NBA Atlantic Division Off-Season Grades
Basketball Betting Lines
07/30/2010 -
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlantic Division had only one team finish
with a winning record last season (Celtics), and although some members have
improved since then, it looks like it will be pretty weak once again. Let's
take a look at how each has fared in the attempt to upgrade their rosters.
CELTICS: Boston kept its "Big Four" intact by re-signing free agents Paul
Pierce and Ray Allen. The Celtics did lose a valuable bench player to free
agency with Tony Allen signing with the Grizzlies. Another key sub may not
return, as the C's await Rasheed Wallace's decision on whether he'll remain
retired. Boston signed free agent Jermaine O'Neal to bolster its front line,
which will help with Kendrick Perkins being sidelined to at least December as
he recovers from major knee surgery. O'Neal is more of an offensive threat than
Perkins, but the Celts will miss his physical presence. In the draft, the
Boston picked up guard Avery Bradley and power forward Luke Harangody. Even
though Harangody was a second round pick, he may be more ready to step in and
contribute this season following a very impressive showing in the summer
league.
KNICKS: Team president Donnie Walsh stripped his roster down to almost nothing
over the last two years to get under the salary cap, in hopes of striking free
agent gold this summer. What he ended up with was some nice bronze and two
straight horrible seasons. Free agent Amar'e Stoudemire was glad to come to New
York for a guaranteed $100 million dollars. The only problem was none of his
fellow big-ticket free agents wanted to do the same. Point guard Raymond
Felton, also a free agent, did opt to join Stoudemire in the Big Apple, signing
a three-year contract. Walsh did manage to get some useful pieces for free
agent David Lee, as he sent him to the Warriors in a sign-and-trade for Anthony
Randolph, Kelenna Azubuike, and Ronny Turiaf. The Knicks had two second-round
draft picks, and came away with small forward Landry Fields and guard Andy
Rautins. Fields showed some promise in the summer league, while Rautins may be
even a worse pick than Jordan Hill was last season. The end result for the
Knicks was they got rid of eventual All-Star Zach Randolph and sixth-man-of-
the-year winner Jamal Crawford for Stoudemire and Felton. Not much of a trade-
off for two horrible seasons, if you ask me.
NETS: New Jersey had the third overall pick in the draft and selected power
forward Derrick Favors. He has a wealth of potential and tremendous
athleticism, but it's unlikely he'll have a big impact in his first season. The
Nets selected Damion James with the second of their two first-round picks.
James played very well in the summer league and may be more polished at this
point than Favors. The Nets also picked up some serviceable pieces in the free
agent market, signing point guard Jordan Farmar, small forward Travis Outlaw,
and shooting guard Anthony Morrow. Farmar gives the Nets a solid backup for
Devin Harris, while Outlaw and Morrow can both fill it up from the outside.
Grade: B
76ERS: The big addition was Evan Turner, the second overall pick in the draft.
He struggled in the summer league by his own admission, and you wonder how
effective he'll be having to play off the ball in the NBA. The Sixers made one
trade of note, sending the highly outsized contract of center Samuel Dalembert
to the Kings for center Spencer Hawes and small forward Andres Nocioni. Aside
from dumping a bad contract, Philly gets a big man in Hawes that is seven years
younger than Dalembert. However, the overall effect of the trade as far as
improving the team is likely to be minimal at best.
Grade: C
RAPTORS: Even though Toronto lost its All-Star power forward Chris Bosh to the
Heat via free agency, it actually wasn't a disastrous off-season for the
Raptors. Toronto got another lefty power forward in the draft's first round,
North Carolina's Ed Davis. He's still very raw and will take time to develop,
but the Raptors potentially got themselves a good replacement for Bosh with the
13th overall pick. The Raptors made two free agent signings of their own,
inking small forward Linas Kleiza to a very reasonable four-year, $18.4 million
dollar deal, and a somewhat unreasonable five-year, $34 million dollar contract
to power forward Amir Johnson Kleiza played overseas last year, but was very
productive previously backing up Carmelo Anthony in Denver. Johnson earned his
hefty payday by averaging 6.2 ppg in nearly 18 minutes per game last season for
the Raptors. He does do some good work off the boards and provide a shot-
blocking presence, but has always had trouble staying on the floor due to
foul problems. Toronto also traded the disgruntled and disappointing Hedo
Turkoglu to the Suns for Leandro Barbosa. The Raptors had to be thrilled
getting a quality player like Barbosa in exchange for a player who didn't want
to be there and is four years older.
Grade: C+
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Anything but pre
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this week.
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<< Redskins sign first-round pick Williams
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Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the Washington Post reports it to be
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Tigers bring up Frazier; designate Larish for assignment >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers have purchased the contract
of outfielder Jeff Frazier from Triple-A Toledo and opened a roster spot for
the slugger by designating infielder Jeff Larish for assignment.
