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08/09/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's probably a good idea to have a sense of humor if you are around a basketball team that amassed all of 15 wins and finished 38 games out of first place.
The Minnesota Timberwolves have done their best to remake the roster that "accomplished" that last season, shipping a perceived "bad seed," power forward Al Jefferson, to Salt Lake City, while giving second-year coach Kurt Rambis some exciting new options like Syracuse rookie forward Wesley Johnson, former Bucks point guard Luke Ridnour, and a former No. 2 overall pick in Michael Beasley.
Of course this is the 'Wolves so you can bet the black cloud hanging over the franchise hasn't fully dissipated just yet. Promising sophomore point guard Jonny Flynn underwent surgery in late July to repair a labral tear and remove extra bone from his left hip and is expected to be sidelined from basketball activities for three to four months.
It's safe to say Minnesota still has a ways to go before Kobe and his Laker teammates are shaking in their boots but basketball chief David Kahn made another move late last week by agreeing on a two-year deal with Anthony Tolliver, a forward with all of 65 career games on his NBA resume.
It's not the type of signing that will require a press conference at Target Center but the 6-foot-9 Tolliver has shown some offensive skills with the Golden State Warriors and he should be able to carve out a few minutes in Rambis' frontcourt rotation that will include Johnson, Martell Webster, Kevin Love and Beasley.
Tolliver's biggest contribution to the 'Wolves, however, may be in the locker room.
He announced his decision to leave Oakland for the Twin Cities last Friday in a short YouTube video, spoofing LeBron James' often criticized "The Decision" special on ESPN last month.
In the video entitled "The Decision: Part Deux!!," a woman off camera asks the former D-League star when he made his decision.
"Um, I think I made my decision this morning while using the bathroom," Tolliver said. "It just came to me."
Unknown interviewer: "So, are you going to let us know your decision?"
After writing his decision on a piece of paper, presumably to build up the suspense, Tolliver said: "I will be taking my services to the north, the Minnesota Timberwolves."
A wolf is then heard howling in the background as Tolliver continued:
"Thank you to all my fans who have been following me and following my decision. It's been a great run and hopefully this is just the beginning."
James, of course, famously announced his decision by saying "I will be taking my talents to South Beach."
It's tough for a role player to become a leader in any locker room but humor is often the first step in getting along with people, especially in a close- knit atmosphere like the NBA.
Tolliver will never be a superstar on the court in Minneapolis. Off the court, he's off to a very good start.
<< Gustafson into top 25 of world rankings
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sophie Gustafson's victory at the Ladies
Irish Open on Sunday moved her back into the top 25 of this week's world
rankings.
Gustafson moved up six places to No. 24.
There were no changes in the
<< Dallas Cowboys 2010 Season Preview
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jerry Jones has never been one to scale back when it comes
to his goals. The colorful Dallas Cowboys owner is certainly thinking big in
2010.
Last year Jones unveiled to an awaiting public his longtime grand design, a
spe
<< Cards re-sign FB Maui'a
Tempe, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Arizona Cardinals have re-signed fullback
Reagan Maui'a and waived-injured fullback Charles Ali.
Maui'a was released by the Cardinals on July 30 after being signed last
January. He originally sig
<< ODU won't have Davenport on roster
Norfolk, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - West Virginia transfer Dominik Davenport will
not be eligible for Old Dominion's football team this season.
The redshirt freshman defensive tackle joined the Monarchs in the spring. The
school announced he comp
Blue Jays' draft pick Diedrick proving his worth >>
Toronto, Canada (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - About the only thing bigger than Philip
Diedrick's heart is his smile.
Diedrick's infectious grin and mild-mannered approach to life are attributes
that serve him well in life and on the diamond.
I
Rematch between Blame and Quality Road not immediate >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Saturday's dramatic stretch drive between
Blame and Quality Road in the Whitney Handicap will have to satisfy race fans
for more than a month. The earliest the two four-year-olds will meet again
appears
Mahan up to 12th in world rankings >>
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Hunter Mahan's victory Sunday at the WGC-
Bridgestone Invitational moved the American to 12th in this week's world golf
rankings.
Mahan moved up 19 spots this week after his biggest professional win.
Red Wings ink veteran blueliner Salei >>
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Red Wings have signed
defenseman Ruslan Salei to a one-year contract.
No terms of the deal were disclosed.
Salei was limited to just 14 games because of a back injury last season
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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