Heat re-sign Anthony; formalize Miller signing
Basketball Betting Lines
07/16/2010 -
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Miami Heat continued filling out their roster
on Friday by re-signing center Joel Anthony and inking second-round draft pick
Dexter Pittman.
The team also formalized the signing of free agent guard Mike Miller to a
reported five-year deal worth about $25 million. A career 40.5 percent three-
point shooter, Miller has been on three teams the last three years, playing 54
games for Washington last season and averaging 13.7 points, 6.2 rebounds and
3.9 assists.
It's been a whirlwind week for the Heat following the re-signing of guard
Dwyane Wade and the additions of LeBron James and Chris Bosh.
Anthony has started 45 of the 169 games he's played in during his three
seasons with the Heat, averaging 2.6 points and 3.2 rebounds. He has also
averaged 1.38 blocks.
"This contract with Joel Anthony is a testament to the man who is second to
none; who has worked hard and deserved this," said Heat president Pat Riley.
"We felt that what he has done over the last couple of years in developing his
game, his body and his knowledge warrants this reward. If other NBA non-
drafted free agents want a prototype to follow, Joel Anthony is that man."
Pittman, a 6-foot-10 center, averaged 6.6 points and 4.0 rebounds while
shooting 62.3 percent from the field in 134 games at the University of Texas.
He was the 32nd overall draft pick.
"One of our priorities in the draft was to make sure that we could augment the
depleted center position with the loss of Jermaine O'Neal," Riley said.
"Dexter has the size and agility to be a very productive player for us in the
long run, and there is no better place for him to improve than in the Miami Heat system."
<< Red Sox issue medical updates on Pedroia, Varitek
Boston, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Boston Red Sox manager Terry Francona issued
medical updates on second baseman Dustin Pedroia and catcher Jason Varitek
prior to Friday's game against the Texas Rangers.
Pedroia broke a bone in his left
<< Yankees honor Steinbrenner, Sheppard
Bronx, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The New York Yankees held a tribute prior to
Friday night's game against Tampa Bay to honor late team owner George
Steinbrenner and former public address announcer Bob Sheppard.
Fans and the entire
<< Habs appoint Carriere assistant GM
Montreal, Quebec (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Montreal Canadiens announced on
Friday the appointment of Larry Carriere to assistant general manager and
director of player personnel.
Carriere, a Montreal native, had been a pro scout fo
<< Padres disable Latos, Adams
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Diego Padres have placed pitchers
Mat Latos and Mike Adams on the 15-day disabled list.
Latos will be out of action due to a strained left oblique muscle suffered
when he was trying to hold
<< Indians release C Redmond
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians have released catcher
Mike Redmond after designating him for assignment last Saturday.
Redmond was hitting .206 with five runs batted in over 63 at-bats at the time
of his designation
Mets bump Pelfrey to Monday >>
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets starting pitcher Mike
Pelfrey will have his scheduled Saturday start pushed back to Monday due to a
stiff neck.
The Mets will insert lefty Hisanori Takahashi to take the place of Pelf
Gainey goes in front at Chiquita Classic >>
Maineville, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Tommy Gainey posted a six-under 66 on Friday
to move atop the leaderboard after the second round of the inaugural Chiquita
Classic.
Gainey finished 36 holes at 14-under 130 at TPC River's Bend and is one st
Manny Ramirez replaced in first inning >>
St. Louis, MO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Manny Ramirez
left Friday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals due to right calf
tightness. He's considered day-to-day.
Ramirez was replaced in left field by Xavier Paul in the b
NFL suspends Seahawks LB Hill one game >>
Seattle, WA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The NFL has suspended Seattle Seahawks
linebacker Leroy Hill one game for violating the league's substance abuse
policy.
Hill was also fined an additional game check. The Seattle Times reported
Harvick grabs first truck pole at Gateway >>
Madison, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Kevin Harvick will start on the pole for
Friday's CampingWorld.com 200 Camping World Truck Series race after posting
the quickest lap in qualifying at Gateway International Raceway just outside
of St.
NFL owners, already life's biggest winners, want to try their luck with the lottery.
That was the news out of their meetings last week, where team bosses voted unanimously to allow stamping state and local lottery tickets with franchise logos, if, ahem, any governments wanted to do a deal.
A shocker: Within days the Pats announced they'd be sponsoring the Massachusetts state lottery, the Skins said they'd slap their sticker on Virginia scratch-offs and the Ravens admitted they were talking to Maryland lottery bosses. In all likelihood, it won't be long before every team is a presenting sponsor of scratch-offs or just plain old pick fives. "The change in policy was approved 32-0," said NFL spokesman Greg Aiello. "So you can expect to see more deals soon."
