Cnotes 2020-2021 nba trends, news, best bets and opinions thru the playoffs !

[Udog]

Hoop Trends for Thursday April 29
Vince Akins

ATS Play ON Trend of the Day:
Matchup: Golden State at Minnesota (8:10 p.m. ET)

-- The Warriors are 11-0 ATS (8.27 ppg) off a home loss in which Stephen Curry shot better than 50 percent from the arc.

ATS Play AGAINST Trend of the Day:
Matchup: Dallas at Detroit (7:10 p.m. ET)

-- The Pistons are 0-14-3 ATS (-10.32 ppg) as a dog coming off a 10+ point win.

OU Play OVER Trend of the Day:
Matchup: Golden State at Minnesota (8:10 p.m. ET)

-- The Timberwolves are 10-0 OU (8.25 ppg) off a game as a favorite in which they had less than 15% of their points from free throws.

OU Play UNDER Trend of the Day:
Matchup: New Orleans at Oklahoma City (9:10 p.m. ET)

-- The Thunder are 0-10-1 OU (-12.91 ppg) as a dog coming off a win in which they had more turnovers than assists.

Trends are verified using Sports Data Query Language (SDQL)

[Udog]

Friday’s 6-pack
NFL leaders in passing yardage last year:
4,823— Deshaun Watson, Hst
4,740— Patrick Mahomes, KC
4,633— Tom Brady, TB
4,581— Matt Ryan, Atl
4,544— Josh Allen, Buff
4,336— Justin Herbert, LAC
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 573,420
PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.

Quote of the Day
“If we did draft a quarterback, it’s a good room for sure. Both (Dalton/Foles) have a lot of experience. A lot of different experiences, too. Which is good. The coaching staff that we have is strong as well. … But, again, we’re just going to take the best players throughout this draft.”
Chicago Bears’ GM Ryan Pace, who drafted a quarterback with the 11th pick

Friday’s quiz
Who was the Jacksonville Jaguars’ QB the last time they played a playoff game, in 2017?

Thursday’s quiz
Jared Goff is the last player the Rams drafted in the first round, in 2016.

Wednesday’s quiz
Terry Collins was the Mets’ manager, last time they played in a World Series.

************************************************** ****************

Friday’s Den: Wrapping up the first 20 picks of the NFL Draft

— First job tonight was to decide which channel to watch the draft on; NFL Network had a concert on, ESPN had four or five commercials for the NBA. No bueno; back to the Extra Innings package until they start picking players.

— There were reports this afternoon that Aaron Rodgers wants the Packers to trade him, which would be tumultuous.

— Quick reminder that the NFL season is now 17 games long.

— There are tons of people outside on a rainy night in Cleveland to watch all this draft stuff happen; having the draft in Las Vegas seems like a much better idea.

— Well, ESPN made the decision for me; they have Mike Greenberg hosting their coverage, so it is off to the NFL Network.

— It is 8:10 and there is still a damn band playing in Cleveland; start the draft!!! In happier news, Kris Bryant just doubled for the Cubs/Armadillos. Cubs lead 4-0 in the third.

— Jacksonville Jaguars are on the clock; Urban Meyer is their new coach. You get the feeling this is an all-or-nothing deal for Meyer, he’ll either win really big or he won’t finish his first season. Whatever, thanks for the Jaguars for getting him off of TV, where he was terrible- zero personality.

— Why is Jacksonville taking the whole 10:00 to make their pick?

— Eric Lauer is pitching for Milwaukee tonight, his first start of the year. Lauer is 14-19, 4.75 in 57 career games (54 starts), but he is 5-0, 2.11 in seven starts against the Dodgers, which makes no sense.

— Daniel Jeremiah just said that when the Jets upset the Rams last year, which put the Jaguars in position to pick first in this draft, that Jacksonville sold a ton of season tickets right after. Its the least the Rams could do for Jacksonville- they traded star CB Jalen Ramsey to the Rams.

— OK, now that Trevor Lawrence is a Jaguar, how long before he starts?

— Jets have a new coach, they traded their QB, they have the #2 pick. Everyone in their draft room has a suit jacket on; things in Jacksonville were way more casual.

With the #2 pick, Gang Green selects Zach Wilson; going from BYU to New Jersey qualifies as worlds colliding.

Someone just called Wilson “…….borderline cocky” Hmmmmm

There is a woman in a Jets sweatshirt sitting in an easy chair behind Roger Goodell’s pedestal.

— It irritates me when I hear an analyst say “He’s a winner” because for every winner, there has to be a loser, and I don’t think anyone is pre-ordained to be a loser.

— 49ers have the third pick in the draft; they take QB Trey Lance, who started 17 games for a I-AA team, playing only one game last year for North Dakota State. Carson Wentz also played for the Bison; what does this mean for Jimmy Garoppolo?

North Dakota State has a third QB in the NFL, Easton Stick, who is a backup with the Chargers, or at least he was before they got Chase Daniel. Must be a fun time to recruit quarterbacks at North Dakota State.

