Da Bum's 2014 NBA Playoff Best Bets- News,Stats-Trends !

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NBA

Friday, June 6


Spurs cover Game 1, eighth straight home win by 15 or more

The San Antonio Spurs turned up the Heat on Miami, literally, on their way to a 110-95 win and an easy cover.

The air conditioning broke down at the AT&T Center and LeBron James missed seven minutes of the fourth quarter due to leg cramps and the Spurs took advantage.

San Antonio, who closed as 5.5-point favorites, trailed by seven with under 10 minutes remaining, but when James left the game the Spurs took over. The outscored the Heat 39-17 in the final frame, including a 16-3 run to end the game.

The Spurs have won eight home games in a row by at least 15 points.


Spurs' series price improves after taking Game 1

The San Antonio Spurs took Game 1 of the NBA Finals 110-95 over the Miami Heat and the Spurs odds to win their fifth title in the Popovich-Duncan era improved.

At Sportsbook.ag, the Spurs are now listed at -220 to claim the Larry O'Brien trophy at the end of the series. The Heat are now listed at +185 to three-peat as champions.

The heat have been in this position before though. In Miami's Big-Three era, the Heat have lost Game 1 of a playoff series five times and each time they have come back to win the series, including last season's finals.


Heat F LeBron James, day-to-day

James left Thursday's game with an undisclosed injury and his return is questionable.

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Recap: Heat 95, Spurs 110

Date: June 05, 2014 9:00 PM EDT


SAN ANTONIO (AP) - 'Beat the Heat!' had a whole new meaning in a sweltering start to the NBA Finals.

The San Antonio Spurs handled the conditions, and the team, and it sure helped when a suffering LeBron James couldn't make it to the finish.

Tim Duncan had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and the Spurs beat the Heat 110-95 on Thursday night in Game 1 at steamy AT&T Center.

With an air conditioning failure making it feel like a sauna and causing James to battle cramps that knocked him out of the decisive stretch, the Spurs pulled away to win the opener of the first finals rematch since 1998.

'After I came out of the game, they kind of took off,' James said. 'And it was frustrating sitting out and not be able to help our team.'

Manu Ginobili had 16 points and 11 assists, Tony Parker added 19 points and eight assists and the Spurs - 6 for 6 in NBA Finals Game 1s - shot 59 percent.

'Just very proud of my team,' Parker said. 'We kept believing, kept pushing. We know it's not easy.'

They host Game 2 on Sunday - likely in cooler conditions.

James finished with 25 points but played only 33 minutes, and Miami was outscored 36-17 in the fourth quarter.

'It sucks not being out there for your team, especially at this point in the season,' James said.

Dwyane Wade had 19 points and Chris Bosh added 18, but the Heat wilted in temperatures that soared to 90 degrees in the second half.

'It was tough on both teams,' Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. 'They were pretty dead. We tried to get guys in and out. ... It was really hot out there.'

James, who had cramping issues two years ago in the finals, had to ask for a break in the fourth quarter and was getting treatment during a 15-4 Spurs run that turned around the game.

James came back in and made a basket that cut it to two points with about 4 minutes left, but couldn't even run back on defense, promptly putting his hand up and lingering at the baseline until help arrived to take him off for good.

'I think it felt like a punch in the gut when you see your leader limping like that back to the bench,' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said.

Danny Green followed with 3-pointer to trigger what became a 16-3 run to end the game.

'You could see the heat was getting to a lot of guys. If I played as many minutes as he did, I'd probably be cramping up, too,' said Green, who scored 11 of his 13 points in the final quarter.

The crowd chanted 'Beat the Heat! Beat the Heat!' late in the game, which was just what the fans themselves were trying to do.

The Spurs said an electrical failure for the power that runs the air conditioning system had occurred. They apologized for the inconvenience but also seemed to poke fun of it, playing songs with 'hot' in the lyrics over the sound system.

Fans were trying to cool themselves on the hot night, a reminder of what it was like in the old Boston Garden when the Celtics and Lakers got together.

The Heat are the first team since those Celtics of 1984-87 to get to four straight finals. They are well-rested after a relatively easy roll through the Eastern Conference playoffs, a key to keeping Wade healthy entering the finals.

James was the MVP of the series last year when the Heat rallied from five points down in the final half-minute of regulation to win Game 6 in overtime, then won a Game 7 that was close the whole way for their second straight championship.

A rematch was widely anticipated and was close almost throughout. The Heat led 86-79 after Bosh's four-point play with 9:38 remaining in the game, but it was all San Antonio from there, and Wade said there were problems even beyond James' absence.

'Obviously, tonight we would've loved to have him in there to finish the game, but we've got to finish the game better,' Wade said.

The Spurs ended up extending their NBA-record streak to eight straight home playoff wins by 15 or more points. Their roster is filled with international players, such as Parker and Ginobili, who both said they were used to playing without air conditioning overseas.

Bosh, scoreless in Game 7 last year, scored Miami's first five points in the Heat's 7-2 start. But Ginobili came off the bench firing, making consecutive 3-pointers for an 18-13 lead.

Wade and James combined for six straight points before Ginobili made another 3, and Patty Mills added one to close the first-quarter scoring and give the Spurs a 26-20 advantage.

The Spurs committed nine turnovers while managing only 20 points in the third quarter, and Miami led 78-74 heading to the fourth.

Notes: James joined Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant as the only players with 4,000 points and 1,000 assists in the postseason. ... Ray Allen moved past Bryant and Derek Fisher into second place on the career list with 49 3-pointers in the NBA Finals. Robert Horry, a former Spurs forward, is the leader with 56.

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LeBron recovering after Game 1 cramps

June 6, 2014


SAN ANTONIO (AP) - If the NBA Finals resumed Friday, there would be no way LeBron James could play.

There's no game until Sunday.

And James plans to be ready by then.

