Tag: basketball odds

James Harden pulls ahead in NBA’s exciting MVP race

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

For months James Harden and Russell Westbrook have been locked in a fierce battle to be named regular season MVP, but in the past week, Harden may just have done enough to snatch it. The Beard has achieved four straight games of scoring at least 30 points and having 10 assists, and the odds have been cut on him landing the prize. There is still some value to be had in backing him, however, as we approach the final nine games of the season.

MVP Race

Westbrook led the field for the first half of the season but Harden muscled his way into the reckoning with a record-breaking spell over Christmas. On December 31, he recorded 53 points, 17 assists and 16 rebounds in a 129-122 win for the Houston Rockets over the New York Nicks. It was the first time anyone had ever posted stats better than 50-15-15, and it tied the record for the most points in a triple-double, which Wilt Chamberlain had held alone since the 1967-68 season. Two days later, he recorded his ninth triple-double of the season.

The records have come tumbling down for Harden since then. A 51-13-13 game against the 76ers in January made him the first player ever to achieve more than one 50-point triple-double in a season. He has already broken his own record for the most turnovers in a season. He is now on 19 triple-doubles for the season. He is on course to surpass 2,400 points and 900 assists this season, which would break another record.

But Westbrook refuses to go away. Despite playing for a poorer team, he has 36 triple-doubles and leads the league in points per game. Kahwi Leonard and LeBron James are also still in the mix. Harden is 4/6 with Sky Bet and Westbrook is 11/4 with Paddy Power, which also has 10/1 on Leonard and 12/1 on James. It will be tight, but momentum is with Harden right now, and 4/6 looks a good price.

Futures Update

The divisions are pretty much wrapped up now, so the value comes from predicting the winner of each conference and the NBA Championship. Momentum can play a crucial role at this time of year, and the form of the Boston Celtics (8-2 in their last 10) is very exciting, so they could give the Cavaliers a real run for their money in the east and look an interesting bet at 7/1 with Sky Bet and William Hill. The Warriors have won six straight and turned the screw in the west, so the value might not be there as they are just 4/9, but the Spurs (4/1 with Ladbrokes) are also in good form.

Upcoming Games

A huge game sees the Warriors face the Spurs in San Antonio on Thursday. Golden State is on a roll but has injury problems and the Spurs to win outright looks good. The Celtics over the Bucks and the Washington Wizards over the Clippers would make an interesting treble.

March Madness Betting Frenzy Looms for College Basketball Fans

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

March Madness is just one week away and bookmakers are preparing for the most hectic betting frenzy of the year. Sixty-eight college basketball games will take place over three weeks in a knockout tournament, and the winner will be crowned NCAA Champion 2017 on April 3. It always proves to be a thrilling ride for diehard fans and the wider sports loving public, full of buzzer beaters, teams snatching victory from the jaws of defeat and underdogs triumphing.

Last year witnessed the most exciting denouement in memory as Villanova blew a 70-64 lead to end up 74-74 with a mere 4.7 seconds remaining on the clock thanks to a three-pointer at the death from North Carolina. Overtime beckoned but Villanova settled it with an outrageous three-point buzzer shot that led to a court invasion from fans. This year’s NCAA Championships event is shaping up to be another classic, and here we run through the leading contenders and some interesting long-shots.

Top Seeds and Favourites

Four regional top seeds have been chosen by the Division 1 men’s basketball committee: Villanova, Kansas, Gonzaga and Baylor. They are deemed to be the pinnacle of the 68 teams taking part in March Madness, and upon announcing it committee chair Mark Hollis named defending champion Villanova the overall top seed. The bookmakers disagree. They have made Kansas (15/2 with Sky Bet) the pre-tournament favourites. They are slightly ahead of last year’s beaten finalists the North Carolina Tar Heels (also 15/2 with Sky Bet, but a point or so higher than Kansas with many bookmakers) in the betting, followed by Gonzaga (10/1 with William Hill), UCLA (10/1 with Ladbrokes) and Villanova (10/1 with William Hill and Bet365).

It is all very congested as Duke and Kentucky are both 12/1 and Arizona, Louisville and Oregon are all in the mix. The betting has shifted considerably in the last few weeks. When the seedings were announced, Kansas was favourite, followed by Gonzaga and then Nova. Now North Carolina has muscled its way in, and Gonzaga and Nova have been pushed out in terms of price. A few weeks ago Gonzaga was unbeaten but has now finally lost, to BYU, and gone to 31-1 atop the West Coast division. That air of invincibility has now gone and the price has drifted out to 10-1. Nova and Kansas have an identical record of 28-3, leading the Big East and Big 12 divisions respectively. North Carolina, meanwhile, is 26-6 at the top of the ACC. Of all the teams, Nova looks an interesting option at 10/1. They were named overall top seed for good reason and have been great on the road, with a superb record against top opponents.