— Great stat they just said on TV; last ten QB’s to win the Super Bowl all threw 1,200+ passes in college; Trey Lance threw 318.

— Atlanta Falcons take TE Kyle Pitts with the 4th pick; his college coach Dan Mullen is sitting there in the draft room with him, getting some free TV time. Matt Ryan must like this pick.

Pitts is the highest drafted tight end ever.

— Bengals take Ja’Marr Chase, the LSU WR who didn’t play last year; he is reunited with his old LSU QB Joe Burrow. Explosive receiver; opting out of last year didn’t cost him any money.

— When was last time the first five picks all went to players on the offensive side of the ball?

— Miami has the 6th pick; they take WR Jaylen Waddle from Alabama, the second WR in row who was wearing sunglasses backstage. Chase took his shades off when he went on stage; Waddle kept his on. Six offensive players in a row, which ties the all-time record.

We are told that Waddle is very fast, a good feature for a WR. Are there slow WR’s?

— Detroit Lions are on the clock; they have a new everything- coach, GM, QB. They’ve won one playoff game in the Super Bowl era; that’s 55 years.

Lions were very good in the 1950’s; they won three titles back then, before I was alive.

People in Detroit’s draft room are hugging each other like they just won the Super Bowl, so they got someone they didn’t think they’d get- OT Penei Sewell from Oregon, which has to make Jared Goff a happier guy. Quarterbacks need their blind side protected.

— Carolina Panthers take CB Jaycee Horn with the 8th pick, the first defensive player taken; he is described as “chippy, competitive; talks a lot on the field”

— 87-year old Bob Uecker still does commercials on Brewers’ TV in Milwaukee for Usinger’s, a sausage company; he is an amazing guy, so funny. Still does Brewers’ home games on the radio.

— Denver Broncos are up next; they take a CB from Alabama whose dad also played in the NFL. Guess they’re serious about starting Teddy Bridgewater at QB this fall, though I also just read a thing on the Interweb about Denver trading for Aaron Rodgers.

They just showed Justin Fields’ family on TV, sitting at home; his parents don’t look happy. Someone needs to tell them that there were six QB’s taken in the 1983 Draft, and Dan Marino was #6 of the six, so you never know what the future will hold.

Yup, Dan Marino was 27th pick in the draft, which is why this is a fascinating process.

They also showed Alabama QB Mac Jones, sitting by himself in the draft room with his phone, probably wondering “Who the bleep told me to come here?!?!?!”

— Dallas Cowboys are on the clock; they traded the pick to Philadelphia, who take DeVonta Smith, the Alabama WR who is also reunited with his college QB, Jalen Hurts.

Not often two division rivals make a trade like that; Eagles only moved up two slots, but they bypassed the Giants, who may have wanted Smith.

— Cowboys got a third round pick to drop back two slots.

— Giants traded the #11 pick to Chicago, which takes Ohio State QB Justin Fields, bad news for Andy Dalton/Nick Foles.

— Dallas finally gets to pick; they take a LB from Penn State, which means Stephen Jones made the pick, not his father, who prefers flashier choices.

— Damn, to drop back nine slots in the draft, Giants got:

— 5th round pick (164th overall) in this draft.

— Bears 4th round pick 2022.

— Bears’ first round pick in 2022.

Seems like a pretty good haul, if they connect with those picks.

— Chargers have a new coach and a young QB; they took a tackle from Northwestern; when you have a good, young QB, you make sure he is well-protected.

— Lot of trades; Jets traded with Minnesota to move up from #23 to #14- they took Alijah Vera-Tucker, a guard from USC. You draft a young QB, you make sure he is well-protected.

— Patriots take QB Mac Jones from Alabama, who was expected to go a lot higher. Belichick and Nick Saban are good friends, so this makes sense.

— With the 16th pick, Arizona Cardinals take Zaven Collins, a LB from Tulsa.

— This is the first time I can remember where the draft was held before the schedule for next year was released- that comes out May 12. Seriously, for like an hour, I put everything aside as soon as the schedule comes out.

I get my second vaccination May 14; when I get home from that, I’ll be looking online for flights and hotel rooms for my first vacation in two years. Have to pick a good NFL weekend, or maybe even two weekends; we’ll see. Football weekends in Las Vegas are lot of fun.

— Las Vegas Raiders took a tackle from Alabama; lot of Crimson Tide guys getting picked.

— Miami Dolphins are picking again; they take a defensive end from Miami FL, who apparently returned punts for his high school team. Must be a very good athlete.

Last year, only 34% of players in the NFL were guys drafted in Rounds 1-3; the GM/scouts are so important in pro football. Thats why Saturday is a very important day- you can find diamonds in the rough at the end of the draft, guys who make a big difference.

— Washington takes a LB from Kentucky; they had taken a defensive lineman in the first round the previous four years, so at least they change things up some.

Washington needs to come up with a nickname, an actual mascot. It can’t be that difficult; as a matter of fact, I’ll do it for them— Washington RedTails, honoring pilots from World War II.