Frazier was hitti
Blue Jays seek fourth straight victory in opener with Indians >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Toronto Blue Jays take aim at their fourth straight win
this evening when they open a three-game series against the Cleveland Indians
at Rogers Centre.
Toronto started its six-game homestand in impressive fashion, as i
Tigers hope to stop road skid in clash with Red Sox >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers are quickly falling out of contention in
the American League Central. Tonight, they try to put the brakes on their 10-
game road losing streak when they open a three-game series against the Boston
Red Sox a
Yankees open key set with Rays; A-Rod tries again for 600th homer >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Alex Rodriguez's quest to become the youngest player in
baseball history with 600 home runs takes him to St. Petersburg where the New
York Yankees open a three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana
Field.
Ro
Slumping Diamondbacks visit Mets >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The slumping Arizona Diamondbacks head to New York in hopes
of notching a rare road win when they open a three-game weekend series with
the Mets at Citi Field.
The Diamondbacks, now 24 games off the pace in the National Le
Will Ohio State continue to run the table in College Football betting odds?
MySportsbook.com favors Buckeyes, Fighting Irish and Golden Bears in this weekend's big games.
NEW YORK, NY, Sept. 21 - My Sportsbook NCAA football fans: things are beginning to get really interesting on college football's national stage. Following last weekend's "Separation Saturday", which included five teams ranked in the top 15 dropping games, the BCS Championship picture is beginning to take shape - with Ohio State leading the charge. And, according to odds makers at MySportsbook.com, the number-one-ranked Buckeyes will continue their winning ways this weekend.
Revenge will be the name of the game in Columbus this Saturday, as Ohio State looks to even the score following last season's loss to Joe Paterno's Nittany Lions. Although Penn State are listed as 16.5 point underdogs, they are 11-10 all-time versus the Buckeyes. Paterno and the Lions, however, will have to shut down Heisman Trophy favorite Troy Smith who has thrown for 769 yards and seven touchdowns this season.
Speaking of revenge, Notre Dame will be out for some against Michigan State, following last year's 44 - 41 overtime loss to the Spartans in South Bend. The thirteenth-ranked Irish, listed as a 3-point favorite, will also be looking to avenge last Saturday's thrashing from the Michigan Wolverines. The Spartans, meanwhile, have won seven of the last nine match-ups against Notre Dame and are coming off an impressive 38-23 victory over Pittsburgh.
Out west, 22nd-ranked Arizona State will be battling for their first victory over 21st-ranked California since 2000. Although the Golden Bears are listed as 7.5-point favorites, the Sun Devils are 3-0, lead the nation in sacks with 18 and possess the Pac-10's leading passer in sophomore quarterback Rudy Carpenter.
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your Sportsbook accepts Visa needs.
NCAA Football betting lines (home team in CAPS)
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Date Favorite Opponent Point Spread
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Sept 21 GEORGIA TECH Virginia 17
Sept 22 NEVADA Northwestern 6.5
Sept 23 MICHIGAN Wisconsin 14
Sept 23 Minnesota PURDUE 3
Sept 23 SYRACUSE Miami (Ohio) 6.5
Sept 23 MISSOURI Ohio 21.5
Sept 23 Louisville KANSAS STATE 14
Sept 23 TENNESSEE Marshall 22
Sept 23 CLEMSON North Carolina 16.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA Kentucky 24
Sept 23 Iowa ILLINOIS 20.5
Sept 23 FLORIDA STATE Rice 30.5
Sept 23 AUBURN Buffalo 41.5
Sept 23 BOWLING GREEN Kent 7
Sept 23 NAVY Tulsa 4.5
Sept 23 VIRGINIA TECH Cincinnati 27
Sept 23 BYU Utah State 29
Sept 23 OHIO STATE Penn State 16.5
Sept 23 TEXAS Iowa State 25
Sept 23 Washington State STANFORD 10
Sept 23 CALIFORNIA Arizona State 7.5
Sept 23 UCLA WASHINGTON 3
Sept 23 INDIANA Connecticut 1.5
Sept 23 Central Michigan EASTERN MICHIGAN 4
Sept 23 WYOMING Air Force 1
Sept 23 UTEP NEW MEXICO 9.5
Sept 23 West Virginia EAST CAROLINA 21
Sept 23 Boston College NORTH CAROLINA STATE 7
Sept 23 GEORGIA Colorado 27
Sept 23 ARKANSAS Alabama 1.5
Sept 23 BAYLOR Army 11
Sept 23 WESTERN MICHIGAN Temple 28
Sept 23 MISSISSIPPI Wake Forest 2.5
Sept 23 KANSAS South Florida 5.5
Sept 23 TEXAS A&M Louisiana Tech 23.5
Sept 23 UAB Mississippi State 9.5
Sept 23 LSU Tulane 36
Sept 23 Utah SAN DIEGO STATE 6.5
Sept 23 BOISE STATE Hawaii 15
