Betting on NBA

As Heidi Montag’s opinion on the economy, the NBA’s regular season MVP award is as meaningful. The MVP award has become nothing more than a popularity contest in an era of hype, highlights and sports celebrity.

While Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant have just 2 MVPs against a combined 9 rings, look no further than the combined 4 MVPs and 0 rings Steve Nash and LeBron James have amassed.

Who will win the MVP next season is what is degenerate gamblers worldwide are betting on by looking at the odds. The best player on the planet (ahem…KB24) is going off at 3 to 1 odds and it is no surprise at all. Meanwhile, to hoist the meaningless piece of metal next year, Kevin Durant and self-proclaimed “King” James are both the odds on favorites.

Sure, hanging banners is what really matters, although those awards are nice and shiny… right? As LeBron’s look-at-me regular season MVPs, Kobe’s 2 consecutive Finals MVP awards may be aren’t as sexy.

Winning is overrated and let’s face this fact. Which is why to win the title, it’s a good thing that the Miami Heat are favorites since that would mean LeBron will certainly become irrelevant if he wins…right? That is the logic these days.

Since few teams have a great, MVP caliber player on roster, other team’s fans will have to settle for cheering for a great team.

Don’t forget to check out the sports betting blog for more from the NBA world.

In the NBA in 2010, the most talked about free agent acquisition of the offseason was the arrival of superstar Lebron James to the Miami Heat. As one of the highest paid players in the league, his new, multiyear $110 million contract puts him up there with Kobe Bryant.

The Heat are already expected to win in all this year and the photos of James and his teammates Dwyane Wade and Jermaine O’Neal in Miami uniforms have already been released.

However, what’s happening in this summer, with all the other NBA Free Agents?

By getting another ring with the Boston Celtics, James’ former teammate Shaquille O’Neal is looking to finish out his career. Worth over $3 million contract was signed by Shaq. From last year, the stellar Cleveland team is dismantled that had a lot of potential to easily go all the way.

To attempt to fill some giant shoes, Cleveland has signed rookie prospect Samardo Samuels. Samuels is from Jamaica and he is a 6 foot eight forward.

For a new team, Tracy McGrady was recently looking around. Chicago Bulls, who recently picked up Carlos Boozer for a five-year deal worth 80 million, he, was reportedly set to meet with them. Reportedly, for a one-year deal worth 1.2 million dollars, McGrady signed with the Pistons.

Veteran power forward Theo Ratliff was signed by Lakers help Kobe and company stay on top.

As Ben Wallace ends up going back to Detroit for a two-year $1.9 million dollar contract, the NBA free agency game of musical chairs comes full circle.

A contract has been signed officially by Phil Jackson to return to the Los Angeles Lakers. On July 1, the 11-time NBA champion coach announced that he would return for what he called “the last stand for me”. According to a source close to the situation, it took until last week to finalize a new contract.

Jackson new contract’s terms have not been released. On Monday evening, a message left for his agent Todd Musburger was not returned. The Lakers were able to quickly reach agreements with the rest of his staff, with Jackson’s deal finally in place. Special assistant Chuck Person, Frank Hamblen, Jim Cleamons, Frank Hamblen and Brian Shaw are officially been added to the staff.

In another news regarding new contract deals, the Philadelphia Daily News reported that Scottie Reynolds, former Villanova point guard has signed a one-year contract to play in Italy. In Villanova history, Reynolds, an All-American and the second-leading scorer was not selected in the NBA draft. However, to take part in the summer league and attend training camp, he was invited by the Phoenix Suns.

A second division team in Italy, Prima Veroli made a one-year offer with financial guarantees that “blew us out of the water,” said Lee Melchionni, Reynolds’ agent.

Melchionni said, “The financial security that Prima Veroli’s offer provides made this a sound decision for Scottie.”

As a senior, Reynolds averaged 18.2 points and scored 2,222 points in his college career. John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins of Kentucky, Wesley Johnson of Syracuse and Evan Turner of Ohio State were the other four All-Americans, who were chosen in the first round.

On a free agent summit involving top NBA players, Lebron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, there has been much speculation. Did it really happen? A summit involving these players has everyone’s interest, as the NBA looks to July 1, 2010, probably the most important date in NBA History.

Wade was the first to put forth the idea of such a summit, while being interviewed by the Chicago Tribune. Wade said he planned to talk to James and that Bosh and Boozer wanted to be included in any talks.

While amongst these top basketball stars, Wade himself did not refer to any meeting, the term “summit” was quickly put into play by the media.

During the NBA finals, NBA commissioner David Stern, queried on the matter, said that he would not interfere with such a meeting.

During the off-season, if the NBA’s top stars wanted to get together, this would not be considered “team tampering” which is illegal.

