown found one sitting a few feet away.
The 23-year-old Pavlovic is playing the best ball of his four-year career. In his last seven games, he's averaging 15 points on 50 percent shooting (34-of-68), with 3.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 25 minutes.
On Sunday, he scored 13 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter in Cleveland's 99-90 win over the Los Angeles Lakers. At times, Pavlovic was the most impressive player on the floor - more than James or even fellow superstar Kobe Bryant, who were outslashed and outshined down the stretch by the far-less-famous European.
``My confidence is getting higher and higher,'' Pavlovic said. ``I know I'm going to play, that keeps me more consistent. I have to play hard on defense and my offense will come.''
He didn't always feel that way.
A gifted slasher with a decent outside touch, the 6-foot-7 Pavlovic has a smooth offensive game. His defense has been just the opposite, the primary reason Brown rarely used him last season, and why Pavlovic played only four minutes in the NBA playoffs.
Getting Pavlovic to buy into his defense-first philosophy has been a challenge for Brown and his staff.
``When I first got here, we saw how extremely talented Sasha was in practice,'' said Brown, in his second season with Cleveland. ``He is a very capable scorer, passer, runner, slasher, you name it. One of my coaches went to him and said, 'Sasha, you've got to defend.'
``And not even cracking a smile, he looked at my coach and said, 'My defense is my offense.'''
Pavlovic now realizes that to play more, he must move his feet, stay with his man and contest every shot to remain in Brown's favor - and his rotation.
``Slowly but surely he's gotten to a point where he understands that in order for him to play he's got to defend,'' Brown said.
Pavlovic's impact when the Cavs have the ball has been more profound.
The Cavaliers' lack of a true point guard has hindered the team, which ranks 23rd in scoring, 27th in field-goal percentage and last of the league's 30 teams in free-throw percentage.
Pavlovic's added minutes - he's taking time from guard Damon Jones - as well as Brown's decision to start rookie Daniel Gibson at the point over Eric Snow has allowed the Cavs to up the tempo. By pushing the ball, they've been able to initiate their offense more quickly.
In the fourth quarter of Sunday's win, it was Pavlovic, not James, leading the Cavaliers.
Pavlovic, whose infusion into the mix came when James hurt his big toe a few weeks ago, either drove to the basket or worked pick-and-rolls with Anderson Varejao, who added 11 points in the final 12 minutes.
He also made two 3-pointers, all three of his free throws and converted a key three-point play with 1:24 remaining to seal it.
James has seen Pavlovic do it before.
``I go against him every day in practice and he's a very tough matchup for me,'' James said. ``I just always tell Sasha, 'You're going to be very good for us. We're going to need you.' And he has responded.''
Earlier this season, Pavlovic's future in Cleveland seemed uncertain, and until the Feb. 22 trading deadline passes, it still is. But his recent play may have the club rethinking its moves in a season when the Eastern Conference is wide open.
``Sasha has played an important part of our last few wins,'' general manager Danny Ferry said Monday. ``His scoring off the bench and his ability to get to the rim has given us a real boost.''
Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
<< Padres to sign injured Marine as minor-league pitcher
SAN DIEGO (AP) -A Marine who lost a finger on his left hand while serving in Iraq has agreed to terms with the San Diego Padres, the team said Monday.Right-hander Cooper Brannan will report to minor league spring training March 1. The 22-year-old in
<< Schottenheimer fired by Chargers president
SAN DIEGO (AP) -Chargers coach Marty Schottenheimer was fired Monday night in a shocking move by team president Dean Spanos, who cited a ``dysfunctional situation'' between the coach and general manager A.J. Smith.Less than a month after San Diego's
<< NFL Career Coaching Victories
Coach, Teams W L T Pct.Don Shula, Balt-Miami 347 173 6 .665George Halas, Chicago 324 151 31 .671Tom Landry, Dallas 270 178 6 .601Curly Lambeau, GB-Was-Chi
<< Red Wings-Flyers, Sums
Detroit 1 0 0-1Philadelphia 1 0 5-6First Period-1, Detroit, Holmstrom 20 (Zetterberg, Schneider), 11:53 (pp). 2, Philadelphia, Richards 4 (Kapanen), 16:52 (sh). Penalties-Eager, Phi (cross-checking), 1:20; Kronwall, Det (hooking), 3:00; Forsber
Notre Dame coach claims malpractice in obesity surgery >>
BOSTON (AP) - The lawyer for Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis said Tuesday that doctors failed to recognize life-threatening complications after Weis' gastric bypass surgery, allowing him to bleed internally for more than a day.Weis' lawyer, Michael Mo
Iverson to miss All-Star game with sprained ankle >>
DENVER (AP) -Allen Iverson will miss the All-Star Game because of a sprained right ankle that has bothered him for two weeks.Iverson was chosen as a reserve to the Western Conference squad for Sunday's game in Las Vegas, but the Denver Nuggets guard
Kidd to miss 2 games with strained lower back >>
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -Jason Kidd will miss the next two games for the New Jersey Nets with a strained lower back, and his status was uncertain for Sunday's NBA All-Star game.The All-Star point guard will be out for Tuesday's game against San A
McGuirk: No changes expected with Braves sale >>
ATLANTA (AP) -Atlanta Braves president Terry McGuirk said Tuesday fans should expect a ``transparent'' ownership transition if the team's sale from Time Warner to Liberty Media is approved by Major League Baseball.The agreement was completed on Mond
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.
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
Get free 2009 Super Bowl Betting from top rated online sportsbook MySportsbook.com. Mysportsbook.com online Super Bowl betting VISA Mastercard
Sports Betting News: NFL Team History | NFL Football Betting | College Football Betting | Baseball Betting | Basketball Betting | College Basketball Betting | Hockey Betting | Golf Betting | Tennis Betting | Auto Racing Betting | Horse Racing Betting | Soccer Betting