They made a movie about the RedTails; they could keep everything pretty much the same, the team song, the colors, all that. Simple stuff.

— Last item of the night, then I’m off to write the baseball article; with the #20 pick, Giants take Kadarius Toney, a WR from Florida. Graphic says “inconsistent hands” always a solid quality for a receiver.

Oy.

I’ll be back tomorrow, with more of this jocularity. Guy I used to know made fun of me because I like watching the draft; it was freakin’ rude, because we all like different stuff, and that’s what makes life interesting.

[Udog]

515WASHINGTON -516 CLEVELAND
WASHINGTON is 8-0 ATS (8 Units) after having won 3 of their last 4 games in the current season.

519ORLANDO -520 MEMPHIS
ORLANDO is 13-4 ATS (8.6 Units) in road games versus poor defensive teams - shooting pct defense of >=46% - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

523MILWAUKEE -524 CHICAGO
CHICAGO is 41-62 ATS (-27.2 Units) in home games in the last 3 seasons.

525UTAH -526 PHOENIX
UTAH is 60-41 ATS (14.9 Units) versus poor pressure defensive teams - forcing <=14 turnovers/game in the last 3 seasons.

527SACRAMENTO -528 LA LAKERS
LA LAKERS are 2-11 ATS (-10.1 Units) in home games versus poor pressure defensive teams - forcing <=14 turnovers/game in the current season.

[Udog]

NBA
Dunkel

Friday, April 30

[Udog]

NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Friday, April 30

Atlanta @ Philadelphia
Hawks (34-29)
— Hawks lost three of their last five games.
— Hawks are 11-5 ATS in their last 15 games.
— Under is 3-0 in their last three games.

76ers (40-21)
— 76ers won last two games, by 31-44 points.
— Sixers are 2-5-1 ATS in their last eight games.
— Under is 17-6 in Philly’s last 23 games.

— 76ers beat Atlanta by 44 here Wednesday.
— Hawks won five of last eight series games.
— Atlanta is 1-3 ATS in last four visits to Philly.
— Over is 5-3 in last eight series games.

San Antonio @ Boston
Spurs (31-30)
— San Antonio won five of its last seven games.
— Spurs are 7-2 ATS in last nine road games.
— Under is 6-2 in Spurs’ last eight games.

Celtics (33-30)
— Boston lost four of its last six games.
— Celtics are 7-9 ATS in their last 16 home games.
— Over is 3-0 in their last three games

— San Antonio won eight of last ten series games.
— Spurs are 3-1 ATS in last four visits to Boston.
— Over is 8-2 in last ten series games.

Washington @ Cleveland
Wizards (27-34)
— Wizards won 10 of last 13 games SU (10-3 ATS).
— Wizards are 6-1 ATS in last seven road games.
— Over is 3-1 in their last four games

Cavaliers (21-40)
— Cleveland lost nine of its last 11 games SU.
— Cavaliers are 2-5 ATS in last seven home games.
— Under is 3-1 in last four Cleveland games.

— Teams split last ten series games.
— Wizards are 3-2 ATS in last five visits to Cleveland.
— Over is 5-2 in last seven series games.

Portland @ Brooklyn
Trailblazers (34-28)
— Portland lost five of its last seven games, but won last two.
— You’re reading ***************.com
— Blazers are 2-4 ATS in last six road games.
— Under is 10-5 in Portland’s last 15 games.

Nets (43-20)
— Brooklyn won five of its last six games SU.
— Nets are 4-1 ATS in last five home games.
— Over is 5-1 in last six Brooklyn home games.

— Nets won last three series games, covered last four.
— Portland is 2-2 ATS in last four visits to Brooklyn.
— Over is 6-4 in last ten series games.

Orlando @ Memphis
Magic (18-43)
— Orlando lost 12 of its last 14 games.
— Magic is 7-4 ATS in last 11 road games.
— Over is 12-3 in their last 15 games overall.

Grizzlies (31-29)
— Memphis lost four of its last six games SU.
— Grizzlies are 6-2 ATS in last eight home games.
— Under is 4-1 in last five Memphis games.

— Orlando won six of last seven series games.
— Magic is 2-3 ATS in last five visits to Memphis.
— Under is 4-2 in last six series games.

Milwaukee @ Chicago
Bucks (38-24)
— Antetokounmpo hurt his ankle last night; check status.
— Milwaukee lost four of its last seven games SU.
— Bucks are 6-3 ATS in last nine road games.
— You’re reading ***************.com
— Under is 5-2 in Milwaukee’s last seven road games.

Bulls (26-36)
— Chicago lost eight of its last 12 games SU.
— Bulls are 3-5 ATS in their last eight home games.
— Under is 9-2 in their last 11 home games.

— Milwaukee won last ten series games.
— Bucks covered their last five visits to Chicago.
— Under is 6-2 in last eight series games.

Utah @ Phoenix
Jazz (45-17)
— Utah split its last six games SU.
— Jazz is 4-7 ATS in its last 11 road games.
— Under is 6-2 in Utah’s last eight games.