With his gait still affected by severe cramping and dehydration, and feeling the effects of a sleepless night brought on by several trips to the bathroom - an unavoidable drawback of having his body filled with fluids - James insisted he will play when the Miami Heat and San Antonio Spurs get together for Game 2 of the finals.

''I'll be in uniform on Sunday,'' James said Friday. ''I should be 100 percent on Sunday. Obviously I'm going to take it light today. Training staff said I should take it light today. Give the body another day to recover. Tomorrow I should be back on my feet full go - and I got all day Sunday to get ready for Sunday night.

When he was there on Thursday, the Heat were right there as well.

When he was done, so were the Heat.

Up by seven at one point in the fourth quarter, Miami fell apart in the final minutes and James' ugly departure could have easily had something to do with that. San Antonio's lead was 94-92 after James scored with 4:09 left; he was out of the game for good and unable to move 10 seconds later. From that point, the Spurs finished on a 16-3 run.

Heat coach Erik Spoelstra made no excuses Friday, simply saying the two-time defending NBA champions needed to close the deal, James or no James.

''He's a competitor at the highest level,'' Spoelstra said. ''So it was killing him being on that sideline, but you also have your health to look after. Look, 99.9 (percent) of people have never pushed their body to that level, at that level where you're past the point where your tank is empty and your body shuts down. For a competitor and for the best player in the game at this level to constantly push his body past that point, I think, is incredibly admirable.''

Crampgate, as Spoelstra called it, was still the hot topic of the finals Friday.

Among developments:

- Spoelstra revealed James took seven anti-cramping pills during the game.

- The air conditioning was working again at AT&T Center and the NBA said a faulty breaker caused the breakdown. Arena events this weekend, including a Friday concert and Saturday WNBA game, were proceeding as scheduled.

- Gatorade issued an apology over some tweets that made light of James' cramps. James is an endorser of Powerade, a rival sports drink.

- NBA Commissioner Adam Silver told The Associated Press that he spoke with James' agent Rich Paul and manager Maverick Carter to check in on the health of the four-time MVP.

''They both assured me that he was all right,'' Silver said. ''We all agreed that it was an unfortunate incident.''

Silver said the league is satisfied that there was no chicanery involved.

''It's the nature of live sporting events,'' Silver said. ''It's, for better or worse, part of the drama of these games.''

The Heat used nine players Thursday night and guard Dwyane Wade said he'd like to see the rotation expand in Game 2.

''This time of the year you can't leave anything to chance,'' Wade said. ''I look forward to us using more guys next game, keep guys fresher.''

James has dealt with cramps in big games before, including Game 4 of the 2012 NBA Finals against Oklahoma City and Game 3 of this season's Eastern Conference finals against Indiana. He's been tested as to why he cramps; doctors, he said, have no answers. Heat trainers are typically not available to media, but Spoelstra said the team takes all necessary measures to keep James healthy.

''Maybe in his case, his ability to mentally push himself harder than the next guy just pushes his muscles more to the extreme,'' said Dr. James Gladstone, the co-chief of sports medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. ''In some ways it's almost commendable that he pushes himself that hard.''

Spoelstra said he doesn't compare Thursday to past cramping issues. The arena temperature made for an abnormal night.

''It's like trying to play an NBA basketball game in a hot yoga environment. It's not ideal,'' Spoelstra said. ''We're not making excuses for it, we're trying to adapt on the fly and it was at an extreme level and he was competing at an extremely high level. The only other answer would have been to pace himself, and he doesn't have that in his DNA.''

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NBA
Dunkel

Miami at San Antonio
The Heat look to bounce back from their 110-95 loss in Game 1 and come into Sunday's contest with a 5-1 ATS record in their last 6 games after allowing 100 points or more in their previous game. Miami is the pick (+4 1/2) according to Dunkel, which has the Spurs favored by only 1 1/2. Dunkel Pick: Miami (+4 1/2). Here are all of today's playoff picks.

SUNDAY, JUNE 8

Game 703-704: Miami at San Antonio (8:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: Miami 127.524; San Antonio 128.979
Dunkel Line & Total: San Antonio by 1 1/2; 202
Vegas Line & Total: San Antonio by 4 1/2; 198 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Miami (+4 1/2); Over




NBA
Short Sheet

Sunday, June 8

Miami Heat at San Antonio Spurs, 9:00 ET
Miami: 9-1 UNDER in road games after a combined score of 205 points or more 2 straight games
San Antonio: 83-57 ATSafter playing a home game




NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Sunday, June 8

Miami was -15 in 15:07 that Lebron James sat out in Game 1, including last 3:59 when he cramped up. Air conditioning is supposed to be fixed for this game. Heat is 4-4 on road in playoffs, 0-2 when getting points; they're 1-3 in last four visits here. Home team won 12 of last 15 series games. Eight of last ten Miami games went over total; six of last nine San Antonio games stayed under. Spurs won last nine home games, are 10-1 at home in playoffs, covering last eight home games. San Antonio made 14-16 from floor, 6-6 from arc in decisive 4th quarter- thats an eFG% of 106.3%, which is exceptionally good.

Over is 49-36 in playoffs this season.
Favorites are 35-50 in playoffs this season, 11-2 in last 13 games.




NBA

Sunday, June 8

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Trend Report
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8:00 PM
MIAMI vs. SAN ANTONIO
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Miami's last 5 games when playing on the road against San Antonio
Miami is 3-16 SU in its last 19 games when playing on the road against San Antonio
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of San Antonio's last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 4 of San Antonio's last 5 games when playing at home against Miami


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NBA

Sunday, June 8

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Game of the Day: Heat at Spurs
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Miami Heat at San Antonio Spurs (-4.5, 198.5)

Spurs lead series 1-0

The air-conditioning system in San Antonio has been fixed and LeBron James attempts to move past a dreadful fourth-quarter experience as the Miami Heat seek to bounce back from a Game 1 loss when they visit the Spurs in Sunday’s Game 2 of the NBA Finals. James experienced severe cramping and dehydration issues and missed most of the final 7 1/2 minutes as temperatures soared above 90 degrees due to an electrical malfunction at AT&T Center. San Antonio closed with a 31-9 spurt for a convincing 110-95 victory.

