The Celtics grabbed the first two games on the NBA Finals in fairly decisive fashion.  The big question is whether or not the Lakers can get back on track with a couple of wins at home.  It looks like the odds-makers are on the Lakers’ side, setting them as 9.5 point favorites for Tuesday’s game.  This might seem like a lot of points, but if you look at the combination of the Lakers’ performance at home this season (especially in the playoffs) and the overall trend of home teams winning in the playoffs, the line probably isn’t too far off.  L.A. will need more help from their supporting staff than they’ve received in the first two games of the Finals.  Not surprisingly, Kobe Bryant has been the leading scorer and has hit key shots in difficult situations.  This has not been enough, however, as the rest of the team has not been playing their role as effectively as they did in say the series against the Spurs.  Boston got a pair of great performances out of Paul Pierce, something not many expected.  The Celtics will need to find the other two of the big three in future games because, as we’ve seen with the Lakers and Kobe, you don’t want to hang your hat on just one big scorer.  Tuesday’s odds have been posted over at Bodoglife.com.

NBA Finals - Game 3 Odds

Boston Celtics +9.5 @
Los Angeles Lakers -9.5

Popularity: 12% [?]

The stage has been set for an epic showdown of past NBA powers.  The two most successful franchises in NBA history, the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers meet in Boston Thursday, June 5th for game one of the NBA Finals.  There’s a lot to consider for this year’s finals.  Can Kobe finally get that elusive ring without the help of Big Daddy Shaq?  Can Phil Jackson further cement his place in the NBA Hall of Fame by adding yet another championship to his legacy?  Can Kevin Garnett finally overcome his label of being the best individual player in the NBA that hasn’t won a championship?  Will the Celtics end their hugely hyped season with the Big Three as champions or merely contestants?  Phew!  That’s is a lot to consider.  No matter who you’re backing in this year’s finals it’s hard to deny that this is the best possible match-up, both for the fans, for the league, and, let’s face it, for the league’s advertisers.  Even the casual NBA fan can get behind a classic Boston v. L.A. series.  Game one starts at 9pm Eastern Time from the Banknorth Garden in Boston.  Here’s a quick look at the latest odds on the game, brought to you by the best place to bet the NBA Finals this season,BodogLife.com!

NBA Championship - Game One Odds

Los Angeles Lakers +2.5
@ Boston Celtics -2.5

Popularity: 12% [?]

Will home teams continue to dominate the NBA Playoffs?  Can the youth of the Lakers out-play the experience of the Spurs?  These are a few of the questions that come to mind before Wednesday night’s Western Conference Finals opening game.  For the sports bettor, the questions don’t stop there, we have the spread to consider as well!

Western Confernce Finals - Game 1 - San Antonio Spurs @ L.A. Lakers
It’s hard to compare the NBA regular season to the playoffs, even when the teams have played each-other a number of times.  It’s even harder when those teams have only played two games against each-other.  It’s harder yet to decipher who the better team is when the regular season series is split 1-1.  The major factor that seems to have played into both victories whether or not the team was playing on their home court.  The Lakers dominated the Spurs by 21 points in early April in Los Angeles, and you could make a strong argument that the Lakers have evolved into an even better team at this point in the season.  I will admit that it is hard to bet against the Spurs in the playoffs in any situation, but I just don’t see the same spark, the same team chemistry that past Spurs teams exuded.  It may be short-sited on my part, but I’m strong on the Lakers at home by seven Wednesday night.

Western Conference Finals - Game 1 Pick:  Los Angeles Lakers -7

Popularity: 11% [?]

L.A. Lakers (31-17) @ Orlando Magic (32-19)
7:00 PM EST
Even with Kobe’s finger hurting the smart play is on the Lakers Friday night.  The Lakers have won 5 of their last 6 against the Magic and those Lakers teams were not as good a match for the Magic as this year’s squad. Orlando’s big 3 of Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, and Dwight Howard have been amazing this year, but it’s the back-court where the Lakers shine, and where the Magic struggle.  Paul Gasol isn’t Dwight Howard by any means, but he is good enough to cause problems down-low for the Magic’s center.  I’m quite confident that Kobe’s supporting cast can make up for any short-comings he might experience due to his injury.