Suns (44-18)
— Phoenix won eight of its last 11 games.
— Suns are 2-3 ATS in their last five home games.
— You’re reading ***************.com
— Over is 12-5 in their last 17 games.

— Suns won last three series games., covered last four.
— Phoenix is 2-3 ATS in last five trips to Utah.
— Under is 7-3 in last ten series games.

Sacramento @ LA Lakers
Kings (25-37)
— Sacramento split its last six games SU.
— Kings are 3-0 ATS in their last three road games.
— Under is 5-2 in Sacramento’s last seven road games.

Lakers (36-25)
— Lakers lost four of their last five games.
— Lakers are 3-6 ATS in their last nine home games.
— Over is 8-5 in their 13 games overall.

— Lakers won six of last eight series games.
— Kings are 3-2 ATS in last five series games played here.
— Over is 3-1 in last four series games.

[Udog]

NBA

Friday, April 30

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Trend Report
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Atlanta @ Philadelphia
Atlanta
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Atlanta's last 5 games on the road
Atlanta is 6-2 ATS in its last 8 games when playing Philadelphia
Philadelphia
Philadelphia is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing at home against Atlanta
Philadelphia is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Atlanta

San Antonio @ Boston
San Antonio
San Antonio is 16-2 SU in its last 18 games when playing Boston
San Antonio is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games when playing on the road against Boston
Boston
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Boston's last 10 games when playing San Antonio
The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Boston's last 15 games at home

Washington @ Cleveland
Washington
Washington is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games
Washington is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games on the road
Cleveland
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Cleveland's last 6 games when playing at home against Washington
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Cleveland's last 5 games at home

Portland @ Brooklyn
Portland
Portland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Brooklyn
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Portland's last 5 games when playing on the road against Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is 12-1 SU in its last 13 games at home
Brooklyn is 6-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing Portland

Orlando @ Memphis
Orlando
The total has gone OVER in 8 of Orlando's last 9 games
Orlando is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games when playing Memphis
Memphis
Memphis is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games when playing at home against Orlando
The total has gone UNDER in 13 of Memphis's last 16 games when playing at home against Orlando

Milwaukee @ Chicago
Milwaukee
Milwaukee is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing Chicago
Milwaukee is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Chicago
Chicago
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Chicago's last 11 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Chicago's last 8 games when playing Milwaukee

Utah @ Phoenix
Utah
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Utah's last 5 games
Utah is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing on the road against Phoenix
Phoenix
Phoenix is 11-1 SU in its last 12 games at home
Phoenix is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Utah

Sacramento @ LA Lakers
Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Sacramento's last 10 games when playing on the road against LA Lakers
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Sacramento's last 7 games on the road
LA Lakers
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of LA Lakers's last 10 games when playing at home against Sacramento
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of LA Lakers's last 9 games at home


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[Udog]

Hoop Trends for Friday April 30
Vince Akins

ATS Play ON Trend of the Day
Matchup: Sacramento at L.A. Lakers (10:40 p.m. ET)

-- The Kings are 9-0 ATS (7.06 ppg) as a dog off a loss as a dog in which Buddy Hield was their high scorer.

ATS Play AGAINST Trend of the Day
Matchup: Atlanta at Philadelphia (7:10 p.m. ET)

-- The 76ers are 0-13-1 ATS (-9.61 ppg) as a favorite when they are off two straight wins as favorites.

OU Play OVER Trend of the Day
San Antonio at Boston (7:40 p.m. ET)

-- The Spurs are 13-0-1 OU (9.29 ppg) as a dog with less than two days rest after they had fewer than 10 turnovers.

OU Play UNDER Trend of the Day
Matchup: Atlanta at Philadelphia (7:10 p.m. ET)

-- The 76ers are 0-10 OU (-9.75 ppg) as a favorite off a win in a home game.

Trends are verified using Sports Data Query Language (SDQL)

[Udog]

Saturday’s 6-pack
NFL leaders in rushing yardage last year:
2,027— Derrick Henry, Tenn
1,557— Dalvin Cook, Minn
1,169— Jonathan Taylor, Ind
1,104— Aaron Jones, GB
1,070— David Montgomery, Chi
1,070— James Robinson, Jax
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 574,383
PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.

Quote of the Day
“Hell of a place to retire to.”
A judge on an old episode of Law and Order, when told a witness had retired to Albany. I live a mile outside Albany; I like it here, except in winter.

Saturday’s quiz
Where did Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor play his college football?

Friday’s quiz
Blake Bortles was the Jacksonville Jaguars’ QB the last time they played a playoff game, in 2017.

Thursday’s quiz
Jared Goff is the last player the Rams drafted in the first round, in 2016.

************************************************** *

Saturday’s Den: Wrapping up a busy Friday

— First things first, get well soon to Rams’ GM Les Snead, who tested positive for COVID this week; he is running the Rams’ draft from his garage— looks like a pretty nice garage.

— Houston Texans took Stanford QB Davis Mills in the 3rd round, raising even more ?s about the status of Deshaun Watson.