First of all, all the top NBA players are long time friends. Via phone and email, they often have interpersonal contacts. All three were supposedly in Miami to play in DJ Irie’s annual golf tournament. Offering plenty of opportunity for these three friends to have a very private meeting, this event is always a big party for two days. The premise of the supposed summit was the possibility of all three of these stars signing with the Miami Heat thus guaranteeing championships for the next few years for the HEAT.

By a reliable source, Wade has been quoted as having discussed the three playing together with James and Bosh on how the finances would be arranged in order to get all of them on the same team. There would have to be some kind of “shared pool of the available dollars” because Pat Riley could not offer $16.5 million annually each to all three. This in itself would be “fraught with peril. Each of these NBA stars would be tossing away about $30 million over the lifetime of their contracts, although true the game is important. Money is a bit factor even among friends.

Everyone participating will deny it, although Chris Broussard says a meeting definitely took place between James and the other top free agents. With Chicago not the HEAT, Broussard expects sports betting star, James to sign. No one will acknowledge the meeting actually took place due to the possibility of tampering charges regardless of Stern’s pronouncement in the matter.

In the 2010 NBA Draft, the sixth pick goes to the Golden State Warriors. In last year’s draft, the Golden State Warriors were big winners, picking up Stephen Curry.

One thing that the Warriors do not need to pick up is clear and that is another guard. For the Golden State Warriors, the three best players are all score-first types of players in Monta Ellis, Stephen Curry and Corey Maggette. Curry did grow a lot throughout the season in learning to distribute the ball and will be a more than serviceable point guard for the team.

Corey Maggette was the team leader in rebounding last season. Except for the fact that he only averaged 5 rebounds per game, this isn’t such a bad thing. With no rebounding presence, the Warriors were doomed on the offensive and defensive boards.

At this point in the draft, there are a few decent centers available. These players include Greg Monroe from Georgetown and Cole Aldrich out of Kansas. The Warriors have an up-tempo attack and will need someone to come in that can provide rebounding, but will also need to be able to run the court.

In the draft, Cole Aldrich is the best pure center and may have the skill set that will help out this team most. He is a defender that runs the floor harder than most other centers will, even though he will not be a scoring threat right away. If he can get up and down the court, he will find himself in position to get easy buckets and to help on the boards.

Greg Monroe, if is decided is their guy, he will be versatile enough to play in their offense. He is a great passer for a big man and he can play outside and down low. He is not physical enough to be a great defender and rebounder however. If they end up taking him, he could just end up being another soft player on the court for the Warriors

For the 2010 NBA Draft, the Washington Wizards, sport betting favorites, were the winners of the lottery. this sort of a boost, if any team needed, it was probably them.

In the Wizards organization, last season was full of craziness. Gilbert Arena, their star player and sport betting odds favorite was charged with gun possession in the locker room and he ended up with a suspension that took him out for the rest of the season.

Caron Butler and Antawn Jamison, their other star caliber players, were dealt during the season to other teams that were contending for the NBA title. In form of Josh Howard, they did receive promising compensation. Unfortunately, Josh Howard sustained a season ending injury just four games into his stay at Washington.

The Wizards needed a boost, with all of that having taken place. The point guard out of Kentucky, John Wall, is just what the Wizards are looking for. Wall is an athlete that can handle the ball with the best of them. On nearly every play, his speed burst and vertical leap give him the ability to get to the rim. He was only a freshman last year at Kentucky, but he demonstrated the ability to take over games in stretches. For a scoring point guard, his court vision is also above average. The only questions for him will be surrounding his jump shot. He never relied too heavily on it at Kentucky.

In Washington, Wall will join Andray Blatche. After the team crumbled around Blatche, he really broke out last season. With John Wall joining a young player in Blatche, the Wizards have the opportunity to build around a young core of talent.

The Philadelphia 76ers own the privileges to the 2nd pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. The Philadelphia 76ers are coming off of a disappointing season, but do have some talent on their roster. They really have the opportunity to add a solid player in this year’s draft.

The obvious pick here in most people’s minds would be Evan Turner out of Ohio State. Turner may be the most NBA ready player in the draft. He is not only already prepared to take on the rigors of the NBA season, but he also has room to grow in his game. Turner is a 6 foot 7 shooting guard that can put the ball into the hoop. Unlike John Wall, he was not surrounded by a team full of potential lottery picks. He was able to lead his team to victory behind his own leadership throughout his stay at Ohio State.

The question is if the Philadelphia 76ers will do the seemingly obvious thing and take Evan Turner. Many experts consider this draft to be a “two player” draft. This is referring to the fact that there are only 2 top flight or “sure thing” prospects.

The Philadelphia 76ers recently traded Samuel Dalembert, making some believe that they would like to take a big man with their first pick. If they took a big man, Derrick Favors would be their logical choice. Doug Collins, the new coach for the Philadelphia 76ers is rumored to favor Derrick Favors. If the 76ers made this choice, they could be taking the risk of passing up on an All-Star caliber player.

