February 21, 2007 , 2006 HOME - SPORTS NEWS
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Free NBA Picks- (covers.com). boost your profits with these betting tips.
You want to get caught up on the NBA, but your stupid boss visits your office and it’s a
mad scramble to get that spreadsheet window open again.
You get through last night’s boxscores and maybe you get a chance to check the standings
and the top scorers, but ol’ Bossy McFascist keeps dropping by and eventually you just
concede defeat and settle in for some real work.
Luckily, our boss here at Covers.com wants us to pore over NBA stats. As such, we're
pointing out some trends that might pass you by if you didn't have the time to really look
into things.
Hornets swarming the basket
Six straight New Orleans Hornets games have played over the total after this team was
previously one of the NBA’s most dependable bets to play under (19-28 over/under before the
current streak).
Granted there were two overtime games involved in the mix, but the key is the way the
Hornets hit the glass on the offensive end.
They’re fifth in the league with 12.7 offensive rebounds per game this season, but that
jumps to 16.9 per game in February. David West’s return to health has been big, but Tyson
Chandler’s the main reason.
Chandler tops the NBA with 4.1 offensive rebounds per game for the season, 5.9 per game
during February. His non-stop attack on the boards has him leading the NBA with an
Rodman-like 16.9 rebounds per game for the month.
The aggression on the offensive glass has helped New Orleans top the league with 90.9 field
goal attempts per game during the month. It’s hard to play under when you’re getting that
many shots.
Washington’s dead-tired duo
The Washington Wizards have struggled without Antawn Jamison, going 2-4 SU and ATS minus
one third of their talented trio.
It’s problematic, then, that the other two parts are already tired from overuse. Gilbert
Arenas and Caron Butler are the only teammates in the NBA averaging more than 40 minutes of
floor time each for the season, with both sitting in the league's top 5 in minutes played.
Head coach Eddie Jordan already expressed concerns about Agent Zero’s potential fatigue and
rightly so – Arenas averaged only 23.3 points per game in the six pre-All-Star games
without Jamison.
No team relies on points from its top star like the Wizards. Arenas has averaged 33.1
points in Washington’s 29 wins, but only 23.0 points in its 21 losses.
Lakers set to sail on the Pacific
The Los Angeles Lakers struggled in the last games before the All-Star break, but they
might be helped out down the stretch by a schedule chock-full of divisional games.
Kobe Bryant leads the way against Pacific Division foes, averaging 38.3 points in the four
games he’s played against division rivals this season. The Lakers are 4-0 SU and 3-1 ATS in
those games.
The best part for Lakers backers is the 10 of their remaining 28 games come against Pacific
teams. The bad news is that three of those games are against the Phoenix Suns.
Must be something to do with the exchange rate
The Toronto Raptors have been the success story of the New Year, rising to the top of the
Atlantic Division and securing their place atop the league’s ATS standings.
Chris Bosh is the Raptors’ main man, but the recent success also has to do with the
league’s top point guard combination.
T.J. Ford and Jose Calderon combined for 113 assists and only 29 turnovers in the Raptors’
seven February games. That’s an outstanding assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.90 for the pair,
leading the Raptors to a 6-1 SU and 6-0-1 ATS record over that span.
Ford and Calderon’s pre-February ratio was a still better-than-average at 2.72.
For the season, Toronto’s 1.71 ratio is third in the NBA behind the Suns and Detroit
Pistons, both of whom sit at 1.83.
New Jersey protects namesake, hitting only iron from line
The Cleveland Cavaliers got a lot of attention for their misses from the free throw line
earlier in the winter, but the New Jersey Nets have quietly become the NBA’s worst team
from the stripe.
The Nets were fine earlier in the season when they were fully healthy, hitting 75.7 percent
in November and 76.6 percent in December. That has dropped to 68.6 percent in January and a
league-low 63.7 percent in February.
Nenad Krstic and Richard Jefferson suffered long-term injuries and their respective
replacements, Collins and Mikki Morre at centre and Antoine Wright and Hassan Adams at
small forward, are all worse at the free throw line.