Mills only started 11 games at Stanford; he is a developmental project.
Texans have Tyrod Taylor, who was in Buffalo when they drafted Josh Allen, in LA when the Chargers drafted Justin Herbert.

Will Watson get traded, suspended or both? The TV guys seemed unanimous that no matter what, he’s played his last game for the Texans.

— This was the first time ever Northwestern had two players drafted in the first round.

— Chicago Bears drafted QB Justin Fields; they also have Andy Dalton/Nick Foles. Foles is guaranteed $9M over the next two years; going to be difficult to trade him.

— Dodgers lost nine of their last 12 games; they’ve scored total of 10 runs in their last six road games.

— Aaron Rodgers threw 48 TD passes last year; Green Bay punted 47 times. They really going to trade him? Hell, they drafted a WR Friday whose name is A. Rodgers (Amari Rodgers)

— Celtics 143, Spurs 140:
Spurs led by 32 points in the 2nd quarter.
Jayson Tatum scored 60 points for Boston.

— Phillies are 13-13, which doesn’t sound too impressive, but they’re in first place in NL East.

— Francisco Lindor is hitting .189, he is 4 for his last 29 and the Mets are 9-11. Not exactly what the new billionaire owner had in mind when he signed Lindor to a 10-year, $341M contract this winter.

— No Big X players were taken in the first round of the draft; six guys from Alabama were taken in the first round, and 8 of the first 38 choices were Crimson Tide alums.

— This is the first year since 1999 where QB’s were the first three picks in the NFL Draft; that year, it was Tim Couch, Donovan McNabb, Akili Smith. Drafting is an inexact science, no matter how much money they throw at it.

— Seattle Mariners lost 19 of their last 21 games in Houston.

— What week does Trevor Lawrence start at QB for Jacksonville? Gardnew Minshew could start the season under center, but Lawrence has to play at some point in 2021, right?

— Patrick Mahomes didn’t play until the last game of his rookie season; I’m not saying Lawrence wouldn’t be better off watching for a year, but that hasn’t been the recent trend in the NFL.

— Nationals 2, Marlins 1 (10)— Kyle Schwarber hit a walk-off homer. Game was 0-0 after nine.

— NFL Network ran a great segment, a chalkboard session with former coach Steve Mariucci and Florida QB Kyle Trask, who wound up getting picked by Tampa Bay.

I enjoy those 1-on-1 segments, where the coach challenges the player’s football IQ by showing him some X’s-and-O’s, then changing the subject for a few minutes, before asking the player to regurgitate the X’s-and O’s he was just shown. Trask did it very well.

Trask is an unusual case; he didn’t even start in high school, playing behind D’Eriq King, who now plays at Miami FL. Trask did start for the Florida Gators for two years.

— If the baseball playoffs started today (they don’t):
NL— Phillies, Brewers, Giants. Wild Card: Padres @ Dodgers
AL— Red Sox, Royals, A’s. Wild Card: Mariners @ White Sox

[Udog]

529DETROIT -530 CHARLOTTE
DETROIT is 8-0 ATS (8 Units) off a home loss by 10 points or more in the current season.

531GOLDEN STATE -532 HOUSTON
HOUSTON is 24-55 ATS (-36.5 Units) after a non-conference game in the last 3 seasons.

533NEW ORLEANS -534 MINNESOTA
MINNESOTA is 49-71 ATS (-29.1 Units) after a combined score of 215 points or more 2 straight games in the last 3 seasons.

535MIAMI -536 CLEVELAND
MIAMI is 15-4 ATS (10.6 Units) in road games against Central division opponents over the last 2 seasons.

537CHICAGO -538 ATLANTA
ATLANTA is 8-0 ATS (8 Units) in home games when playing against a marginal losing team (Win Pct. 40% to 49%) in the current season.

539INDIANA -540 OKLAHOMA CITY
OKLAHOMA CITY is 1-9 ATS (-8.9 Units) in home games versus teams who attempt 18 or more 3 point shots/game - 2nd half of the season in the current season.

541MEMPHIS -542 ORLANDO
ORLANDO is 3-12 ATS (-10.2 Units) in home games versus good shooting teams - making >=46% of their shots - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.

545DENVER -546 LA CLIPPERS
LA CLIPPERS are 8-1 ATS (6.9 Units) in home games versus explosive offensive teams - scoring 110+ points/game - 2nd half of the season in the current season.

547TORONTO -548 UTAH
TORONTO is 189-152 ATS (21.8 Units) in road games after having lost 2 of their last 3 games since 1996.

[Udog]

NBA
Dunkel

Saturday, May 1

[Udog]

NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Saturday, May 1

Detroit @ Charlotte
Pistons (19-44)
— Detroit lost four of its last five games
— Pistons are 3-5 ATS in last eight road games.
— Under is 3-1 in Detroit’s last four games.

Hornets (30-32)
— Charlotte lost eight of its last 11 games SU.
— Hornets are 3-1 ATS in their last four home games.
— Under is 20-7 in Charlotte’s last 27 games.