Long Shots

The bookmakers really do not like the look of Baylor, one of the four top seeds, and have made them huge outsiders. They are as low as 20/1 with some, but William Hill is offering a very generous 40/1, so you have an interesting, highly rated long shot right there. Head over to the Big Ten and you will find more interesting schools to bet on if you are looking for long odds. A few weeks ago Purdue was on a roll and could be backed at 75/1 for the UCAA Championships, which was a great price. That form has continued and they have stormed to the top of the Big Ten, with a record of 25-6, and the odds on them have dropped dramatically, but they still look a good bet at 33/1 with Paddy Power. An even longer shot would be the Maryland Terrapins, second behind Purdue in the Big Ten and on 24-7 for the season, with better recent form than Purdue. They can be backed at 100/1 with Bet365. That is amazing when you consider Sky Bet will only go to 40/1 on Maryland, but it serves to illustrate the chaotic nature of March Madness, as bookmakers struggle to agree on a consensus due to the sheer number of teams taking part, so there is plenty of value to be had.

NBA betting: Philadelphia 76ers and Houston Rockets killing the spreads

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers are once again leading their respective NBA conference tables by some distance, but when it comes to spread betting they are way down the list. The all-conquering Warriors are sitting pretty on 49-9, but they are a mere 28-26-2 against the spread, so if you backed them to cover the spread every week you would be down overall. The Cavs are 40-17 atop the Eastern Conference, but have fared even worse against the spread: LeBron James and co are 26-27-2. So which teams have made their backers the most money, and which have fared the worst?

Top Teams for Spread Betting

An unlikely champion has emerged when it comes to defying the spread so far his season. The Philadelphia 76ers are 22-36 this season and 13th out of 15 teams in the Eastern Conference, with virtually no chance of reaching the playoffs. But they are faring far better than they did last season when they slumped to a dismal 10-76. Having already doubled last season’s win total with a promising young team led by Rookie of the Year favourite Joel Embiid, the 76ers have consistently defied bookmakers’ expectations. They are 35-21-1 against the spread this season, so if you had been backing them throughout you would have made a nice profit. In the Western Conference, the Houston Rockets are the best team against the spread, with a record of 33-25. That is not a huge margin, which shows just how canny the oddsmakers are when setting spreads.

Worst Teams

If you have been regularly backing the Portland Trail Blazers or the Milwaukee Bucks to cover the spread this season, you will be cursing your decisions. Both teams have covered the spread just 22 times, the worst records in the league. Backing the Cavs and Warriors on the road would have hurt you too as Cleveland is 11-15 on the road, while Golden State is 13-15-1.

Futures Update

The Eastern Conference looks like turning into a three-way fight between the Cavs, the Washington Wizards and the Boston Celtics. They are the top three teams in the conference and are heading towards securing the top three seeded places as they are in the best form right now: the Cavs and Wizards are 8-2 in their last 10, while the Celtics are 7-3. The bookmakers expect the Cavs to cruise to another conference win and William Hill has made Cleveland the 4/11 favourite. The odds have been pushed out, however, thanks to the form of the Celtics, the Wizards and the Toronto Raptors. The Celtics are 7/1 second favourites, but Boston’s refusal to dip into its war chest before the trade deadline could hurt it, while two straight defeats do not inspire confidence. The Raptors are 10/1 with William Hill, Bet Victor and Ladbrokes, but a better bet could be the Wizards at 12/1 with Boyle Sports. After the Warriors, they have the league’s best record in 2017 and bolstered their bench with Bojan Bogdanovic.

Covering the Cavs at 4/11 and Wizards at 12/1 could pay dividends. The Warriors are likely to run away with the Western Conference once again and are just 3/10 with Sky Bet. The Spurs have been in excellent form and the Rockets are on a roll, but the Warriors just look too strong now. Still, the Warriors’ James Harden should be named regular season MVP (10/11 with Paddy Power), which would be a good consolation prize for The Beard.

Upcoming Games

The 76ers are in action on Tuesday, when they host the Warriors in Philly. They are 9/1 underdogs with Betfred and Paddy Power, while Stephen Curry and co are just 1/20. But spread betting is where it really gets interesting. At Paddy Power, you can get 10/11 on the 76ers +13.5 and – given that Philadelphia is the best at covering spreads this season and Golden State is poor at doing so on the road – that looks a good bet. Two in-form teams meet in Boston on the same day when the Hawks play the Celtics, and Boston should win that at 20/37 with Bet365.