NBA Pick:  L.A. Lakers +1.5

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San Antonio Spurs (31-16) @ New York Knicks (14-35)
7:30 PM EST
The Knicks are one of the worst teams in the NBA.  They don’t have much to play for and it really shows on the court.  Friday night they’ll get a heavy dose of the anti-Knicks, the San Antonio Spurs.  Were the Knicks’ poor attitude and poor chemistry has turned into a losing record, the Spurs’ positive attitude and great chemistry has turned them into (again) one of the best teams in the NBA.  There’s nothing here I can see in favor of the Knicks.  They don’t play well at home, they are poorly coached, they can’t score, they can’t keep anyone from scoring, and, like I said, half of the time the New York players look like they’d rather be at home playing XBox360 instead of playing professional basketball.  New York’s downward spiral continues Friday night.

NBA Pick:  San Antonio Spurs -7

Popularity: 8% [?]

The Shaquille O’neal trade to the Suns, sending Shawn Marion to the Miami Heat doesn’t make a lot of sense.  The Suns are trading one of the best young forwards in the league for possibly the best center of all-time, but a center nearing the end of his career and it is true what they say: the bigger they are, the harder they fall.  Shaq’s production is down, his health is questionable, and I simply don’t see how he fits into the Suns’ scheme.  How long is the big guy going to play each game?  5-minutes?  Trust me, I’m one of the biggest Shaq proponents out there. I think he’s had one of the greatest careers any player will ever have.  The fact is that he’s getting to old to get up and down the court with the likes of Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire.  The bottom line is that I do not see it as a very good trade.  Only time will tell.  Do I think it will end up being one of the worst trades of all-time?  Not even close.  But it did get me thinking.  What are some of the worst trades in recent memory?  Below you’ll find the worst 3 trades I could come up with from the last 15 years.  Think you can think of some worse ones?  Prove it by posting your worst 3 NBA trades ever. (Please note: I do realize some of the trades involved other players and, in some cases, draft picks, but I went straight for the meat and potatoes, concentrating more on player for player value.)

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#3  2004-05 the L.A. Lakers trade Caron Butler to the Washington Wizards for Kwame Brown- It’s hard to say what the Lakers saw in Kwame that no one else did.  Could it be that he’s never fully developed into an NBA-caliber player?  Maybe it was his career 7.7 point per game.  Whatever it was at the time, it has turned into is a horrific trade for the Lakers who haven’t seen much improvement from Brown.  I doubt the Wizards are complaining about Butler, who has quickly become a perennial all-star and now averages around 19 points per game.

#2 1998-99 The Milwaukee Bucks trade Dirk Nowitzki to The Dallas Mavericks for Pat Garrity & Robert “Tractor” Traylor- I’m not going to say I saw Dirk Nowitzki turning into the player that he has, but I can say I saw more talent in him than I say in Garrity or “Tractor” Traylor.  Nowitzki turned into a 7-time (so far) All-Star who has put together several near-MVP seasons (including one win last year) and lead his team to the playoffs in 7 of the 9 seasons he’s been with them.  Traylor never averaged over 6 points per game and retired after just 7 seasons.  Garrity is at least still playing basketball (if you want to call it that) contributing less than 2 points and 2 rebounds per game for the past 2 seasons.  Enough said.

#1 1996-97 the Charlotte Hornets trade Kobe Bryant to the L.A. Lakers for Vlade Divac- This pick for my #1 worst NBA trade of all-time isn’t a knock on Vlade, who was actually a solid player.  He contributed to every team he was on.  He averaged around 11 points per game for the Hornets, rebounded well, and played excellent defense.  This pick, however, had to be made as Charlotte dropped the ball on one of the greatest players of all-time.  To date Kobe has 1 MVP, 3 NBA Championships, he’s a 10-time All-Star player, has averaged 24.6 points per game for his career, and plays great defense.  To get right to the point, Charlotte traded a Hall of Fame player for a role-playing one-time all-star who they ended up dumping after just 2 seasons.

There were a few that just missed the top 3, but I feel pretty good about the list overall.  Disagree?  Great!  Post your top 3 or 5 or 10 or 30 worst trades.
 
Just missed the cut:  Jermaine O’Neal for Dale Davis & Vince Carter for (basically) Alonzo Mourning, who will never play a minute for the Raptors.

Popularity: 70% [?]