James was affected much more than any other player in Thursday’s oven-like conditions and told reporters on Friday that he received 2 1/2 bags of intravenous fluids afterward. “For obvious reasons, I was angry, I was disappointed in myself,” James said. “I did everything that I needed to do to prepare for this game, prepare for this moment and to feel like my body failed me, I was angry in the fact that I couldn’t help my team get over the hump.” James departed with 3:59 remaining after he scored a basket to pull the Heat within 94-92 and the Spurs went on a game-ending 16-3 surge after he departed.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, ABC

LINE HISTORY: The Spurs opened at -4 and quickly moved to -4.5. The total opened at 199.5 and has been bet down to 198.5.

INJURY REPORT: Miami: LeBron James is listed as probable after suffering leg cramps in Game 1. San Antonio: N/A.

ABOUT THE HEAT: James scored 25 points in 33 minutes before exiting, and he first became concerned about the conditions in the first half. He loaded up on fluids at halftime but his body was unable to hold up and he was in the game for only 34 seconds over the final 7:31 before heading to the locker room prior to the end of the contest. Miami coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters the Spurs should be fined if the situation happens again. “We’re not making any excuses for it,” Spoelstra said. “It was an extreme, unfortunate situation for both teams. It probably won’t happen again, ever.”

ABOUT THE SPURS: While James couldn’t hold up in the heat, San Antonio veteran Tim Duncan thrived with 21 points on 9-of-10 shooting to go with 10 rebounds. The 38-year-old power forward played 33 minutes and operated at will in the interior. “Every once in a while, I get a jump shot from 15 to 18 feet, but mostly my effective range is in there right now,” Duncan said during Friday’s media availability. “I’m going to pick-and-roll and try to get open shots and try to take advantage of the rotation if they’re trapping.” Duncan shot 49 percent against Miami in the 2013 Finals while averaging 18.9 points and 12.1 rebounds.

TRENDS:

* Favorite is 4-0 ATS in the last four meetings.
* Home team is 4-0 ATS in the last four meetings.
* Over is 4-1 in the last five meetings in San Antonio.
* Heat are 1-4 ATS in the last five meetings in San Antonio.

CONSENSUS: Fifty-two percent of the wagers are on the Heat +4.5.


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NBA

Sunday, June 8

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Heat – Spurs #2: The Game Inside the Game
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The focus here through the playoffs has been to find those key links to winning that are not always common in the marketplace, edges from game flows and matchups that are not built into the betting lines. But the LeBron James storyline from Game #1 told the tale, and despite that story blinking like neon across the sports mediaverse, it is where we have to begin in building the foundation for Game #2.

First there should be an acknowledgement of something that has been written about here on several occasions in recent weeks – despite Miami going for a “three-peat”, and having the best player in the sport, the Heat do not have a great following in the current market. This series opener was more of the same – there were San Antonio -5.5’s showing in several key precincts prior to tipoff, matching the highest underdog price Miami had received in the 377 games that James has played for the franchise.

So what did some of the first stores to open for Game #2 do? Anticipating “Zig Zag” play showing on the Heat, -4 was the common opener, and one big shop came in at -3.5. That did not last long, with San Antonio money even creating a few -5’s already for Sunday.

Now the challenge – just what is the proper score to etch in stone as being the most predictive result from Thursday? Yes, Miami did have the lead when James first left with 7:31 remaining, only to return for a lone offensive possession on which he scored, but over his 32:53 of court time the two teams were even. Would Miami have held on with a healthy James? That is where the speculations begin, but we do know one thing that is nearly a metaphysical certainty – the final stages of that game absolutely would have been different. It would have been almost impossible for the Heat defense and rebounding to have been worse.

Miami got a stop on the first defensive set after James left, a miss by Manu Ginobli that Ray Allen rebounded with 6:48 remaining. That was the last rebound the Heat were to get. San Antonio scored 26 points over the final 6:07, only failing to score on a trip that resulted in a turnover, making 10 of 11 shots, six of them from 3-point range. Of the 10 makes, nine were assisted. There were six available rebounds, and the Spurs got all of them.

Now contrast that to the rest of the game. San Antonio had 21 turnovers, and a 1:1 Assist-to-TO ratio in the 40:29 prior to the James exit, and had only made 7-19 triples. Danny Green had been 0-5 from the field, but scored 11 points on 4-4 (three triples) the rest of the way. Is there anything intelligent to be taken away from the closing stretch, enough so to bet your money on? Doubtful.

So what were the keys when the real matchup was taking place? This series will turn on the efficiency and passing of the San Antonio offense vs. the activity of the Miami defense in the passing lanes. The Heat were successful often in taking the ball way (14 steals, none after James left), but that does mean some gambling, and the Spurs make you pay for that – they moved the ball so well that a litany of wide open shots were created, of which they knocked down a sizzling 40-68 (they were above 50 percent even when James did play). Ginobli and Tony Parker combined for more assists than the Miami team, while Boris Diaw had more than any individual Heat player.

That is the battle. Can the Miami defense take the Spurs out of their rhythm, an efficient flow that has now led to at least 104 points in every game of a current 9-0 home playoff run (yes, Thursday’s 110 comes with an *). But in trying to grade that element from Game #1, it only comes up as an “incomplete”.

As for the Total, the teams will be hard-pressed to match that 77-146 shooting, especially the 25-54 from 3-point range. But both want to push the pace on offense (there were 39 fast break points on Thursday), and if the game is going to be closer there is a much greater potential for end-game scrambling (not only was the Miami defense a disaster down the stretch, there was only a Mario Chalmers triple over the final 4:00 on offense). And with the AC assuredly fixed for Sunday, it should mean fresher legs for both teams in the second half, especially with both sides coming in extremely well rested (no player got to 34:00 in Game #1).