New Jersey had an amazing January at the pay window, going 14-3 against the spread (ATS),
but that mark has plummeted like their success at the charity stripe. The Nets are only 3-5
straight up (SU) and ATS in February and their free throw woes aren't helping.
NBA PLAYOFFS- (covers.com): will miami get on a roll with riley's return.
It’s rare for a team to change its coach after winning seven of its last eight games, but
the Miami Heat sidelines have witnessed some weirdness over the past two seasons.
Pat Riley resumes his role as Miami’s head coach after the All-Star break. He inherits a
.500 team seven weeks after he abandoned his post for knee surgery and a hip replacement.
Interim head coach Ron Rothstein took the reins of a 13-17 straight-up (SU) and 14-15-1
against the spread (ATS) team on Jan. 3 and guided the defending champions to a 13-9 SU and
14-7-1 ATS record during his 22-game run.
Heat backers loved the team’s direction over recent weeks, as Miami collected paydays in
nine of its last dozen games to join the NBA’s top five in ATS standings.
NBA followers will remember that Riley pulled a somewhat similar move last year after Stan
Van Gundy vacated the Miami coaching job for family reasons. The Heat were 11-10 when Riley
arrived, then went 41-20 the rest of the way and won the NBA title.
Can Riley coax a similar revival in Miami this season?
“Riley is one of those rare coaches in NBA history that can get the respect of even the
superstars on his team,” says Covers Expert David Malinsky. “He has enough championship
rings that he can flash at them to know that they need to listen to what he says and work
hard if they are to be there again, instead of just believing they can turn it on whenever
they need to.”
The No. 1 superstar on the Heat says that Riley maintained control of the team even while
sidelined.
"He's a strong voice," Dwyane Wade told the Orlando Sun-Sentinel. "He's a strong mind. Even
when he's not on the bench, everything is still run the same way. It's not a dramatic
change. It's just a change in personalities."
There will be more than a healthy coach behind Miami’s second-half success, of course. It’s
impossible to ignore the effect a healthy Shaquille O’Neal has on the entire Heat squad.
Malinsky says that O’Neal’s presence on the court gives the Heat infinitely more options in
terms of offensive looks and Riley’s return will only help the team take advantage of their
multiple weapons.
Unfortunately for bettors, the respective returns of Shaq and Riley have been anything but
under the radar.
“I’m not sure there will be much value, because the presence of Shaq and Riley is just too
visible – the oddsmakers will absolutely make their adjustments,” Malinsky says.
“At the same time it’s important to remember that their purpose is simply to win games and
improve their playoff picture, not necessarily to get margins. If anything they might be a
good team to fade when they are laying double figures – those are games that Riley may
choose to coast.”
Thanks to a slow start, the Heat haven’t been a double-digit favorite yet this season. With
a healthy team and many lower-echelon Eastern Conference opponents remaining on their
schedule, however, that should quickly change.
The Heat have been favored by at least five points on only 13 occasions this season, but in
six of their last eight games. Under Rothstein Miami went 7-0 SU as a 5-point favorite, 5-2
ATS. The Heat were 5-1 SU and 3-3 ATS when similarly favored under Riley earlier in the
season.
They certainly won’t be favored to open the second half of their season, though. The Heat
travel to play the Houston Rockets on tonight before visiting the Dallas Mavericks on
Thursday.
NBA PLAYOFFS- (associated press): cavs center out.
Cavaliers center Zydrunas Ilgauskas will miss his third straight game on Wednesday to tend
to family health matters.
The team said Ilgauskas did not travel to Toronto, where Cleveland will play its first game
after the All-Star break against the Raptors. Ilgauskas also missed games last week at Utah
and the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Cavaliers said guard Damon Jones has strep throat and didn't practice on Tuesday. He's
listed as questionable against the Raptors.
Rookie guard Daniel Gibson is probable after sitting out last week's win over the Lakers
with a sprained toe.
NBA PLAYOFFS- (associated press): bucks star returns.
The Detroit Pistons simply don't get rattled on the road, even against a desperate team
that just got its star player back from injury.
Detroit withstood a second-half rally by Michael Redd and the Milwaukee Bucks, holding on
for an 84-83 victory Tuesday night after a missed layup by Mo Williams just before the
final horn.