Good Morning!  There’s so much NBA action going on tonight that we are going to post lines on every game available at press, plus give our pick for each match-up.  My favorite games tonight are Spurs/Wizards and Lakers/Hawks.  I’m taking the big-dogs in both games, the Spurs over the Wizards and the Lakers over the Hawks.  Those are the only two games I’m really big on tonight, the rest should be considered “leans” or strong opinions, not full picks.  Good Luck!

NBA Odds by SportsBook.com

San Antonio Spurs @ Washington Wizards +5.5
Pick:  San Antonio Spurs -5.5

L.A. Lakers @ Atlanta Hawks +7
Pick:  L.A. Lakers -7

New Jersey Nets @ Orlando Magic -11
Pick:  New Jersey Nets +11

Miami Heat @ Detroit Pistons -16
Pick:  Detroit Pistons -16

Seattle Super Sonics @ Sacramento Kings -9.5
Pick:  Seattle Super Sonics +9.5

New Orleans Hornets @ Phoenix Suns -6
Pick:  Phoenix Suns -6

Chicago Bulls @ Portland Trail Blazers -6
Pick: Portland Trail Blazers -6

Popularity: 11% [?]

L.A. Lakers (28-16) @ Toronto Raptors (25-20)
7:00PM EST - 2/1/2008
Over the past few seasons the Lakers have built a reputation of being a team that plays really well at home and really poorly on the road.  This year they seem to have broken their pattern of struggling on the road, achieving a winning record away from their home court.  So much of this game, like so many Laker games this season, is going to rely on the play of Kobe Bryant.  Who does Toronto have to guard and/or answer Kobe?  They simply have no great defenders and no great scorers and that should be the difference in the game.  The Lakers have won three of the last four and eight of the last ten in this series for that very reason.  If you’ll remember about two years ago against the Raptors, Kobe had his 81 point game.  Now, I’ll be the first to admit that the Raptors are a better team now, but they still don’t have anyone to slow Kobe down enough to pull out this victory.  I’m predicting and outright Lakers win tonight, but take the 5.5 points as a nice cushion.

Free NBA Pick:  L.A. Lakers +5.5

Popularity: 7% [?]

Phoenix Suns (26-12) @ L.A. Lakers (26-11)
10:30 PM EST - 1/17/2008

On paper these two teams look almost identical.  The only real difference is that Phoenix scores a little more and L.A. allows fewer points per game, which ends up as a wash anyway.  What sets the Suns apart from the Lakers in this games is that they are more rounded.  Phoenix comes in with 4 guys that can legitimately put up 20-30 points in any given game, in any given situation.  Looking at L.A., they really only have Kobe Bryant with Bynum out indfinately with a knee injury.  Sure, Kobe can put up 40-50, but that can’t compete with 3 or 4 solid guys putting up 20.  The Bynum injury hurts L.A. badly.  They’ve come to rely more on him for offense over this season, but what they will really miss is his presence down-low, particularly in crashing the boards, where Bynum is averaging over 10 rebounds per game.  (more…)

Popularity: 7% [?]

L.A. Lakers Lakers (25-11) at Seattle SuperSonics (9-27)
DATE/TIME: Monday, January 14 - 10:00 PM EST

There isn’t much posititve you can say about the SuperSonics this season.  Sure, Kevin Durant has looked good, even great, at times, but with youth comes inconsistency and that factor does not bode well for Seattle tonight.  The Lakers are winners of 6 in a row and 9 of their last 10 games, how’s that for hot?  In the past they’ve been notoriously bad on the road, but the short trip up to Seattle to play a team that is really struggling this season should equal a win.  It’s not quite the All-Star break, but watching Seattle, you have to wonder if they are already thinking about who they can pick up in next year’s lottery to compliment Durant, instead of focusing on the season in front of them.

Pick:  L.A. Lakers -8

Washington Wizards (19-16) at Boston Celtics (30-5)
DATE/TIME: Monday, January 14 - 7:30 PM EST

Boston has looked almost human over the past week going just 1-2 over their last few games including a loss on Jan. 12th to their opponent tonight, the Wasington Wizards.  The Celtics are still the team to beat in the NBA and, with revenge on their mind tonight, they are one of the best bets on the board.  The Wizards accomplished something only one other team has done this season by beating Boston on their home court.  Asking them to repeat that feat is simply too much.  The Celtics have had some time to rest and will be back to their near-invincible form Monday night.

Pick:  Boston Celtics -12.5 

Popularity: 7% [?]