Wednesday Trneds and Indexes 07/16

[Udog]

Trends and Indexes
Wednesday July 16

Good Luck on day #198 of 2008!

NOTE:
As information becomes available, we will attempt to post the trends and indexes as soon as possible.
Information is posted from what we believe are reliable sources.
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[Udog]

Daily Sports Roundup: July 16

Baron Davis bolted Golden State to sign with the Clippers. Elton Brand parted ways with the Clippers for a cushy job in Philadelphia. So who has a better shot at winning it all?

The Vegas oddsmakers think it's Brand and the Sixers. Philly finished 40-42 last season, and slipped into the playoffs as the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference standings. That was good progress for the franchise, who were still trying to move on from the Allen Iverson era. Still, the Sixers by no means looked like a legit contender.

Enter Brand, who should provide a real boost for the team this season - assuming he can stay healthy. Philadelphia still isn't up with the elites of the conference on the NBA futures list, but bettors are definitely starting to take notice. After opening at a line of just 40/1 odds to win the NBA title in the '08/09 season the Sixers are now at only 20/1 odds.

And what about Davis and the Clippers? A Davis-Brand combo would have at least put Los Angeles close to the playoff picture in the tough Western Conference, but with just one star on the squad their chances aren't nearly as good. Still, all the drama at least got the Clippers noticed, and their odds for this year have improved from 75/1 to 50/1.

The Warriors are going to miss Davis, but they at least added to their roster by bringing in former Clipper Corey Maggette. Golden State managed to finish 48-34 last season, but that still wasn't good enough to get them into the playoffs (they were two games back of Denver for the No. 8 seed). The Warriors' title odds have gone from 30/1 to 35/1.

Also making an offseason splash have been the Raptors and the Pacers, who swapped Jermaine O'Neal for T.J. Ford. Toronto is hoping that O'Neal can stay healthy and team up with Chris Bosh in a formidable front court. Indiana is hoping that Ford can stay healthy and become their leader in the back court. The Raptors' title odds have improved from 25/1 to just 20/1, while the Pacers have slipped from 50/1 to only 60/1.

The biggest mover on the Vegas odds list, though, has been the Bucks. Milwaukee dealt Yi Jianlian and Bobby Simmons to the Nets in exchange for Richard Jefferson, and they no longer seem to be interested in getting rid of Michael Redd. The Bucks opened way back at 150/1 odds to win the title, but their moves now have them at 75/1.

Of course, that's still a long way from contender status, and the Celtics and Lakers continue to lead the pack on the Vegas odds list. Both Boston and Los Angeles are pegged at 3/1 to be crowned the '08/09 champs, with the Pistons, Hornets, and Spurs all at 7/1. The Suns and Jazz follow at 10/1 odds, with the Cavaliers just back at 12/1.

If you're looking to take in some real hoops action on Wednesday, however, you'll have to settle for either Summer League highlights or a couple of Eastern Conference WNBA matinees. The Sky and Shock will meet in Detroit in a 12:00pm ET contest on Wednesday afternoon, with the Dream and Fever then tipping off in Indiana at 1:00pm.

[Udog]

WNBA
Long Sheet


Note: We will repost if "Top Trends" sections update.


Wednesday, July 16


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CHICAGO (6 - 13) at DETROIT (14 - 7) - 7/16/2008, 12:00 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
DETROIT is 6-3 against the spread versus CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
DETROIT is 7-2 straight up against CHICAGO over the last 3 seasons
5 of 9 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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ATLANTA (2 - 19) at INDIANA (10 - 9) - 7/16/2008, 1:00 PM
There are no Top Trends with records of significance that apply to this game.

Head-to-Head Series History
INDIANA is 1-0 against the spread versus ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
INDIANA is 1-0 straight up against ATLANTA over the last 3 seasons
1 of 1 games in this series have gone UNDER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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[Udog]

WNBA


Wednesday, July 16


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Trend Sheet
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12:00 PM CHICAGO vs. DETROIT
Chicago is 1-6 SU in its last 7 games on the road
Chicago is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games when playing Detroit
Detroit is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games
Detroit is 13-6 SU in its last 19 games


1:00 PM ATLANTA vs. INDIANA
Atlanta is 2-19 SU in its last 21 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Atlanta's last 6 games
Indiana is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Indiana is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 games

[pm530]

Six-pack for Wednesday

My six favorite baseball mascots

6) Mr Met-- How does he get his big head into the subway?

5) Billy Marlin-- Only mascot to have its head stolen.

4) Bernie Brewer-- Was higher on list when he slid inta a mug of beer at old County Stadium; they are the Brewers, after all.

3) Baxter-- Youngest of the mascots; its not easy being the mascot of a team in the desert.

2) Mariner Moose-- Recovered from broken ankle when he crashed into Kingdome fence during failed stunt-- tough.

1) Philly Phanatic-- By far, the best mascot. Not even close.

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[pm530]

Wednesday's List of 13: Quick impressions of All-Star Game

13) So its like 1:20am and this game is in the 14th inning, and all the power goes off where I am; had to listen to last inning on a transistor radio, with Dan Shulman/Dave Campbell on an ESPN station. Like going back to my childhood. A little strange.

12) There had to be lot of relieved people when the AL won; no one wanted another tie. How would they have determined home field for the World Series? Rock-paper-scissors?

11) Managers in Arizona and Tampa couldn't have been happy when their aces got into the game, after tossing 100+ pitches in Sunday's game. Especially with Kazmir having injury history

10) Seattle lost a game to the Tigers a few weeks back when a backup catcher had to pitch the 15th inning, because they ran out of pitchers; would they have let a position player do that in an All-Star Game? Luckily, we'll never know.

9) Bad night to be Dan Uggla. Tough night for a good player.

8) Strange thing-- AL had bags full, no one out after his errors, but they never scored. Terrific pitching by Aaron Cook.

7) This is first time since 1977 that Cubs, White Sox are both in first place at All-Star break. Neither won the division that year.

6) If Mets make the World Series, they can thank closer Billy Wagner for not having home field edge; he blew the save in 8th inning when Longoria golfed double down leftfield line.

5) How about Russell Martin? He uses a catcher's mitt like its a damn first baseman's glove. Great play tagging Morneau out.

4) American League is now 11-0-1 in last 12 All-Star games.

3) Is there a network TV rule that Derek Jeter has to be shown on camera every 90 seconds? Give the guy a rest.

2) Next winter's outdoor NHL game is Red Wings at Wrigley against the Blackhawks. Weird thing is I don't think they can do this in Montreal or Toronto-- no outdoor arena big enough.

1) If the game had gone much further, they should have let the guy who threw HR Derby for Josh Hamilton be official pitcher for both teams. There would have been some runs then.

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