— Hornets won last ten series games (8-2 ATS)
— Pistons are 2-4 ATS in last six visits to Charlotte.
— Under is 8-1 in last nine series games.

Golden State @ Houston
Warriors (31-32)
— Golden State lost of its last seven games SU.
— Warriors are 3-8 ATS in last 11 road games.
— Under is 5-3 in their last eight road games.

Rockets (16-47)
— Houston lost 37 of its last 42 games SU.
— Rockets are 7-7 ATS in last fourteen games.
— Under is 4-2 in their last six games.

— Golden State won five of last seven series games.
— Warriors are 2-3 ATS in last five visits to Houston.
— Over is 6-3-1 in last ten series games.

Chicago @ Atlanta
Bulls (26-37)
— Chicago lost nine of its last 13 games SU.
— Bulls are 2-6 ATS in their last eight road games.
— Under is 4-1 in their last five games.

Hawks (34-30)
— Hawks lost four of their last six games.
— Hawks are 10-2 ATS in their last 12 home games.
— Under is 3-1 in their last four games.

— Chicago won six of last ten series games.
— Bulls covered four of last five visits to Atlanta.
— Over is 5-5 in last ten series games.

Miami @ Cleveland
Heat (33-30)
— Miami won/covered five of its last seven games.
— Heat is 1-4 ATS in last five road games.
— Over is 4-0 in their last four games.

Cavaliers (21-42)
— Cleveland lost 10 of its last 12 games SU.
— Cavaliers are 2-6 ATS in last eight home games.
— Under is 4-1 in last five Cleveland games.

— Miami won 9 of last 10 series games (8-2 ATS)
— Heat is 2-2 ATS in last four visits to Ohio.
— Over is 8-2 in last ten series games.

Memphis @ Orlando
Grizzlies (32-29)
— Memphis lost four of its last seven games SU.
— Grizzlies are 11-4 ATS in last 15 road games.
— Under is 5-1 in last six Memphis games.

Magic (19-44)
— Orlando lost 13 of its last 15 games.
— Magic is 0-6 ATS in last six home games.
— Over is 12-4 in their last 16 games overall.

— Grizzlies beat Orlando 92-75 at home last night.
— Orlando won six of last eight series games.
— Grizzlies are 1-4 ATS in last five visits to Orlando.
— Under is 5-2 in last seven series games.

New Orleans @ Minnesota
Pelicans (27-35)
— New Orleans lost six of its last nine games.
— Pelicans are 3-5 ATS in their last eight road games.
— Under is 4-0 in their last four games.

Timberwolves (19-44)
— Minnesota won/covered its last four games.
— You’re reading ***************.com
— Wolves are 7-3 ATS in last ten home games.
— Under is 4-0 in their last four games.

— Minnesota won 7 of last 10 series games.
— Pelicans are 2-4 ATS in last six visits to Minnesota.
— Three of last four series games went over.

Indiana @ Oklahoma City
Pacers (29-33)
— Indiana lost five of its last eight games SU.
— You’re reading ***************.com
— Pacers are 6-3 ATS in their last nine road games.
— Over is 4-1 in Indiana’s last five games.

Thunder (21-42)
— Thunder lost 18 of its last 20 games.
— OKC is 0-7 ATS in their last seven home games.
— Over is 5-2 in their last seven home games.

— Indiana won last three series games.
— Pacers are 2-2 ATS in last four visits to Oklahoma.
— Under is 7-1 in last eight series games.

Washington @ Dallas
Wizards (29-34)
— Wizards won 11 of last 14 games SU (11-3 ATS).
— Wizards are 7-1 ATS in last eight road games.
— Under is 6-4 in their last ten road games

Mavericks (35-27)
— Mavericks won five of their last six games.
— Mavericks are 4-6 ATS in last 10 home games.
— Over is 6-3 in last nine Dallas games.

— Mavericks won seven of last nine series games.
— Washington is 2-3 ATS in last five visits to Dallas.
— Under is 5-2 in last seven series games.

Toronto @ Utah
Raptors (26-37)
— Toronto lost three of its last four games.
— Raptors are 1-10 ATS in last 11 road games.
— Over is 6-3 in their last nine road games.

Jazz (45-18)
— Utah is 3-4 in its last seven games SU.
— Jazz is 0-4 ATS in its last four home games.
— Under is 6-3 in Utah’s last nine games.

— Toronto won eight of last ten series games.
— Raptors are 4-0 ATS in last four visits to Utah.
— Over is 6-4 in last ten series games.

Denver @ LA Clippers
Nuggets (42-21)
— Denver won 16 of its last 19 games.
— Nuggets are 3-5 ATS in last eight road games.
— Under is 4-2 in Denver’s last six games.

Clippers (43-21)
— Clippers lost their last two games, after a 17-3 run.
— Clippers are 6-1 ATS in last seven home games.
— Seven of last eight Clipper games stayed under the total.

— Denver won four of last five series games.
— Nuggets are 4-1 ATS in last five series games played here.
— Under is 6-1-2 in last nine series games.