Long Shots for NBA Championship Gaining Momentum at Crucial Time

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

We have entered the final third of the NBA regular season and the playoff picture is becoming clearer. In the Western Conference, the Golden State Warriors and San Antonio Spurs are flying and should be joined in the playoffs by the Houston Rockets, LA Clippers and Utah Jazz. Over in the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers have finally found consistency and are in pole position to finish the regular season at the top to earn the number one seed status, with the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards hot on their heels. Below them, the Toronto Raptors and Atlanta Hawks are both looking good for a playoff place. But in both conferences, the remaining places are very much up for grabs. It is interesting to take a look at the teams that are hitting form at just the right time and could offer interesting long-shot options when predicting who will win the Conferences and the 2017 NBA Championship.

Western Conference

The Warriors are looking immense at present and are naturally favourites to win the NBA Championship. Paddy Power is offering the best price at 8/11, and they are also heavy favourites to win the Western Conference, with 888 Sport offering a market leading 6/17. They have won it for the last two years in a row, and look just as brilliant this time around, with Kevin Durant bolstering an already exceptional team. But they will not have it all their own way. At 5/1 with Sky Bet, Bet365 and Betfred, the Spurs are an interesting choice to win the Western Conference. They have the second-best record in the league, way better than the Cavs, and they welcome back Pau Gasol after the All-Star break. Then there is the Houston Rockets at 16/1 with Ladbrokes, led by MVP frontrunner James Harden (now 10/11 with Paddy Power). And for a real long-shot, how about the Memphis Grizzlies at 50/1 with William Hill and Coral? They are 7-3 in their last 10 games and have really found their rhythm, with Marc Gasol the driving force. If they could steal fourth seed from the Clippers they would have a good shot.

Eastern Conference

Things get really interesting in the Eastern Conference thanks to the form of the Wizards and the Celtics. The Wizards have the best record in the east in 2017 and have now achieved as strong a record as the Cavs and Celtics at home. They have just scored 100-plus points for the 22nd straight game, something only 10 teams have achieved since 2000. They are 9-1 in their last 10, the best record in the league at the moment. They have the momentum and can be a real threat in the playoffs. At Boston, Isaiah Thomas is breaking records left, right and centre, and they would also be 9-1 in their last 10 were it not for a controversial defeat at the hands of the Chicago Bulls. Their 8-2 is nevertheless impressive and they are another that could run Cleveland and LeBron James close. The Cavs are just 2/5 with Betfred, which does not offer much value, so the 15/2 at Sky Bet on Boston looks good, as does the 12/1 Boyle Sports is offering on the Celtics. Another team building up a head of steam is Miami, currently 10th in the east but 8-2 in 10 and looking like muscling into playoff contention thanks to their stellar defence. Sky Bet and William Hill are offering 150/1.

Upcoming Games

Friday sees Harden and the Rockets travel to New Orleans to face the Pelicans, who are 14-15 at home this season. On the road, Houston is 19-11, and while it should be a tight game Houston can sneak this one to consolidate their third position in the Western Conference, and Paddy Power had good odds on a straight win for the Rockets at 5/6. The LA Clippers have found form of late, winning four in a row, but it is unlikely to count for much on the road against the Warriors on Friday. The point spread looks pretty ambitious, however, and Clippers +13 looks good at 10/11 with Paddy Power.

NBA All-Star Game: Western Conference expected to win big

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The world’s greatest basketball players will converge on the Smoothie King Arena in New Orleans on Sunday for the All-Star Game. LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, Steph Curry, James Harden, Kevin Durant… The list of genuine superstars goes on and on and it promises to be a fantastic duel. Here we take a look at the teams, the odds being offered and who might win it:

Western Conference

For the third season in a row the Golden State Warriors have been the dominant team in the NBA regular season and their two brightest stars, Curry and Durant, will start for the Western Conference. They will be joined by James Harden of the Houston Rockets, who is 10/11 favourite with Paddy Power to be named regular season MVP after breaking a string of records this year and emerging as the best in the business, ahead of Oklahoma City’s Russell Westbrook (who has gone out to 13/8 with William Hill despite leading the betting for the first half of the season). Westbrook will be kept in reserve in favour of Curry. The Western Conference team will be completed by Kahwi Leonard, of the San Antonio Spurs, and New Orlean’s Pelicans star Anthony Davis. The Spurs have the league’s second best record, after Golden State, and Leonard has been a driving force, while Davis has been extremely consistent. The Western Conference team have a wealth of talent in reserve, including Westbrook, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.

Eastern Conference

The Western Conference may have the best all-around team, but the Eastern Conference can call on the outrageous talents of James, and that may be the deciding factor. He has not quite hit the heights of previous seasons this time around – leaving him trailing Harden and Westbrook in the running for MVP and now all the way out at 11/1 with Bet Victor and Paddy Power – but the Cleveland Cavaliers are comfortably ahead in the Eastern Conference and he may well be saving himself for the playoffs. And this game. He is ably supported by Cavs teammate Irving, DeMar DeRozan of the impressive Toronto Raptors, Jimmy Butler of the Chicago Bulls and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, with Isaiah Thomas and Kyle Lowry among the talented reserves.