It's a branding opportunity too big for the owners to ignore, and one a couple of dozen baseball franchises have enjoyed for years. The fact the NFL has been slower to act than those slack-brained Seligites is indicative of its complicated relationship with all forms of gambling. Consider this: Last Thursday, as the Pats and the Redskins finalized their new lottery deals, a lawyer representing the NFL argued before Delaware's Supreme Court that the state's newly signed sports betting law should be repealed.
The NFL betting is the face of opposition to sports gambling . And as much as it would like to share that responsibility with other leagues, that's not going to happen as long as more than 40% of all money legally wagered on games is bet on football. That's why the Brewers can do a multi-million dollar deal with a local casino, or the Celtics can make their own pact with the Mass lottery, and the response is, "Sweet, let's play." But when the NFL does it the stakes are higher, and everyone from NPR's Frank Deford to the Associated Press to the guys blogging at Deadspin will line up to play gotcha.
So I asked Aiello, who surely knew there'd be piling on, how the league can rail against being bait for sports bettors, then allow its franchises to be just that for lotteries, the most insidious and addictive form of gambling around. He emailed me this response: "We are not moral crusaders. NFL personnel are permitted to engage in legal forms of gambling, except for betting on NFL games. We are making a distinction here between the spread of gambling on the outcome of our games and supporting state lottery scratch-off games, that have nothing to do with the outcome of our games."
Here's where I should rip him. But, the thing is, he's right. Not to get Obama on you, but this is a complicated, nuanced issue. As much as lotteries are considered a tax on the poor, the NFL isn't a socially obligated government program -- it's just a business. Scratch-off's help the bottom line, sports betting doesn't.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors … But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal.
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
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NFL Football Sports Betting
Two playoff teams from 2007 take center stage on the NFL Network Sunday night in a Week 2 NFL betting match-up when the (0-1) New England Patriots betting head south to Florida for a contest with the (1-0) Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
New England HC Bill Belichick couldn’t care less about the way his team plays in the preseason. With a chance to tie last week’s game with the Baltimore Ravens betting, He elected to go for the two-point conversion and outright victory. The conversion failed, and the Pats ended up falling to the Ravens by a 16-15 final count.
New England rolled off twelve unanswered points to give it a chance at securing the victory, but it never threatened to cover the 3.5-point spread. NFL bettors saw this one coming, as they bet the Ravens down from +6 to +3.5 as the week progressed. QB Tom Brady didn’t take part in the Patriots first preseason clash, but could see action this weekend.
His three replacements all put up embarrassing numbers. They went a combined 17 for 33, and threw three interceptions and no touchdowns. The New England defense was encouraging, as they held the Ravens to 2/12 third down conversions and surrendered just ten first downs. That ‘D’ should be bolstered with the addition of former Bucs and Denver Broncos betting safety John Lynch, who could make his Patriots debut on Sunday against his former mates.
HC Jon Gruden had to be impressed with the way his Bucs played on both sides of the ball in their dominating 17-6 victory over the Miami Dolphins in Week 1’s NFL pre-season betting action. Bucs bettors were quite happy with the effort, as they made a mockery of the fact that they were underdogs in the game.
The logjam at the quarterback position didn’t get any easier to separate for Gruden, as all four of his QBs had positive experiences in the first exhibition of 2008. The four combined to complete 28 of their 40 passes for 204 yards and a touchdown, and that was without starting QB Jeff Garcia in the lineup.
RB Michael Bennett had 19 carries and four receptions, totaling 90 yards and a touchdown. Expect to see more of Bennett, Kenneth Darby, and Earnest Graham, as they all compete for playing time with Warrick Dunn in the backfield this season. Defensively, the Bucs recorded four sacks and held the Fins offense in check all day.
First round draft pick Aqib Talib was impressive in the secondary, recording a tackle and two pass defenses in his debut. Don’t be surprised to see Talib in the starting lineup opposite Ronde Barber for the Bucs in ’08.
The betting trends suggest that NFL bettors should be backing the Bucs in this intra-conference exhibition.
These two teams hooked up last year in Tampa Bay, with the Bucs winning that game 13-10. The Buccaneers have only lost one preseason game at home dating back to the beginning of the ’05 preseason. The Patriots have had a mixed bag of results in their recent exhibitions. They have gone 2-2 ATS and SU each of the last three years.
New England currently sits as modest 1-point favorites in this preseason showdown with the ‘total’ now sitting at 34.5.
You can find these lines and all of the NFL betting lines , so be sure to login and get your wagers down before kickoff!
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines .
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