"We stay poised down the stretch no matter what the score is, no matter who the opponent
is," Pistons guard Chauncey Billups said. "We get what we want."
Billups led the Pistons with 19 points, and helped hound Williams into his missed shot on
the final play.
With the victory, the Pistons are 16-9 on the road this season -- making them the only team
in the Eastern Conference with a winning road record.
"It was ugly," said Rasheed Wallace, who scored 16 and added 11 rebounds for Detroit. "I'll
take it, though."
Detroit spoiled the return of Redd, who played for the first time since straining the
patellar tendon in his left knee Jan. 5. Redd scored 17 in limited minutes for Milwaukee,
shooting 7-for-18 from the field.
"That was to be expected," Redd said. "I only played 29 minutes. It felt like 50."
Charlie Bell led Milwaukee with 22, and Ruben Patterson added 18.
Billups, who was guarding Williams on the final play, said he recognized the offensive set
from watching previous games and forced Williams into taking the shot from a tough angle.
"But he still got a good look at it," Billups said.
Bucks coach Terry Stotts said Williams was supposed to drive on the final play and kick it
outside if a shooter came open. None did, so Williams correctly took the shot.
"We played a good game," Stotts said. "It was kind of the same old, same old -- coming up
short in the last minute."
The Pistons led by double digits for most of the first half, but Milwaukee went on a 9-0
run to cut their lead to 47-41 at halftime.
"I think that was a typical game after the All-Star break," Pistons coach Flip Saunders
said. "We came out really sharp, then we lost our legs a little bit."
Redd sparked a third-quarter rally by making his first 3-pointer of the game less than a
minute into the second half to cut the Detroit lead to five. After a tip-in by Andrew
Bogut, Redd's jump shot then cut the lead to one, 49-48.
Redd later came up with a steal, and Bell hit a fast-break layup to give the Bucks a 54-53
lead with 7:03 left in the third quarter -- their first lead since a 2-0 lead to start the
game.
Redd, the Bucks' leading scorer at 27.7 points, missed 20 games after the injury, which
occurred when he went up for a meaningless late dunk in a loss to Cleveland.
Redd attributed his misses to not having his legs yet, and said he expected to be back in
game shape soon. Redd started the game 1-for-5, playing only 5:15 in the first quarter.
"It's going to come back to me," Redd said. "I'm not worried about it."
Bell said the team, which was only 3-17 without Redd, can't get discouraged about not
having immediate success in his return.
"Once Michael gets back healthy and gets his legs back underneath him, we're going to be a
tough team to beat," Bell said. "I really believe that."
Bell scored on a driving layup to cut the Detroit lead to 1 with 30.9 seconds remaining.
Wallace then missed an off-balance jumper with the shot clock running out, giving the Bucks
a shot at the victory with 7.1 seconds remaining.
Williams inbounded the ball to Bogut. He gave it back to Williams, who drove the lane and
missed a layup.
"Right now, we're not getting wins," Bell said. "But I know it's going to come."
NBA PLAYOFFS- (associated press): knicjks already surpass 2005-06 win total.
The New York Knicks aren't satisfied with just surpassing last season's win total.
The Knicks reached their 24th victory, beating last season's total, with a 100-94 victory
over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night.
"We've got a lot more wins we're trying to get, so for us to get 24 we wish we would have
gotten it in the first half. That would mean we'd be doing that much better and we'd be
that much closer," said Quentin Richardson. "It's about trying to get as many wins as we
can so we can get one of those playoff spots."
New York is three games behind Orlando and Miami for the eighth playoff spot.
"We're a better team than we were last year," said Stephon Marbury, who scored 14 points on
his 30th birthday. "It's just a win. Last year is last year."
Jamal Crawford and Eddy Curry scored 20 points each to lead the Knicks, who have finished
last season at 23-59.
J.J. Redick's 3-pointer at the buzzer helped Orlando close to 79-76 at the end of the third
quarter.
However, the Magic did not get any closer the rest of the way, as the Knicks increased
their lead to 91-81 on Stephon Marbury's 3-pointer with 5:31 left.
Orlando cut the deficit back to three on Jameer Nelson's 3-pointer with 1:20 left.