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NBA

Sunday, June 8

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NBA roundup: Jazz step outside franchise to hire Snyder
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The Utah Jazz introduced new coach Quin Snyder in a press conference Saturday.

Snyder, the former Missouri coach, spent last season as an assistant coach with the Atlanta Hawks. Snyder signed a three-year contract with a team option for a fourth year, according to reports. He replaces Tyrone Corbin, who was not offered a new contract after the season.

Snyder is the Jazz's eighth head coach and the first hired outside the organization since 1979.

"For a coach to have the loyalty of the ownership group, you feel you don't need to skip steps," Snyder said. "It's a process and sometimes there is pressure to accelerate that process but we want to build something that will last."

---Miami Heat forward LeBron James returned to practice Saturday at the San Antonio Spurs' practice facility.

James was forced out of Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday due to cramps stemming from dehydration. San Antonio's AT&T center heated up during the game when the air conditioning stopped working. James will be in Sunday's lineup for Game 2. The air conditioning in the arena has since been repaired.

"I'm doing well, doing a lot better," James said. "The soreness is starting to get out. I'm feeling better than I did yesterday and with another day, I should feel much better tomorrow."

---Memphis Grizzlies forward James Johnson was arrested Saturday morning for domestic assault causing bodily harm, according to Memphis TV station Fox 13.

Johnson had a domestic dispute with his wife at the couple's home about 2 a.m. Johnson's wife called police saying that he "hit her in the face and choked her," according to the Shelby County sheriff's office. She also told police that Johnson punched a hole in their bathroom door where she was holding their child. Officers said the victim gave the couple's baby to her mother. Johnson then pushed his wife's mother and took the baby before fleeing the scene. He later returned and was taken to jail.

Johnson averaged 7.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 18 minutes per game for the Grizzlies this past season. He will be an unrestricted free agent in July.

---The Los Angeles Lakers decided to eliminate Derek Fisher as a candidate for their heading coaching vacancy because they want someone with previous NBA coaching experience, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The Lakers think highly of Fisher and believe he will be a good NBA coach or executive in the future but changed course in their methodical search to replace Mike D'Antoni, who stepped down at the end of the season.

Fisher has also been reported as a candidate for the New York Knicks' job. Fisher helped the Lakers win five NBA championships in the 2000s as point guard under then-coach Phil Jackson, now the Knicks' president.

Fisher averaged 5.2 points per game for the Oklahoma City Thunder this season. He will be 40 in August but has not made a decision about whether he will retire or play another season. He recently expressed a desire to coach at some point in the future.

---The Cleveland Cavaliers intend to offer point guard Kyrie Irving a maximum contract extension of five years for $90 million, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

July 1 is the first day the Cavaliers can offer Irving an extension when the free agency period starts. The Cavs are also looking to hire a new coach to replace the fired Mike Brown. Afterward, general manager David Griffin reportedly wants to discuss Irving's future with the new coach.

Irving averaged 20.8 points on 43 percent shooting, 6.1 assists, 3.6 rebounds and 35.2 minutes over 71 games this season.

---The Cavaliers contacted Maccabi Tel Aviv coach David Blatt about their coaching vacancy, according to multiple reports.

Blatt also coached Russia to a bronze medal in the 2012 London Olympics. Blatt, who is American-born, guided Maccabi to the European championship with a roster that included seven former U.S. college players.

Blatt is one of several candidates who have spoken to the Cavaliers but he has not been formally interviewed. The Cavs have been methodical in looking for a replacement for Mike Brown, whom they fired a month ago after a 33-49 season.

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Game 2 - Heat at Spurs

June 7, 2014

Game 2 of the NBA Finals takes place Sunday from San Antonio as the Spurs will look to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

On Thursday, San Antonio pulled away from Miami in the final minutes of Game 1 and captured a 110-95 victory at home in an outcome many believe was changed due to an arena malfunction. An electrical failure for the power that runs the AC system in the AT&T Center occurred, which created temperatures in the nineties inside the building.

Miami’s LeBron James suffered the most from the situation and was unable to play in the final 3:59 of the game because of cramps. After making a layup and cutting the Spurs’ lead to two points (92-94), LeBron had to be helped off the court. Sure enough, San Antonio quickly took advantage of his absence and closed the game with a 16-3 run, 12 of the points coming from 3-point land.

While some conspiracy theorists believe the AC malfunction was deliberate, it should be noted that James has had a history of cramps in his career, including Game 4 of the 2012 NBA Finals against Oklahoma City and Game 3 of this season's Eastern Conference finals against Indiana.

What we do know is that LeBron will return Sunday and be ready to go. ''I'll be in uniform on Sunday,'' James said Friday. ''I should be 100 percent on Sunday.”

Oddsmakers at Sportsbook.ag opened San Antonio as a four-point favorite for Game 2 and the number has jumped to 4 ½ at the offshore outfit.

Prior to LeBron running out of the gas, Miami outscored San Antonio 29-20 in the third quarter of Game 1 and led by as many as seven points in the fourth quarter. LeBron finished with 25 points in 33 minutes while Dwyane Wade (19) and Chris Bosh (17) chipped in for 36 points.

Even though Ray Allen added a big 16 points off the bench, the backcourt duo of Mario Chalmers and Norris Cole only combined for five points. Chalmers is often overlooked on this squad but the Heat need him to play well and his production is a key component to their success. In last year’s finals, the former Kansas standout averaged 14.8 points per game in the four wins and just 5 PPG in the losses. In Game 1, Chalmers was called for five fouls and finished with three points in 17 minutes.

The loss of LeBron at the end of Game 1 was evident but San Antonio backers can argue that its team didn’t even bring it’s “A” game and they still won by 15 points. The Spurs turned the ball over 22 times, which was well above their season average (14.1). Also, you can’t ignore the fact that small forward Kawhi Leonard was missing for the first 42 minutes of the game and even though he hit a pair of 3-pointers late, the game was already decided at that point.