Odds and projections

The bookmakers have made the Western Conference team the clear favourites in the big game, with 4/9 a typical price on offer, but Paddy Power will go to 20/39. The Eastern Conference team are the outsiders at 7/4 with Sky Bet. This is understandable: last season the Western Conference crushed the Eastern Conference, with Westbrook running riot and ending up as MVP. That he can’t even get in the starting team this year shows just how strong this Western Conference team is. In the regular season two Western Conference teams – the Warriors and the Spurs – have a far better record than any teams in the Eastern Conference. They have the best players from both, plus Harden and off the bench Westbrook, and are looking very formidable indeed. James can be a game changer but his presence was not enough to prevent the Eastern Conference from slumping to a 196-173 defeat last year.

It is hard to look past the Western Conference winning this and those odds from Paddy Power look pretty generous, so that is a great option right now. It might pay to get on it before the odds drop in the build-up to the big game. Vegas has set the spread at Western Conference -5 and Paddy Power is offering 10/11 on Western -5 and on Eastern +5. The Western Conference has a great team and they should cover that spread, so that looks a decent option if you want more value. The other big market is predicting the MVP. Paddy Power has made Westbrook 3/1 favourite, which is interesting as he won’t be starting. A better option looks to be Harden, who is 6/1 fourth favourite after Westbrook, James and Davis. He has been having a sensational season and should shine for the team that is expected to win.

LA Clippers offer value ahead of NBA trade deadline

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The February 23 NBA trade deadline is looming and the futures odds are likely to fluctuate heavily depending on what happens. Now is the time to study the rumour mill and figure out which teams are likely to bolster their ranks before the deadline and get a good price on them before the odds tumble.

Western Conference

The Golden State Warriors have been the best team in the NBA once again this season, but they are not guaranteed to win it. Only three times in the last 17 seasons have the number one seeds in both the Western and Eastern Conferences met in the finals, so history suggests either the Warriors or the Cleveland Cavaliers are likely to miss out. Right now the Cavs are wildly inconsistent and look the most likely to stumble, but the Warriors face tough competition in their Conference. They are just 2/7 to win it with Bet365, and 6/17 with 888 Sport, which does not offer a great deal of value. The 5/1 on offer at Sky Bet on the San Antonio Spurs looks tempting as they have been the NBA’s second best team this season, better than the Cavs, and have a very strong defence, which could trouble the Warriors. The Houston Rockets (16/1 at Ladbrokes) and Oklahoma City Thunder (66/1 at Sky Bet) will be dangerous as they are led by MVP frontrunners James Harden and Russell Westbrook.

But arguably the most interesting long shot right now is the LA Clippers. That sounds like madness as they are 4-6 in their last 10 and well below the Warriors. But now could be a great time to get on them. They have struggled in the absence of Chris Paul, but he will be back after the All-Star Game. They are also expected to be buyers before the deadline. So you would imagine their odds would tumble after Paul returns and their ranks are swelled via trades in time for the playoffs, so now is the time to get on them. They are as low as 11/1 with some bookmakers, but William Hill and Ladbrokes are offering a very generous 20/1.

Eastern Conference

This looks really interesting thanks to the Cavs’ inconsistency. The Eastern Conference leaders would only be fourth in the Western Conference with their .698 record, below the Warriors, Spurs and Rockets. In the Eastern Conference, genuine contenders have emerged: the Boston Celtics and Washington Wizards are both 9-1 in their last 10 games. Keep an eye on the trades as there are whispers of the Celtics cashing in on star man Isaiah Thomas while he is at the peak of his powers. If they do that, their season will likely plummet as he has made the difference in a series of narrow victories. But if either of these teams strengthens significantly, they could really push the Cavs, and right now both look interesting as the Celtics are 12/1 with 888 Sport and the Wizards are 18/1 with Bet Victor, offering far more value than an unpredictable Cleveland, who are just 4/11 with Ladbrokes.

Upcoming Games

On Tuesday Westbrook’s Thunder travel to Washington to face the in-form Wizards in what promises to be a fantastic clash. The Wizards have been supreme in front of their home fans lately, while the Thunder have travelled badly and are 12-16 on the road, so the Wizards should win this one. The Celtics travel to another in-form team, the Dallas Mavericks, but should be too strong for them, so a Celtics-Wizards Tuesday double looks a good bet. On Thursday the Celtics should cover a heavy spread against the Philadelphia 76ers, who are 7-18 on the road and in dire form. The Spurs are in Orlando to play the Magic, and should also cover a heavy spread there, making that another interesting potential double.