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Wednesday, April 27, 2007 HOME - SPORTS NEWS
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United Press International
Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy apologized for being involved in a betting scandal. After his arrest, Donaghy entered a guilty plea to felony charges of conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting gambling information through interstate commerce. "I'm very sorry about what happened, Donaghy told the New York Daily News. I'm not going to say anything beyond that. This is an ongoing case -- I can't say anything else." He admitted using special codes to communicate with cronies James Battista and Thomas Martino. "I was in a unique position to pick the outcome of NBA games," said in court. "I received cash payments for successful picks." Donaghy is free on a $250,000 bond, with sentencing set for Nov. 9. The charges carry a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison -- 20 years for the first charge and five for the second. |
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Free NBA PLAYOFF Picks- (covers.com): can golden state close out at home? The scene in Oracle Arena after Game 4 was a joyous one, especially for backers of the Golden State Warriors. They left the floor with a 3-1 series lead over the Dallas Mavericks and the Oakland crowd serenaded Baron Davis with a chant of “MVP! MVP!” as he walked off the floor. The tribute was partially an insult to regular season MVP favorite Dirk Nowitzki but mostly a warranted pat on the back for Davis, easily the most valuable player of the NBA postseason’s opening round. Thanks to playing five consecutive games on national television, public opinion of Davis has vaulted to ridiculous levels. There are calls aplenty for Davis to be included on the U.S. national team. The Oakland Tribune equates his talent and charisma on par with Bay Area icons such as Joe Montana and Reggie Jackson, among others. And Golden State tickets are fashionable now, especially with Davis’ friends Jessica Alba and Kate Hudson filling the ‘courtside eye candy’ role these days. But it’s warranted hype as far as bettors who have played the Golden State moneyline are concerned. Davis’ dominance over the Dallas point guard combo of Jason Terry and Devin Harris is the most obvious reason for the Warriors’ surprising advantage over the Mavs in recent games. The former UCLA star is averaging 26 points per game in the series after Dallas allowed opposing point guards to score only 18.4 per game in the regular season, 10th-best in the league. His shooting percentage, however, is more telling of his play. Davis is hitting 56.6 percent form the floor after hitting only 43.9 percent in the regular season. He’s not only nailing clutch outside shots, he’s getting to the hoop as if no one is guarding him. "We gave Baron different looks, but he's just making difficult shots," Mavericks head coach Avery Johnson told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram after Game 4. "We tried to trap him five times and he got through our traps. That's not a good thing.” Terry and Harris have often shared floor time and while Terry has guarded Davis more often, Harris has taken turns as well. Between them they’re getting almost 65 minutes of floor time per game. Davis is almost outscoring Terry and Harris by himself in only 40.4 minutes per game. The Warriors were a 10 ½-point underdog in the series opener and Davis started the moneyline bonanza by leading them to a 12-point win. He scored 33 points, 19 of them in the third quarter to thwart the Mavs’ best run of Game 1, and added 14 rebounds and eight assists. Davis was ejected in the third quarter of Game 2, which happened to easily be Terry’s best game and the only time the Mavericks have covered the spread in the series. Davis vowed to steer his emotions in a positive direction when the series came to Oakland and delivered as promised. He combined for 57 points on 60 percent shooting as the Warriors won both games as a home underdog. The Mavs took Game 5 in Dallas, scoring the final 15 points for a comeback win as Davis fouled out with a team-high 27 points. He was the main reason the Warriors covered the 9-point spread yet again. Now the scene shift back to the Bay, where Terry and Harris were outscored by Davis in Games 3 and 4 and shot under 40 percent from the floor. Unless one of them decides to match Davis’ heroics, Dallas owner Mark Cuban will have all summer to stew over his lack of a top point guard, beginning Friday morning. Game 6 tips off at 10:30 p.m. ET. Golden State opened as a 3-point underdog, but the spread had dropped to 2 ½ points by Wednesday.