[Udog]

NBA

Saturday, May 1

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Trend Report
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Detroit @ Charlotte
Detroit
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Detroit's last 5 games when playing on the road against Charlotte
The total has gone UNDER in 8 of Detroit's last 9 games when playing Charlotte
Charlotte
Charlotte is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Detroit
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Charlotte's last 5 games when playing at home against Detroit

Golden State @ Houston
Golden State
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Golden State's last 5 games when playing on the road against Houston
Golden State is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing Houston
Houston
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Houston's last 5 games when playing at home against Golden State
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Houston's last 10 games when playing Golden State

Chicago @ Atlanta
Chicago
Chicago is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Atlanta
Chicago is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Atlanta
Atlanta
Atlanta is 12-2 ATS in its last 14 games at home
Atlanta is 12-2 SU in its last 14 games at home

Miami @ Cleveland
Miami
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Miami's last 5 games when playing Cleveland
Miami is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games when playing Cleveland
Cleveland
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Cleveland's last 5 games when playing Miami
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Cleveland's last 9 games when playing at home against Miami

Memphis @ Orlando
Memphis
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Memphis's last 6 games
Memphis is 9-3 ATS in its last 12 games on the road
Orlando
Orlando is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games when playing at home against Memphis
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Orlando's last 5 games at home

Indiana @ Oklahoma City
Indiana
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Indiana's last 8 games when playing Oklahoma City
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Indiana's last 6 games when playing on the road against Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of Oklahoma City's last 8 games when playing Indiana
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Oklahoma City's last 6 games when playing at home against Indiana

New Orleans @ Minnesota
New Orleans
New Orleans is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of New Orleans's last 5 games
Minnesota
Minnesota is 5-0-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Minnesota is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games

Washington @ Dallas
Washington
Washington is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games
Washington is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games on the road
Dallas
Dallas is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games when playing at home against Washington
Dallas is 18-3 SU in its last 21 games when playing Washington

Denver @ LA Clippers
Denver
Denver is 8-1 SU in its last 9 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Denver's last 6 games on the road
LA Clippers
LA Clippers is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 7 of LA Clippers's last 8 games

Toronto @ Utah
Toronto
Toronto is 5-0 ATS in its last 5 games when playing Utah
Toronto is 6-0-1 ATS in its last 7 games when playing on the road against Utah
Utah
Utah is 23-2 SU in its last 25 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Utah's last 10 games when playing at home against Toronto


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[Udog]

Hoop Trends for Saturday May 1
Vince Akins

ATS Play ON Trend of the Day
Matchup: Detroit at Charlotte (7:10 p.m. ET)

-- The Pistons are 14-0 ATS (10.75 ppg) coming off a 7+ point home loss.

ATS Play AGAINST Trend of the Day
Matchup: Indiana at Oklahoma City (8:10 p.m. ET)

-- The Pacers are 0-10 ATS (-3.80 ppg) with rest off a 10+ point loss.

OU Play OVER Trend of the Day
Matchup: Washington at Dallas (9:10 p.m. ET)

-- The Wizards are 10-0-1 OU (11.68 ppg) with no rest after allowing 15+ points less than Vegas projected.

OU Play UNDER Trend of the Day
Golden State at Houston (7:40 p.m. ET)

-- The Rockets are 0-11 OU (-10.77 ppg) as a home dog coming off a home win.

Trends are verified using Sports Data Query Language (SDQL)

[Udog]

Sunday’s 6-pack
Managers with the most career ejections:
162— Bobby Cox
121— John McGraw
100— Leo Durocher
96— Earl Weaver
88— Frankie Frisch, Tony LaRussa
84— Ron Gardenhire
Americans who have died from COVID-19: 574,383
PLEASE wear a mask (over your nose/mouth) when you go out.

Quote of the Day
“It’s Vegas. You lose track of time in those casinos. There’s no windows, no clocks. He’s probably on a heater. And you never walk away from the table when you’re on a heater.”
Sid Garner, from The Hangover

Sunday’s quiz
Of the 32 current NFL head coaches, how many have won a Super Bowl?

Saturday’s quiz
Hall of Fame linebacker Lawrence Taylor played his college football at North Carolina.

Friday’s quiz
Blake Bortles was the Jacksonville Jaguars’ QB the last time they played a playoff game, in 2017.

************************************************** **

Sunday’s Den: Wrapping up a sports Saturday

13) There is a young man named Jamie Newman who was a QB at Wake Forest for three years:
— He backed up John Wolford one year, the guy who was the Rams’ backup LY
— Newman split time as a starter his second year.
— He threw for 2,868 yards his third year with the Deacons. Pretty good season.

Then he decided to bolt to greener pastures and transferred to Georgia before the 2020 season, hoping to raise his NFL Draft profile, but then opted out of that season, because of COVID/injury concerns. He figured, or his people figured, that his draft value would be enhanced somehow by his sitting out- they were wrong.

