The Dish: Celtic Green (Around The Gills)
I'm scanning the experts' picks. And I don't see them. I don't presume to be an NBA guru. Frankly, I can't watch the game unless the calendar says "May." The season is painfully long, the players' efforts are spotty at best, the day-to-day officiating is so bad as to be hilarious. Games in December mean less than nothing: frankly, it's probably better not to play your stars every night, keep them ready and rested, and get everyone fresh for the playoffs. Yes, I don't know anything, but I do know one thing. The Boston Celtics will have the worst record in the NBA. And yet scanning the Sports Illustrated experts, the Yahoo! experts, the ESPN experts...nobody has Boston at the bottom. Portland is the consensus pick. Toronto gets a few votes. Atlanta and Charlotte get mentioned. But where are my Celtics? People are probably blinded by Paul Pierce. And sure, he's got incredible talent. But where's that gotten the team the past few seasons? As the Antoine Walker Era recedes further and further into the past, Boston gets worse and worse. And now the saviors are...Sebastian Telfair, Theo Ratliff and Wally Szczerbiak? Uh, no. This is a team with no point guard (Telfair and rookie Rajon Rondo don't count), no legitimate center (Kedrick Perkins definitely doesn't count, and Ratliff is both 107 years old and injured), no weight management (hello, Al Jefferson!), and no defense (coach Doc Rivers has given up coaching the stuff every season he's been in Beantown). Do I think the Celts can score 100 a night? Sure. Do I think they'll prevent their opponents from scoring 120? That would be no. Pierce just inked a long-term deal to stay the centerpiece of the franchise, and I suppose that's a nice story. He's always seemed to me like a pretty good guy, though apparently he ruffled the feathers of more than one Team USA official at the World Championships a few years back. But for all the draft picks Boston bragged about over the past couple seasons, Gerald Green, Rondo, Jefferson, Tony Allen, Delonte West...none of them can really play, so this team is really just Pierce and the Piercettes. And when things get rolling the wrong way in Boston, it can be a brutal, brutal place to play. Red Auerbach lived a great and full life before passing last week. In some ways, it might be a good thing he didn't live to see this. We still have two undefeated teams in the NFL: Indianapolis and Chicago. Each has a tough match-up coming soon. The Colts go to New England this week, and the Bears go to the Giants in two weeks. Any chance either of these teams goes 16-0? BoDog Bookmakers, BoDog.ws: Obviously these two teams are firing on all cylinders, but to expect a team to go undefeated would probably be too much. The rigors of a full season take their toll on the body and the mind. But like we've already seen in Chicago (vs. Arizona and Minnesota) and Indianapolis (vs. Tennessee and NY Giants) sometimes it doesn't matter who you face each week, because no team is ever willing to just lie down. Every team in the NFL now has extra motivation to beat these two clubs. If it were to happen though, Chicago has by far the easier schedule for the remainder of the season. Their combination of a stingy defense and explosive offense could get it done. What did you think of Tony Romo's performance in Carolina last week? Are the Cowboys going to make the playoffs now? BDB, BoDog.ws: We have to remember that Tony Romo has only started one game in his NFL career. While he does give a fresh look to defenses across the league, he'll run into stiffer competition than the lackluster Carolina Panthers (who were horrible on Sunday). Don't forget that Romo threw three interceptions against the Giants, and it's hard for a first-year starter to not force throws to receivers that require Dan Marino's or John Elway's touch. It all comes with experience, and Romo will have to learn on the job from here on out. The date that Cowboys fans should have marked on their calendar is December 25th vs. Philadelphia at home. That game will likely have huge playoff ramifications for the both clubs. USC's loss to Oregon State has thrown college football into a tizzy. Do you expect the winner of the West Virginia/Louisville game to play the winning of the Ohio State/Michigan game in the BCS title game? Any way, other than major upsets, we can avoid this scenario? BDB, BoDog.ws: That would be the likely scenario as it stands right now. How schedulers determined to put Ohio State vs. Michigan in the final game of the season is something that should receive quite a lot of press and opinion when the time comes. Keep an eye on Rutgers, who could play spoiler next week if Louisville beats West Virginia on Thursday. Now wouldn't that be something?! Should we just stop the NHL season right now and hand the Stanley Cup to the Buffalo Sabres? BDB, BoDog.ws: I have been impressed with the Sabres since the beginning of last season, and while they have certainly jumped out of the gate quickly, let's try not to jump to conclusions. They have a solid, quick and young nucleus that plays very well as a unit, but as we know, the NHL season is a long and grueling one where injuries to key players can wreck any team's hopes. We should have a better idea come the All-Star Break in late January, but I'd say they are clearly a force to be reckoned with. Christopher Harris is a featured writer for the Professional Handicappers League. Read all of his articles at www.procappers.com |