So how did they win by 15? It’s simple, the NBA is a “make-or-miss” league and when San Antonio wins, it’s all about the offense, which was the case in Game 1. The Spurs shot 58.8 percent (40-of-68) from the field, which includes 13-of-25 (52%) from 3-point land.

Most of the damage came in the final 12 minutes as the Spurs shot 14-of-16 from the floor, outscoring the Heat by 19 points (36-17). During this run, San Antonio was 6-of-6 from downtown and according to the analytics, five of those shots were uncontested.

The Spurs won the battle in the paint as well, outscoring the Heat 48-36 and they grabbed more rebounds (39-29) as well. Tim Duncan led the Spurs with 21 points and 10 rebounds.
NBA expert Kevin Rogers wasn’t surprised by the outcome of Game 1, rather the finish.

He said, “The Spurs did extend their remarkable streak to eight consecutive home wins by at least 15 points, but that number was benefited by San Antonio going on an 11-0 run in the final two minutes of a four-point contest in Game 1. The Heat missed plenty of open 3-pointers in the opener, while not being able to close out a seven-point lead in the fourth quarter.”

Miami made 12-of-29 (41.4%) 3-pointers in Game 1 and while the percentage wasn’t poor by any means, but you could argue that they took too many attempts from the outside. The Heat thrive on getting to the free throw line and they were just 9-of-11 (81.8%) on Thursday, which is less than half of their season average (23).

As Rogers mentioned, San Antonio has been a great team to bet at home in the playoffs. Overall the Spurs are 10-1 (8-3) in this year’s postseason, the lone loss coming in Game 2 of the first round to the Mavericks (92-113).

Miami has gone 4-4 both SU and ATS on the road in the postseason and the point-spread hasn’t mattered. If you like the Heat in Game 2, a money-line play would be justified based on these trends.

Rogers points out another solid trend that could have you backing Miami on Sunday. He explained, “During the Big Three era in Miami, the Heat has never trailed a playoff series, 2-0. In the past five opportunities after losing the series opener, the Heat has won and covered, including the last round against the Pacers. It’s hard to ignore Miami’s 12-0 SU and 11-1 ATS record the last 12 playoff games off a loss, with the lone ATS defeat coming in the epic comeback against San Antonio in last summer’s Game 6 of the NBA Finals.”

Bettors believing the Heat will even up the series and eventually win should take a look at the adjusted series price. Sportsbook.ag has Miami as a 9/5 (Bet $100 to win $180) underdog, while the Spurs are 1/2 favorites (Bet $100 to win $50).

Make a note that Miami lost Game 1 of the NBA Finals the past two years to the Thunder and Spurs and still came back to win the best-of-seven matchups. Ironically, they beat Dallas in Game 1 of the 2010-11 NBA Finals and lost the series in six games.

Despite the hot shooting from 3-point land by both clubs in Game 1, oddsmakers didn’t tweak the ‘over/under’ for Game 2. The total is hovering between 198 and 199 points.

Including Game 1, six of the last 10 meetings between the pair have gone ‘over’ the number. In this year’s playoffs, Miami has been a great ‘over’ bet (12-4) and San Antonio has leaned to the high side as well (11-8).

If you like San Antonio to win and cover in Game 2 and you’re looking to back an in-game parlay, the ‘over’ would likely be your second-leg. In its last 10 wins/covers in the playoffs, the Spurs-Over combination has connected at a 70 percent (7-3) clip.

Game 2 tips at 9:05 p.m. ET and ABC will be providing national coverage.

The series heads to South Florida for Game 3 on Tuesday and Game 4 on Thursday.

[StarDust Bum]

3-pointers are wild for Heat and Spurs

June 7, 2014


SAN ANTONIO (AP) - The teams with the best 3-point percentage so far in these playoffs are San Antonio and Miami, so it might seem logical to think that the Spurs and Heat love the long-range game.

It would also be wrong.

''I hate it,'' Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said of the 3.

''We are not just a perimeter team,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra insisted.

Love it or hate it, the Spurs and Heat know how to use it, anyway. The 3-pointer is getting fired more than ever these days, and there's some easy correlations to draw between San Antonio and Miami being good from long range and being the last two teams standing on the NBA playoff bracket for the second straight year.

San Antonio - which was the league's most accurate team from 3-point range during the regular season, the third time in four years that it's held that distinction - is shooting an NBA-best 40 percent from beyond the arc so far in the playoffs. Miami is right behind the Spurs, shooting 39.7 percent. It seems likely that both teams will be looking to add to those totals Sunday night, when the Spurs host the Heat in Game 2 of the NBA Finals.

''To me it's not basketball, but you've got to use it,'' Popovich said Saturday. ''If you don't use it, you're in big trouble. But you sort of feel like it's cheating. You know, like two points, that's what you get when you make a basket. Now you get three, so you've got to deal with it. I don't think there's anybody who is not dealing with it.''

He's right. It's an absolute staple of the NBA game now, more than ever.

Teams shot just under 53,000 3-pointers this season, smashing the NBA yearlong record set last season by nearly 4,000 attempts. It's becoming nearly as prevalent as the free throw; teams shot 1.09 free throws for every 3-pointer tried this season, as opposed to the 1.62-1 ratio in that department merely a decade ago.

''Pop's a pretty smart guy,'' said Spurs guard Danny Green, who set a record for most 3s made during a Finals series a year ago against the Heat. ''Even though he hates it, he knows it's a thing that you need to be successful in this league.''

So Popovich studied the numbers, as has Spoelstra, as has everyone else in the league.

The corner 3-pointer - like the Ray Allen one that kept San Antonio from winning the title last season - is all the rage in the NBA these days, and it's a huge part of the game plans drawn up in San Antonio and Miami.