Curry's ensuing dunk made it 96-91 with 58 seconds remaining, and after Darko Milicic's
free throw brought the Magic with four, Marbury and Crawford hit free throws down the
stretch to secure the win.
David Lee pulled down a game-high 16 rebounds and added 14 points for the Knicks.
"A lot of things were accomplished here today," Lee said. "We knew it would be a tough
game. Both teams were rusty early. We got in a rhythm late and were able to hold them off."
Howard finished with 27 points and 14 rebounds for the Magic.
"This might be one of the teams we battle for one of the positions for the playoffs,"
Howard said. "They are a great team right now that plays together."
The Knicks fell behind 8-0 before Richardson scored their first points of the game on a
three-pointer with 8:44 left in the opening quarter. That sparked an 8-0 run that concluded
with another Richardson three-pointer.
"Last year, we're probably doomed from the beginning," Curry said. "But this year we're
going into games thinking we could win every single game."
The Knicks took their first lead of the game, 15-13, on Curry's basket with 4:20 to go in
the first quarter, and finished the period up 23-22.
Orlando grabbed a 31-28 lead early in the second quarter, but the Knicks went on a 9-0 run
and opened up their biggest lead of the half, 37-31 on Steve Francis' jumper with 6:10
left.
However, the Magic responded by scoring the next six points, tying the game on a Milicic
dunk.
The teams traded baskets until Crawford's three-pointer gave the Knicks their 49-45
halftime lead.
NBA PLAYOFFS- (associated press): iverson returns in lost.
The San Antonio Spurs were happy to finally play at home again.
The Spurs returned home for the first time in more than three weeks on Tuesday night in a
95-80 win over Denver.
Tony Parker scored 17 points, Manu Ginobili added 14 and Tim Duncan had 12 during the
Spurs' first home game since they went on a lengthy road trip, where they split their eight
games.
"It was very important to establish not only a win here, but to come home and have a good
game," Duncan said.
Not even the return of Allen Iverson could boost Denver. Iverson missed nine of the
Nuggets' last 10 games before the All-Star break with a right ankle sprain. He scored nine
points on Tuesday.
"The shots that I took, I know I can hit with my eyes closed," said Iverson, who went
3-of-11 from the field. "Maybe I should have closed them. I took 11 shots, and I thought I
got 11 good looks."
Iverson said his ankle bothered him on a couple of plays "but for the most part I was all
right.
"Usually when I come back from injury, I have my rhythm back. I didn't today," he said.
Carmelo Anthony led Denver with 15 points, Nene had 13 and DerMarr Johnson had 11. Anthony
and Iverson combined for just 24 points. Their previous low when playing together was 49.
"It's going to take some time," said Marcus Camby. "And those guys haven't had a lot of
time together."
It was the Spurs' third straight win. It was Denver's second loss in a row.
"I said all along I'm surprised we haven't already had one of these flat games with all the
changes and all the craziness we've had," said Nuggets coach George Karl. "I would have
thought we'd have already had one."
Playing at home this season hasn't been as good to the Spurs as in the past. They've lost
eight at home so far, one more than all of last season.
Still, after the road trip, which has brought the team more success in previous years, San
Antonio's AT&T Center was a welcome sight.
"We've lost too many games in this building to start the season," Duncan said. "And to come
out of the break and continue to win like we did the last two on the road and then win one
at home does a lot of good here."
After trailing for most of the first, the Spurs took a 25-21 lead into the second quarter.
Parker helped them extend the lead scoring 10 of his points in the quarter. San Antonio led
49-38 at the break.
The Spurs broke the game open in the third quarter outscoring the Nuggets 30-10. Anthony
and Iverson were just a combined 1-for-10 in the quarter as Denver had nine turnovers.
The Nuggets ended up with 20 turnovers for 26 points, while San Antonio had nine turnovers
for 15 points.
The Nuggets rallied in the fourth, but it was too late as the Spurs improved to 36-18 on
the season while Denver fell to .500 (26-26).
It's back on the road again for the Spurs, who take on the Hawks in Atlanta on Wednesday.
The Nuggets play the Utah Jazz in Denver on Friday.
"The last thing we want to do is leave home again," Duncan said.
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