NBA PLAYOFFS- (covers.com): what round 1 tough us. The San Antonio Spurs knocked off the Nuggets on Wednesday, the same night the Phoenix Suns eliminated the Lakers. Bettors can now look forward to the Spurs taking on the Suns, a second-round meeting that most folks predicted as soon as the Western Conference playoff seeds became clear. San Antonio won two of the teams’ three head-to-head meetings this year but covered the spread only once. Since they met so rarely in the regular season and their first-round wins are so fresh in our memories, here’s a rundown of the Suns’ and Spurs’ current form based on what we’ve seen in the playoffs so far. The Suns didn’t shine on bettors Phoenix was a double-digit home favorite twice against Los Angeles and failed to deliver a payday in both efforts. The Suns won the opener by eight points and the clincher by nine, but nobody watching those games was bowled over by how the Suns looked. They ended up 2-3 against the spread (ATS) for the series, typical of their frustrating inconsistency. Phoenix scored 68 points and led by 21 at halftime in Game 2, exactly what fans of Phoenix basketball have come to expect. Those same expectations drive the Suns’ home lines into unrealistic territory. The team claims that they sometimes play down to their opponents and it’s hard to argue with their recent record, but with San Antonio on deck there’s not much to play down to starting Sunday. Spurs’ defense can smother small stars too San Antonio faced a pair of one-on-one superstars in Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson in Round 1. Defensive stopper Bruce Bowen got in early foul trouble in Game 1, San Antonio’s interior defenders had to rotate more and ‘Melo and AI combined for 61 points between them in Denver’s upset road win. San Antonio won the next four and it was no coincidence that Bowen stayed out of foul trouble in all of them. Bowen’s assigned target, Iverson, averaged only 20.8 points on 33.7 percent shooting in Games 2 through 5 after being the best player on the floor in the opener. The Spurs’ ability to defend penetrating guards is notable with Suns tandem Steve Nash and Leandro Barbosa on tap. Phoenix rising (when it feels like it) For a team criticizing itself heavily after three of the five games against L.A., the Suns looked fantastic more often than they looked mediocre. Phoenix tops the NBA in playoff scoring and field goal percentage, testament not only to their up-tempo pace but to their ball movement. The way they responded after the Game 3 loss at the Staples Center, however, was the best sign that Phoenix was doing just enough to win against the Lakers and wasn’t concerned with blowouts. Nash was shut down in the second half of Game 3 by the Lakers’ unexpected trap defense, but he and the coaching staff devised an antidote. Sure enough, Nash recorded a career-high in assists in Game 4 and led Phoenix to a 13-point road win. The fast break bogs down in San Antonio The Nuggets averaged only seven points per game on the fast break against the Spurs, well under their regular season average of 18.6 fast-break points per game. San Antonio players told ESPN.com that playing time is the carrot dangled by head coach Gregg Popovich as a reward for getting back on defense quick enough to prevent the break. "You get back or you ain't going to play," center Francisco Elson said. "He's a tough man. He's going to explain it to you one time. If you don't get it, you just ain't going to play." It remains to be seen if San Antonio’s hustle can keep up with the Suns’ top-to-bottom athleticism. Phoenix needs help on the boards The Lakers grabbed 14.2 offensive rebounds per game against Phoenix, while the Suns took only 9.8 per game at the opposite end of the floor. L.A.’s total easily exceeded their season average of 10.8 per game. While many adjectives could be used to describe the Lakers’ frontcourt, “huge” and “tough” aren’t the first two that spring to mind. Just something to consider when comparing Phoenix’s first-round opponents to the Spurs. San Antonio’s old legs looked young again Some Spurs veterans were given reduced playing time in the regular season to preserve their energy for the playoffs. It showed, especially in the play of Michael Finley and Robert Horry. Finley, 34, averaged 16 points in 29.8 minutes per game against Denver after averaging only nine points in 22.1 minutes in the regular season. Horry, 36, doubled his scoring output from the regular season and averaged almost five minutes more per game. That Popovich has such weapons at his disposal underlines San Antonio’s depth almost as much as the fact that the Spurs’ bench outscored the Nuggets’ 153-43 for the series, an average margin of 22 points per game.
NBA PLAYOFFS- (covers.com): nba playoff series odds. Utah Jazz vs. Houston Rockets
Jazz +300
Rockets -400 New Jersey Nets vs. Toronto Raptors
Nets +600
Raptors +400 Golden State Warriors vs. Dallas Mavericks
Warriors -125
Mavericks -105 Chicago Bulls vs. Detroit Pistons
Bulls +145
Pistons -175 San Antonio Spurs vs. Phoenix Suns
Spurs +140
Suns -170 NBA PLAYOFFS- (asociated press): warriors super sub barnes ailing going into game 6. Matt Barnes, the Golden State Warriors' most productive bench player, has a number of injuries that could slow him down in tonight’s Game 6 showdown against the Dallas Mavericks. Oddsmakers have the Mavs listed as 2 ½-point road favorites with the total set at 208 ½. Barnes tweaked his right hamstring in Game 5 and was already playing with a sore left hamstring and a fractured finger. Barnes told reporters that despite his injuries he would be in the lineup tonight “no matter what.” Warriors coach Don Nelson admitted he is concerned about injuries. “We’re a little banged up right now … and on a short rotation, I can’t really afford to not have guys playing up to potential,” Nelson told the San Francisco Chronicle. Golden State has been going eight deep in their lineup and if Barnes is limited tonight Nelson said he would give more minutes to his regulars rather than look to someone else on the bench. One player the Warriors would love to see step up if Barnes can’t play is Al Harrington. Harrington has seen his minutes steadily decrease in each game this series because of his poor play. Barnes was the chief benefactor of Harrington’s smaller role. Barnes is averaging 9 points and 4.4 rebounds in this year’s playoffs. NBA PLAYOFFS- (associated press): toronto hoping ford and calderon will return.