Sept 23 Notre Dame MICHIGAN STATE 3
Sept 23 USC ARIZONA U 22
Sept 23 Oklahoma State HOUSTON 1
Sept 23 OREGON STATE Idaho 23
Sept 23 OKLAHOMA Middle Tennessee State 29
Sept 23 MARYLAND Florida International 18.5
Sept 23 AKRON North Texas 17.5
Sept 23 SOUTH CAROLINA Florida Atlantic 29.5
Sept 23 NEBRASKA Troy 23
Sept 23 SMU Arkansas State 6
For complete NCAA football odds and World Series odds please visit MySportsbook.com
Pacific-10 Conference odds
Teams that should be in: Stanford
 Oregon and USC get their tickets punched after taking care of business this weekend. Yes, the Trojans' computer numbers aren't great, but there's no way the third-place team in this league is getting nixed. Grudgingly, I added Arizona after consultation with our Bracketologist. I don't know that Arizona will lose its last three (including a Pac-10 quarterfinal game), and even if the Cats do, I still can't see how they'd be left out, given the overall profile. That said, it bears watching, as three more L's would leave them at 18-12 (9-9) and on a 6-11 skid entering the Dance. It would be nice to see the Wildcats get at least one W in the Bay Area next week, as Cincinnati (albeit without Armein Kirkland and with a worse profile) was axed after a similar slide last season. I just couldn't rationalize having some of the other teams as locks and not having Arizona in that category -- there just aren't enough good teams behind the Cats to threaten their spot, it seems. Stanford has its fate in its own hands with the Arizona schools coming to the Farm to close out the regular season next weekend.
Should be in:
Stanford [17-10 (9-7), RPI: 40, SOS: 21] No shame in not getting a win in L.A., but that makes the home game against Arizona State a must-win ahead of what could be an intriguing meeting with Arizona should the Cats lose at Cal. Getting to 11 Pac-10 wins would make Selection Sunday much more comfortable, but 10's probably more than enough this season. The Cardinal have nonconference wins over Texas Tech and at Virginia to lean on, although they also lost badly to Air Force and Santa Clara at home.
| Southeastern Conference odds |
Work left to do: Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Mississippi State
 It looks more and more possible that no one from the SEC West will make the NCAAs. How weird is that? Tennessee and Vandy move into the locks category after more good work this weekend. Kentucky stays there, although it would be smart for the Cats to handle Georgia at home Wednesday ahead of a trip to the Swamp. Could a disaster scenario (two more L's and a first-round SEC tourney exit) somehow dislodge the Cats despite their incredible computer numbers? Still unlikely, but not worth chancing it.
Work left to do:
Alabama [19-9 (6-8), RPI: 43, SOS: 47] The tough L at Tennessee was understandable, and even created some hope. Unfortunately, that hope was dashed by a home loss to Auburn, which leaves the Tide in some real trouble. There's still no signature win on the profile (no, Kentucky doesn't count), and the computer profile is weakening rapidly. The Tide conceivably could beat Ole Miss and win at Miss. State to get to 8-8 and clinch at least a share of the West crown, but that's probably not enough right now. The Tide will need to do some work in the SEC tourney.
Georgia [16-10 (8-6), RPI: 52, SOS: 23] This is the team with the best chance to make it from this section right now. The Bulldogs rebounded from a terrible performance at Ole Miss to beat down Miss. State. Now they are at Kentucky (king of the RPI 51-100 win) and home to Tennessee. That would be worth a lot of computer points to get both (which is doable), as both teams are in the top 11 in RPI. Finishing at least 9-7 is an absolute must, and I would feel much better about the Dawgs' chances if they got both to get to 10 SEC wins. They also beat Gonzaga, but lost to ACC bubblers Georgia Tech and Clemson.
Mississippi [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 63, SOS: 79] Like everyone else in this division, Ole Miss gacked up a chance to stake a claim, losing by double figures at South Carolina. Even 9-7 likely is not nearly enough with a nonconference profile devoid of anything notable.
Mississippi State [16-11 (7-7), RPI: 66, SOS: 37] With a chance to get in the mix, these Bulldogs were leashed by their Georgia counterparts. Could they get to 9-7? I guess -- although winning at Arkansas, then beating Alabama is no lock -- but would that mean all that much for a team with this overall profile? Probably not. There's nothing of note (on the good side) in the nonconference profile. |
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