''The analytics, people really study this stuff now, stuff is broken down that I don't even understand,'' said Atlanta's Kyle Korver, one of the league's best 3-point shooters. ''I think it is practiced more, it is shot more efficiently than it was 10, 20 years ago. It has just become a real weapon. Every team needs it with the way the NBA is going. ... So much of the game is about spacing. And to have good spacing you've got to have good shooting.''

The Spurs and Heat have both.

San Antonio was 13 for 25 from 3-point range in Game 1; Miami was 12 for 29. A year ago the teams combined for 298 3-point tries in their seven-game series; at their current pace, they'd fire off 378 if this series also goes the maximum distance.

''I'm sure Pop doesn't like it, but he understands it. There's a difference,'' Miami forward Shane Battier said. ''You don't have to love everything that you do. There's a reason why they're No. 1 in valuing the corner 3 over the last 10 years. Even though he may not like it, he values it.''

The same can be said for the Heat on the value-it front.

In the first two seasons of the LeBron James-Dwyane Wade-Chris Bosh era in Miami, the Heat shot 17.4 3-pointers per game, shooting just under 36 percent. Over the last two seasons, they've shot more and better - 22.1 3's per game, and a smidge over 38 percent.

Spoelstra, in a word, said ''pain'' of losing the finals in 2011 forced the change in approach.

''We had to make some adjustments offensively,'' Spoelstra said. ''We are not just a perimeter team, we just do it often times inverted, where our perimeter players are in the paint and sometimes our bigs are outside. I've talked about it ad nauseum. We had to look at our team and personnel in a different lens, and it required change. Otherwise it was going to be pain again.''

[StarDust Bum]

Spurs try to drop Heat into unfamiliar hole

June 7, 2014


SAN ANTONIO (AP) - The San Antonio Spurs are on an unprecedented postseason roll that not even a boatload of turnovers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals could stop.

They probably ruined Tim Duncan's hopes of a career change, though.

Duncan wants to be a point guard, coach Gregg Popovich revealed Saturday, a wish that won't be granted. But Duncan would gladly settle for another championship, and the Spurs would be halfway there by beating Miami on Sunday night in Game 2.

The Spurs have won eight straight postseason home games by 15 or more points, an NBA record, but know as well as anyone that a one-game lead means nothing against the Heat.

''That's why I think we can't be satisfied,'' said point guard Tony Parker, who isn't worried about losing his job to Duncan. ''Because we was in the same situation and we know they can win here, and so we just have to go out there and play our game and try to win this one. I think it's a big game for the series.''

LeBron James expects to be fully ready for the Heat, who also dropped the opener last year in the finals against the Spurs, and in 2012 to Oklahoma City. Miami is 5-0 in series with James when dropping the opener, rebounding to win Game 2 every time.

A 2-0 deficit would surely bring loads of unwanted attention to what's already one of the most scrutinized players and teams in sports.

''I'm sure the series would be over from the outside,'' Heat guard Dwyane Wade said, laughing.

''Our focus is on how we can win ballgames and understand in the series it's the first one to four; not the first one to one, not the first one to two, not the first one to three. You win a series by being the first one to four. We understand the journey, we understand the path and what it takes to get there.''

The Heat were in position to win Game 1 before James departed with cramps. The Spurs committed 23 turnovers that not only led to 28 Miami points but also prevented them from getting the ball more often to Duncan, who shot 9 of 10 from the field.

Popovich said Duncan never demands more shots, even when he is in a good rhythm like he was Thursday.

''No, the only thing Timmy has ever demanded is he wants to play the point and he thinks I've held him back,'' Popovich said. ''True story. He thinks he's a point guard.''

Duncan is one of the best power forwards in NBA history but likes to think like a little guy, though he realizes he hurt his chances of getting to actually play the part of one.

''After my five turnovers the other night, I think I took a step back from that,'' he said. ''I don't think that I'm going to be able to step up and fill that role for a little while. But, no, I enjoy getting in the middle of the floor and making decisions and getting the ball to the right place, and that's what a point guard's got to do.''

The Spurs don't need one, not after Parker looked healthy while posting 19 points and eight assists in the opener after missing the second half of the Western Conference finals clincher because of a sore left ankle. He laughed when told that Popovich and Duncan had brought up his teammate's aspirations.

''Are we still talking about that? I can't believe they brought it up in the NBA Finals,'' Parker said. ''It's been a joke that Timmy thinks he's a great quarterback, that he can be a good passer. I disagree with that. I want to keep my spot.''

With Parker seemingly fine, James' health remained the focus. He practiced Saturday and was still receiving treatments in hopes of preventing more cramping. It also should help that the air conditioning inside the AT&T Center has been repaired, but he won't be worrying about that, anyway.

''You can't think about what may happen in the third or fourth quarter. Live in the moment,'' James said. ''And for me, whatever I can give my teammates if it happens again, hopefully I can make an impact while I'm on the floor and that's all that matters to me.''

The Spurs knocked James into a 2-0 hole in the 2007 finals, but that was when he was still in Cleveland. The team James is on now gets out of trouble just as quickly as it gets into it.

''That's why they are two-time champs,'' Parker said. ''To win championships, you have to face adversity and come back from any situation, and they've proved that over the years. That's why it's our job to stay focused and we know it's just one game, and we know they're capable to come back and win at our place.''

[StarDust Bum]

LeBron improving, returns to practice

June 7, 2014


SAN ANTONIO (AP) - Predictably, the first question LeBron James got after walking into the San Antonio Spurs' practice facility on Saturday was about the state of his health.

''Feeling really good,'' James said.

The Miami Heat surely liked that answer.

James returned to the practice floor with the Heat on Saturday, two days after he was forced to leave Game 1 of the NBA Finals because of cramps. He will be in the lineup for Game 2 against the Spurs on Sunday night, when sports' safest bet will be that the temperature inside San Antonio's AT&T Center will be several degrees lower than it was for the series opener.

''I'm doing well, doing a lot better,'' James said before Saturday's workout. ''The soreness is starting to get out. I'm feeling better than I did yesterday and with another day, I should feel much better tomorrow.''