Other Baseball Betting Articles
Pittsburgh Pirates Handicapping: 2006 Season Preview After 3 consecutive 70+ win seasons, these Pirates faltered to 67 wins. They were -18 units on the season. We cannot blame them as they were in a heated NL Central. Heck, maybe they win their division if they were in the National League West. Maybe.One thing to note about these Pirates is that they are a historically bad team against left ...3 Free Basketball Picks - 1/25/06 Free Basketball Pick #1Spurs @ Hornets: The Hornets won the last time these two played in Oklahoma City. The Spurs blew away the Hornets when they played in San Antonio, so both teams should have a decent blue print on how to beat each other. It would definitely help the Hornets if J.R. Smith was back. Predicted Score: San Anto ...Sox Series Success Drives Futures Chicago's Cubs always have been a huge drawing card as far as Major League Baseball futures are concerned, while the crosstown rival White Sox have been regarded as the proverbial Little Sisters of the Poor.An upper echelon club versus a lower mid-level one.But hey, hey, holy cow!The Southsiders are garnering more action tha ...Marked Cards As many master the art of cheating in card games, it has become a common affair in every card game. It is a matter of wonder that there are guides that teach cheating. Many experienced players of cards know by themselves the ways of cheating. They just need to get updated about the changes in trends and also the newer modes of cheating in card g ...Blackjack Strategy – Playing Blackjack for A Living Anyone using a winning blackjack strategy can play for a living ( its easy to do ) and you know that longer term the edge is in your favor not the casino’s, so you will win and you can play blackjack for a living.You need to have the correct blackjack strategy to win and the correct mindset and this is what this article is all about - ha ...Colorado Rockies Handicapping: 2006 Season Preview Much like the rest of the National League West, the Colorado Rockies are just horrible. Bad. Pathetic. Shall I go far as to say they are as bad as a Minor League team?Despite being so bad, these Rockies have always proven to have a strong home field advantage. Over the past 7 seasons, these Rockies are 302-265 (53%) +9 units. On the road, ...How to Choose a Sportsbook The savvy bettor will expect the most out of his mate: demanding availability just prior to Monday nights kickoff-this is just one of several requirements. On Sunday morning your sportsbook MUST be on call to serve your every need. A matter of fact, this is to be expected 24/7 and even the 12 months a year.Many bettors have now stumbled u ...Poker Legend, Jack "Treetop" Straus If any guy fit the tag, “He lived life large,” it was Jack “Treetop” Straus. Big wins, big losses, big game hunter.He adopted Hemingway’s motto: “Better one day as a lion than one hundred years as a lamb.”Jack was a Texas-teller of tall tales. He reveled his friends, opponents, journalists, and anyone else who would listen with his ...Choosing The Best Slowpitch Softball Bat Perhaps your slowpitch softball team didn't make it to the playoffs this year, or get as far in the last tournament as you had hoped for. You certainly don't want that to happen next year! The good news is, it doesn't have to. Don't let them off the hook. The answer to becoming a great team may be as simple as getting rid of that used slowpitch ...Boston Celtics 2006-07 Preview Yet another mediocre team in the Atlantic division, the Celtics have some of the best young talent and depth in the Eastern Conference. The problem is that they do not have much else aside from Paul Pierce in the present to win games. Doc Rivers has his work cut out for him to make the playoffs in the upcoming season, and angry Boston fans are e ...Stat of the Week Stat of the WeekWHIP is Walks plus Hits divided by Innings Pitched. Many use this to gauge a pitcher's control and effectiveness.The WHIP for all pitchers in 2006 was 1.41 so one that is in the 1.0 to 1.25 range is very good. There was 17 pitchers in that range in 2006 with at least 150 innings pitched.The top pitcher was Jo ...Baseball Season: How to Prepare Your Child Parents often ask me what their children can do to prepare for their baseball season. Because training is specific, they should be training for baseball 12 months a year. There are very few kids who are so gifted that they can be very good in several sports. Many children start training in one sport when they are about six years old and speciali ...How I Went 10-1 Last Week With Sports Betting -Idaho vs. Hawaii Have you ever wondered how the sports betting "smart money" became the smart money? Do you wonder what the sports betting smart money does differently than the amateurs?To understand the answer to those questions, you can analyze how I went 10-1 last week with my sports betting selections. To best understand how I do this, let's just look ...Games That Cost You A Fortune Besides the obvious fact that some online casinos (an estimated 30%) will never pay their customers one red cent either because you will never win or they fail to pay out if you do, there are some “bad bets” no matter where you play. This article looks at some of the games that will cost you a fortune if you don’t change your gambling ways. ...Staying Hungry: The 2006 Chicago White Sox Problem Over the last five months I wrote a series of articles about my hometown team, the World Champion Chicago White Sox.Early on, I detected that they were heading for a meltdown.Coming off a hot 2005 campaign, marred only by a late season slide while the Indians surged, the Sox actually telegraphed their own difficulties.By the ...Tampa Bay Devil Rays 2006 Betting Preview The Tampa Bay Devil Rays are the definition of a perennial bottom feeder, averaging just 65 victories a season over the past 7 years. Because of their terrible record, many bettors consistently go against them. I would advise against that practice however, as the Devil Rays were 81-80 at home the past 2 seasons for a positive 15 units. Their pat ...The Casino Consultant Saves the Day Can you imagine a better job then being a casino consultant? For a person who is caught up in the ever growing fascination with gambling and related gaming then this type of job is as good if not better then being right there in the pit. The dealer deals and the cashier makes change but when you’re in the consulting business you have your hands ...3 Things You Must Do If You Want To Win Money With Sports Betting Have you ever wondered how the sports betting "smart money" became the smart money? Do you wonder what the sports betting smart money does differently than the amateurs? The biggest difference between professional gamblers and the amateurs is that the pros do the following three things no matter what they are betting on. If you do these things, ...Baseball Tips - Catchers - Just Let 'Er Rip! Did you ever get to a game and as you're watching the players warm up you notice that the catcher seems to have a pretty good gun? He's snapping throws off to other players and throwing ropes in long toss. He just looks good.Then the game starts. Well, inevitably, a guy with half descent speed gets on first and gets the steal sign and ...Getting the Lay of the Land with Online Poker Games When you are playing your regular Friday night poker game with the guys, you can depend on watching your buddy’s face and catching those “tells” that give hints into what he is holding in his hand. With online poker games however, you don’t have that face-to-face interaction. It takes time, but you can eventually figure out what hands your onlin ...Winning At Blackjack – 9 Steps To Playing Like a Pro Blackjack is the one casino game where you can play with a positive edge against the casino and win money over the longer term.Winning at blackjack can be done by those players willing to put in the time and effort to do so.The only trait you need to get started for winning at blackjack and expanding your bankroll is a desire to le ...The RNG– Win BIG at Online Slots By Knowing How It Works You need to know how the Random Number Generator RNG works.Many players make playing errors in online slots as they don’t understand the logic behind the RNG and it costs them money, also if you want to win the big jackpots you need to know how combinations are calculated.The RNG is a marvel of modern technology and powers every on ...Las Vegas - The World's Number One Gambling Destination Las Vegas certainly lives up to its name as being the city of dreams. Walk along the many streets and see the bars and casinos, and let yourself become intoxicated with the lights, glamour and free drinks. Gambling in Las Vegas is all consuming because the idea is for you to gamble. Most importantly however, it is vitally important that you ha ...Winning at Caribbean Stud Poker - Made Easy! In truth, Caribbean poker is not poker at all, but a casino game based on poker. You play against the casino, as in blackjack, not other players. As you could expect, the odds favor the casino not the player, but you can tilt them in your favor my some clever strategyPlaying Caribbean Stud Poker.To begin you ante and you and the de ...So Here's To You, Joltin' Joe, But Who's The Rookie Leaning On The Bus? In the fourth grade, a boy named Willie McTavish moved from Scotland to Auburn California, which was my home town. Miss Arbortree, our teacher, appointed me to show him around the school grounds, and to make him fell at home. I don’t know why I was selected, unless it was the plaid shirt I was wearing that day.Willie was a very nice boy, ...Virtual Poker Site There are a few considerations you should keep in mind when signing up for a virtual poker site. When you’re not playing with real money, or real chips, it can be easier to bet the house. Remember, just because the game play is virtual, this doesn’t mean that your money is virtual. Be sure to pace yourself.Software designers try to mak ...Gambling History of United States Against the popular belief, gambling did not originate in the US. Most of the popular gambling games played in the American casinos have their origin in various foreign locales.Heritage of gambling is somehow related to the Chinese culture. Chinese culture has been the home of numerous gambling games. Keno, a popular Chinese game is one o ...New York Knicks 2006-07 Preview One of the biggest disasters in all of sports in recent history, the Knicks have to prove that their enormous payroll can win games or face a not-so-good future. With most of their money locked up with selfish swing men new head coach Isiah Thomas will have his hands full trying to fulfill New York fan expectations.The most talented playe ...
|