On Sunday, June 13th, the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics met up for Game 5 of the 2010 NBA Finals in Boston. After winning Game 4, Boston came in hoping to use that momentum to put the Lakers down 3-2. They did just that, winning Game 5 92-86.

Despite the victory, things could have been better for the basketball odds favorite, Celtics. They allowed Kobe Bryant to have a great game, as he scored 38 points and grabbed 5 rebounds. Pau Gasol also netted a double-double, getting 12 points and 12 rebounds. Aside from those two, though, the Celtics did a good job of containing the Lakers. Andrew Bynum only managed 6 points and 1 rebound in 32 minutes.

Boston did a great job of distributing the ball in Game 5. Kevin Garnett (18), Paul Pierce (27), Ray Allen (12), and Rajon Rondo (18) all scored in double digits. Garnett also added 10 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 steals, and 2 blocks. Kevin Garnett looked more dominant than he had in a very long time. Rajon Rondo also had a great night, adding 8 assists to his 18 points.

While the Celtics likely were unhappy with allowing Kobe Bryant to score 38 points, they chose to pick their battles, and they made the right choice. They were able to hold Gasol to 12 points, and they held the rest of the Lakers to under 10 points. Game 5 proved that one star player does not equal a win in an NBA Finals game.

The Philadelphia 76ers are known for most well-known legends, such as Julius Erving, Moses Malone, and Wilt Chamberlain, played for the Sixers and the team have been with the league since 1949.

In 1949, to merge with the NBA, they were one of seven teams and they played as the Syracuse Nationals until 1963. To Philadelphia, when the team was moved, they were renamed the 76ers.

In the 1954-55 season, to a NBA Championship, Future Hall of Fame forward Dolph Schayes led the 76ers. In Philadelphia, when the Declaration of Independence was signed, they were renamed the 76ers after the year 1776.

The dominant Wilt Chamberlain, in the 1964-65 season, was acquired by the 76ers. just two years prior, Chamberlain had scored 100 points in a regular season game and it is a scoring record that hasn’t been approached before or after the feat had occurred.

The 76ers faced their biggest challenge, Boston Celtics. In a seven-game Eastern Conference Finals, in 1966, they beat Philadelphia.

By winning 46 of their first 50 games, they started out, en routing to a 68-13 record in 1967. To the NBA Finals, they cruised by defeating Boston and won in the finals by defeating the Warriors.

A rematch from 1967 with the Boston Celtics, Philadelphia returned to the following year, to Eastern Conference Finals, although lost the game. Trading Chamberlain away to the LA Lakers in 1967-68 season was a remarkable.

Of the 1972-73 season, first 15 games went on a loss and would later lose 20 straight that year. they finished with 9-73, a record in league history.

In 1976, Philadelphia acquired Julius Erving after the ABA-NBA merger. To get to the championship series in 1977, 1980, and 1982, this acquisition helped, although they lost in each series.

Center Moses Malone was acquired by the 76ers and Philadelphia was able to win a championship and he led them to a 65 regular season wins, prior to the 1982-83 season.

76ers, since 76ers, have not won a championship. Allen Iverson and Charles Barkley were some of the best players of the league.

To the finals in 2001, Iverson led the Sixers.

In 2009-2010, Philadelphia hired Doug Collins as coach after another disappointing season. In the upcoming NBA Draft, forward Elton Brand and guard Andre Iguodala lead the team.

To the National Basketball Association as of 2004, the Charlotte Bobcats are a new addition.

In the minds of many, the decision for the Hornets to relocate away from Charlotte was an interesting one.

In the NBA, the Bobcats have quickly seen success. Gerald Wallace largely led the team in its conception in their playoff run this year.

By the Bobcats, Gerald Wallace, NBA betting favorite, was picked Bobcats in their expansion draft as a player from the Sacramento Kings. Emeka Okafor was also picked in the rookie draft by the Bobcats that season. Okafor’s defensive prowess is well known.

Bobcats brought only 20-30 wins in their first few seasons. Led by Larry Brown, a legendary coach, things have taken a turn upward recently.

Larry Brown, in his first season managed to lead the Bobcats to a team record 35 wins. Out of the 8th seed position in the Eastern Conference, this total was just 4 games.

Bobcats made history in 2010, securing their first playoff spot ever with an impressive 44-38 season. Once again, in leading the team to the playoffs, Larry Brown showed that ability.

Against the Orlando Magic who is a young, talented team, led by Dwight Howard, they faced off the Magic. In the favor of the Magic, the series finished 4-0.

Recently, Michael Jordan, basketball legend was approved to become the majority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats. A team that is looking up after just a few years in the National Basketball Association is the Charlotte Bobcats.