Newman wasn’t drafted this weekend; he signed on with the Eagles as an undrafted free agent. Had he played at Georgia last year, he undoubtedly would’ve been drafted, but now he has to make the NFL the hard way. Cost him a lot of money, at least for now.

Sometimes the grass isn’t greener on the other side.

12) Mel Kiper Jr is an NFL Draft expert: here is how he thinks some teams did:
Teams he gave an A grade to:
— Los Angeles Chargers
— Miami Dolphins
— New Jersey Jets got an A-minus.

Teams who got his lowest grades:
— Pittsburgh Steelers got a C+
— New Orleans Saints got a C+
— Indianapolis Colts got a C+

11) NFL Draft is a fascinating process; like I’ve said before, the average NFL team is worth $3B, yet teams approach the draft in many different ways. Some are obviously smarter than others.

No one KNOWS who did the best this weekend; part of it is having coaches who will get the most out of the talent that the GM assembles. It’ll be a few years before we really know who did the best drafting this weekend.

10) NFL changed things up some for Day 3 of the draft; they had some coaches/owners announce their team’s picks, which was a good idea.

Jerry Jones announced one of the Cowboys’ picks with his teenage grandson; must be fun having a grandfather who owns an NFL team.

Dallas used its first six draft picks on defensive players, by the way.

9) The Aaron Rodgers soap opera is becoming tiresome; now the Interweb says he wants the Green Bay GM fired. The weird thing about the Packers is that they’re publicly owned, so who does he air his complaints to?

There are 360,760 people who are Packers stockholders. There is a small executive committee that actually runs the team.

Packers went 26-6 the last two years; hard to imagine the GM getting fired.

8) Rams haven’t had a first round pick since 2016, won’t have another one until at least 2024, but Mel Kiper gave them a B+ grade. Les Snead is a really good GM who would rather trade for proven players than draft rookies.

7) Madison Bumgarner started the season by going 0-2, 11.19 in his first three starts. Since then, he’s gone 3-0, 1.06 in his last three starts. Go figure.

6) Cincinnati Reds’ 1B Joey Votto hit his 300th home run this weekend; he’ll be an interesting case when his Hall of Fame voting happens.

Votto has a career .418 on-base percentage, which is tremendous; made six All-Star Games, finished in top three of the MVP voting three times, winning once. I’m guessing he’ll make it.

5) Orioles 8, A’s 4:
— Oakland started this season 1-7
— A’s then won their next 13 games.
— Now they’ve lost five of their last seven games.

Very strange.

4) Major league teams now script off days for their players; Bronx TV announcer Michael Kay was talking about this Saturday, how Giancarlo Stanton didn’t play Saturday, even though he was 11-20 in his last four games.

Kay acknowledged that fans get ticked off about stars getting “days off”; hell, Stanton is a DH, why does he need a day off, especially when his bat is red hot?

I only care because he’s on my fantasy team, but Stanton looks like an NFL tight end; it is ludicrous that he hasn’t played in the field yet this season. Who is making these decisions? Doubt it is the manager; am guessing the GM/analytics people call the shots.

3) Brewers 6, Dodgers 5 (11)— Dodgers are struggling; they’ve lost 10 of their last 13 games, and now P Dustin May is hurt. They need injured OF Cody Bellinger back in the lineup.

2) Mets 5, Phillies 4— There was a really, really terrible call made in this game at 2nd base, an out-of-baseline call against Andrew McCutchen— I saw the replay and laughed, it was so bad.

Calls like this need to be reviewable; this would’ve taken 15 seconds to correct. A young umpire named Jose Navas made the call. Bryce Harper got thrown out because he was arguing from the dugout. Phillies would’ve had go-ahead run on 2nd base in the 8th inning; game was tied at the time. Michael Conforto hit the winning home run a few minutes later.

1) Minor league baseball makes its return on Tuesday; someone said on TV the other night that teams will play Tuesday-Sunday each week, playing six-game series, to lessen travel. It’ll be fun to check the minor league boxscores again, this I know.

[Udog]

553NEW YORK -554 HOUSTON
NEW YORK is 13-2 ATS (10.8 Units) versus terrible defensive teams - allowing 110+ points/game - 2nd half of the season in the current season.

555PHILADELPHIA -556 SAN ANTONIO
PHILADELPHIA is 3-17 ATS (-15.7 Units) in road games off 2 or more consecutive home wins in the last 3 seasons.

557MIAMI -558 CHARLOTTE
MIAMI is 14-27 ATS (-15.7 Units) vs. division opponents in the last 3 seasons.

559SACRAMENTO -560 DALLAS
SACRAMENTO is 10-1 ATS (8.9 Units) in road games after a win by 6 points or less over the last 2 seasons.

561PHOENIX -562 OKLAHOMA CITY
PHOENIX is 10-1 ATS (8.9 Units) in road games after a blowout win by 15 points or more over the last 2 seasons.

563TORONTO -564 LA LAKERS
LA LAKERS are 6-22 ATS (-18.2 Units) against Atlantic division opponents in the last 3 seasons.