James wasn't going to go crazy on the conditioning front Saturday. The Heat were planning a glorified walkthrough for their practice, and the four-time NBA MVP expected to get some cardio work done by biking and running. He'll also continue getting treatment as part of a recovery regimen that will stretch into Sunday - plus, as one would expect, as many fluids into his system as he can handle.

''He's feeling better, moving around,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. ''Yesterday was all about rest and hydration and building his body back up. Thankfully we had that extra day.''

James left with 3:59 remaining in Game 1 after his body shut down because of the cramps. The Heat trailed by two at that point and wound up losing by 15.

James told teammates before Game 1 that they needed to have a Game 7 approach - and with the Heat down 1-0 in the series, he'll underscore that point again Sunday.

''I want to be able to finish the game but you have to have that mindset, there is no tomorrow,'' James said. ''It's challenging, but for a championship you don't want it easy.''

[StarDust Bum]

Sunday, June 8

Game Score Status Pick Amount

Miami - 8:00 PM ET Miami +4.5 500 TRIPLE PLAY

San Antonio - Over 198.5 500 TRIPLE PLAY

[StarDust Bum]

NBA
Dunkel

San Antonio at Miami
The Heat head back home after knotting up the series with a 98-96 win in Game 2 and face a Spurs team that is 2-7 ATS in its last 9 road games. Miami is the pick (-4) according to Dunkel, which has the Heat favored by 9. Dunkel Pick: Miami (-4). Here are all of today's playoff picks.

TUESDAY, JUNE 10

Game 705-706: San Antonio at Miami (9:00 p.m. EST)
Dunkel Ratings: San Antonio 124.827; Miami 133.581
Dunkel Line & Total: Miami by 9; 193
Vegas Line & Total: Miami by 4; 198 1/2
Dunkel Pick: Miami (-4); Under




NBA
Long Sheet

Tuesday, June 10

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SAN ANTONIO (75 - 27) at MIAMI (67 - 32) - 6/10/2014, 9:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
MIAMI is 40-26 ATS (+11.4 Units) after a non-conference game over the last 2 seasons.
MIAMI is 23-14 ATS (+7.6 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season this season.
SAN ANTONIO is 55-47 ATS (+3.3 Units) in all games this season.
SAN ANTONIO is 132-90 ATS (+33.0 Units) on Tuesday nights since 1996.
SAN ANTONIO is 66-38 ATS (+24.2 Units) against Southeast division opponents since 1996.
SAN ANTONIO is 285-227 ATS (+35.3 Units) after a non-conference game since 1996.
SAN ANTONIO is 44-25 ATS (+16.5 Units) in non-conference games over the last 2 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 25-12 ATS (+11.8 Units) off a upset loss as a favorite over the last 2 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 91-70 ATS (+14.0 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 3 seasons.
SAN ANTONIO is 309-258 ATS (+25.2 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season since 1996.

Head-to-Head Series History
MIAMI is 7-7 against the spread versus SAN ANTONIO over the last 3 seasons
MIAMI is 9-5 straight up against SAN ANTONIO over the last 3 seasons
8 of 14 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons

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NBA
Short Sheet

Tuesday, June 10

NBA Finals Game 3 Betting Trends

San Antonio Spurs
44-25 ATS in non-conference games
13-4 ATS off an upset loss as a home favorite
14-4 ATS off a home loss
28-16 ATS in road games after a game where they failed to cover the spread

Miami Heat
40-26 ATS after a non-conference game
12-4 ATS when playing 5 or less games in 14 days
15-5 ATS at home as a # 2 seed in the playoffs
8-18 ATS in home games off a road win
14-26 ATS at home coming off a road game

NBA Finals Game 3 Over/Under Trends

San Antonio Spurs - Over
56-46 OVER in all games this season
28-15 OVER in road games in non-conference games
19-7 OVER after back to back home games
28-18 OVER coming off an ATS loss

Miami Heat - Over
55-43 OVER in all games
29-20 OVER in all home games
51-37 OVER as a favorite
29-20 OVER as a home favorite
12-4 OVER as a #2 seed in the playoffs
16-5 OVER at home after a close win by 6 points or less

San Antonio Spurs - Under
63-41 UNDER after a close loss by 3 points or less
90-59 UNDER revenging a straight up loss as a home favorite

Miami Heat - Under
4-0 Under after back to back games as an underdog




NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up

Tuesday, June 10

Miami was -24 in 25:31 that Lebron James sat out in first two games; he had 35 points, 10 boards in Game 2 win. Home team won 12 of last 16 series games; Spurs lost seven of last eight visits here, losing last four by 19-3-7-12 points.. Eight of last 11 Miami games went over total; seven of last ten San Antonio games stayed under. Spurs are just 3-5 on road in playoffs, 2-2 vs spread when getting points. Heat is 8-0 SU at home in playoffs, 6-2 vs spread.

Over is 49-37 in playoffs this season.
Favorites are 35-51 in playoffs this season, 11-3 in last 14 games.




NBA

Tuesday, June 10

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Trend Report
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9:00 PM
SAN ANTONIO vs. MIAMI
San Antonio is 1-7 SU in its last 8 games when playing on the road against Miami
The total has gone OVER in 6 of San Antonio's last 9 games when playing Miami
Miami is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing San Antonio
Miami is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games when playing at home against San Antonio


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NBA

Tuesday, June 10

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Game of the Day: Spurs at Heat
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San Antonio Spurs at Miami Heat (-4.5, 197.5)

Series tied 1-1

LeBron James avoided cramping issues in Game 2 and he looks to help Miami take the series lead when the Heat host the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday in Game 3 of the NBA Finals. James received plenty of criticism for the Game 1 situation in which he missed most of the final 7 1/2 minutes but his legs held up fine on Sunday as Miami evened the series. James had 35 points and 10 rebounds in Game 2.