With their top two point guards injured, rest is the Toronto Raptors' top priority. Neither T.J. Ford nor Jose Calderon practiced Wednesday, one day after getting hurt during the Game 5 victory against the New Jersey Nets. ''These extra days are going to be nice for both of us,'' said Calderon, who scored a career-high 25 points in Tuesday's 98-96 first-round playoff series win. Game 6 is Friday night in New Jersey. Oddsmakers list the Nets as 7 1/2-point favorites. The total is set at 189 points. Ford left Tuesday night's game in the second quarter after a hard collision with Vince Carter caused pain and numbness in his neck, shoulders and arms. Still sore, Ford planned to see a doctor again later Wednesday. Asked whether he'll play Friday, Ford said: ''We'll see.'' Calderon, hobbling around on a sprained and swollen right ankle, was more optimistic. ''I can't put too much weight on my ankle right now, but I feel better,'' he said. ''Even with pain, I'm going to try to play for sure. ... I could play today if I had to.'' Still, the Raptors used Wednesday's practice to make sure guards Darrick Martin and Juan Dixon are ready if needed. ''We've got until Friday to figure it out,'' Raptors coach Sam Mitchell said. ''Trust me, we'll come up with something. It might even surprise you a little bit.'' The Raptors will stick with full-court pressure to contain Jason Kidd, who had 11 points and 10 assists Tuesday. ''That's what we've got to do,'' Mitchell said. ''We've got to make him work.'' And the Raptors' Chris Bosh needs to break out of his slump. ''He's got to stop pressing and let it come to him,'' Mitchell said. ''We're going to do some things to open the court up a little more and get him some more space.'' Bosh acknowledged his playoff debut has not been easy. ''I'm kind of earning my stripes right now,'' he said. ''I'm sure guys have had harder experiences, but for me personally, it's been tough. I have to learn from it and make sure I remember it next time I come back down this road.'' Toronto is 3-11 all-time in road playoff games, including 0-2 in this series. New Jersey won Games 3 and 4 at home by racing out to early leads. Toronto turned the tables in Game 5, building a 20-point edge after the first quarter and holding on for the win when Bostjan Nachbar's 3-pointer bounced off the rim at the buzzer. The Nets know they can't afford to fall behind again Friday. ''We have to score, we have to tighten up our defense, we have to execute,'' Nachbar said. ''We can't afford any more mistakes.''
NBA PLAYOFFS- (covers.com): top 5 playoff teams ats.
There were five NBA teams winning postseason paydays at a 75 percent clip or better through Tuesday night. Could bettors have predicted them? Maybe, if they’d checked out the hottest ATS teams in the weeks leading up to the playoffs. The five teams listed below are a combined 17-4-1 against the spread (ATS) in the playoffs so far, an .810 payday-winning percentage. Those same five teams were 81-38 straight up (SU) and 68-49-2 ATS in March and April of the regular season, for a .681 SU winning percentage and .581 ATS delivery rate. Both numbers easily exceeded the teams’ combined numbers through the end of February (159-32, .546 SU and 142-144-5, .497 ATS). Are sportsbooks attaching too much weight to the teams’ records from the early months of the season? It’s hard to say. What’s irrefutable, however, is that the quintet’s records since March 1 is now 98-43 (.695) SU and 85-53-3 (.616) ATS. Here are the fantastic five, in order of playoff payday rate through Tuesday’s games. 1. Chicago Bulls, 4-0 SU 3-0-1 ATS The Bulls’ opening-round sweep of the defending champs was almost a sweep for the team’s backers too. A push in Game 1 was the only thing spoiling a perfect playoff mark. It maintained Chicago’s winning ways from the latter stretch of the season. The Bulls went 16-6 (.727) SU and 12-10 (.545) ATS in March and April of the regular season after going 33-27 (.550) SU and 28-31-1 (.475) ATS in the earlier months. 2. New Jersey Nets, 3-2 SU, 4-1 ATS New Jersey is the only team on the list whose early season ATS mark (31-26-1, .544) exceeded its ATS record in March and April (10-13-1, .435) of the regular season. That’s not to suggest that the Nets entered the postseason on a down stroke, however. They ended the regular season 5-1 (.833) SU and ATS, giving them a 9-2 (.818) ATS run as they head back home for Game 6 on Friday. 3. Golden State Warriors, 3-2 SU, 4-1 ATS The Warriors are the ATS darlings of the NBA these days. Too bad all the national exposure’s taking away their element of surprise. Golden State ended the regular season 16-7 (.696) SU and 17-6 (.739) ATS in March and April after starting 26-33 (.441) SU and 27-31-1(.466) ATS. That means the Warriors have delivered paydays in 75 percent of their post-February games. 4. San Antonio Spurs, 3-1 SU, 3-1 ATS San Antonio was a good team from the outset this season, as evidenced by its 39-18 (.684) SU and 29-27-1 (.518) ATS records through February. The Spurs reminded us they’re a great team, however, with their subsequent run. Tim Duncan & Co. are 22-7 (.759) SU and 16-13 (.552) ATS since March 1. 5. Cleveland Cavaliers, 4-0 SU, 3-1 ATS The Cavs are a hybrid of the Spurs and Warriors, combining a better-than-average early record with a devastating end to the regular season that’s continued through the playoffs. Cleveland managed to sweep the Washington Wizards and covered the hefty spread in three of the four wins. That means they’re 21-8 (.724) SU and 19-9-1 (.679) ATS since March 1, compared to the Cavs’ early-season 33-24 (.579) SU and 27-29-1 (.482) ATS marks.
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