San Antonio played a lackluster fourth quarter in Sunday’s 98-96 loss and a tipping point was when point guard Tony Parker and power forward Tim Duncan each missed two free throws in a nine-second span with the Spurs leading by two points midway through the stanza. James scored the next five points and San Antonio held the lead just once the remainder of the contest. Chris Bosh hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 1:17 left and James finished 14-of-22 shooting in a strong bounce-back performance. “Look, he’s the best player in the game,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters afterward. “He has an incredible way to put his fingerprints on a game.”

TV: 9 p.m. ET, ABC

LINE HISTORY: The Heat opened at -4 and quickly moved to -4.5. The total opened at 198.5 and has been bet down to 197.5.

INJURY REPORT: N/A.

ABOUT THE SPURS: San Antonio closed Game 1 with an impressive 31-9 burst but lacked a finishing kick in Game 2 when it went 6-of-17 shooting in the final quarter. Coach Gregg Popovich noticed issues well before the final 12 minutes and was greatly disappointed with the club’s approach. “We can’t put it in somebody’s hands and have them create everything for us,” Popovich said in his postgame media session. “It’s got to be a group effort and we didn’t do that. That puts a lot of pressure on everything else. It means we’re going to have to be perfect on defense, we can’t miss four free throws in a row, those sort of things.”

ABOUT THE HEAT: Bosh scored 18 points in Game 2 as he was assertive in making sure he got his touches. He not only drained the decisive shot but also threaded a pinpoint pass to guard Dwyane Wade for a layup with 9.4 seconds to give the Heat an insurmountable five-point lead. James was most impressed with some dunks Bosh threw down while being ecstatic about his teammate’s solid all-around game. “He had two dunks that we haven’t seen in a long time, man,” James told reporters. “When he has that mindset, he just mixes it up. He’s the forgotten guy on our team. Shouldn’t be. Obviously, without his aggressiveness, we don’t win.”

TRENDS:

* Favorite is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings
* Under is 13-5 in the last 18 meetings in Miami.
* Heat are 1-5 ATS in their last six vs. Western Conference.
* Spurs are 2-7 ATS in their last nine road games.

CONSENSUS: Fifty-one percent of wagers on consensus on the Heat.



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NBA

Tuesday, June 10

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Spurs-Heat Game 3: The game inside the game
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Game #1 of this series was so much about what LeBron James could not do - play down the stretch. Game #2 was so much about what James could do, and did. But while the superlatives are naturally flying across the sports mediaverse following that performance, there were some unique aspects about how his numbers, and the Miami win, were produced that provide the key starting points in building a Game #3 handicap.

James was good, very good. But perhaps so good that there are parts of the game that may not be recapped properly. One of the most basic tenets of sports handicapping is to properly sort through the conundrum of whether it was “Good Offense or Bad Defense” when points get scored, and that may take us to the heart of the Sunday night result. James was great, the Miami offense was uninspiring, and for a team that allowed 52.9 percent shooting, the Spurs played good defense. That means time to go to work.

If Gregg Popovich was given a tape of every Miami possession that ended with a James shot attempt, but the camera stopped stopped the minute the ball left his hands, Pops would likely have been thrilled with it. James had 22 FG attempts, while only getting to the line for five FT’s, a 4.4:1 ratio far batter than San Antonio could have hoped for – in the regular season it was 1.8:1, and prior to Sunday it had been 1.3:1 in the playoffs. Of the 48 Miami shots James did not take, he only managed three assists, another dream distribution for Popovich.

Consider this stretch – the Spurs led 62-56 with 5:56 remaining in the 3rd quarter, and over a period of 2:18 Miami would have six possessions, with five of them ending with James taking long jumpers, two from beyond the arc. There was an opportunity for the game to break open.

But we all know the result, and the scoreboard was driven by the simple fact that James made the shots. The Heat went on a 13-2 run in which Popovich might have been OK with his defense on all but one of the possessions (one pull-up triple on the break), but that is what can happen when a super player reaches a super level.

Here is the issue in projecting the series ahead – while James is indeed a unique talent (his ability to lock down Tony Parker at crunch time is a major end-game issue that the Spurs must solve), he is not a great shooter. The heat do not run plays to get him open for perimeter jumpers; he tends to take those shots when nothing else became available on a possession. As such Miami did not solve the San Antonio defense – it took a 14-22, including all three triples, from James to only generate a two-point scoreboard margin.

That sequence in the third quarter was a dramatic one, but the Spurs had yet one more opportunity to take control. Leading 85-83 at 6:43, Parker and Tim Duncan went 0-4 at the FT line over a span of nine seconds, and on the ensuing Miami possession James nailed a forced triple, over the out-stretched hands of Kawhi Leonard as the shot clock expired. It had little to do with X’s and O’s basketball, just the matter of San Antonio failing to take advantage of an opportunity, and then James being James. That was Game #2, defined.

Now the venue shifts, and Miami goes to the chalk role at home, with even a few -4.5’s in the marketplace as of mid-day on Monday. The handicapping challenge of evaluating the shift in pricing comes down to weighing the superstar value of James, vs. the fact that the Spurs floor game has been superior. The Heat could only get a two-point win out of a 52.9 percent to 43.9 shooting advantage, which is actually not a good sign, and in terms of quality of shots there is an intriguing comparison to be made. Through two games San Antonio has a small lead in FG’s, 76-74, but a monster one in assists, 56-32. Yes, those final seven minutes from Game #1 are statistically meaningless, and close that assist gap, but even after that adjustment it is still a significant one.

Keep this as a major part of your thinking, in expounding on that theme – the Spurs know who they are. But because the Miami rotations have changed so much during the playoffs, the Heat will not show the same rhythm and chemistry. Prime example - Ray Allen had not had back-to-back games all season of 32:00 or more until the first two of this series. Meanwhile Udonis Haslem has gone from being a starter to an 0:46 sneeze on Sunday. The shots made by James enabled them to overcome that, but through 96 minutes a ratio of 32 assists vs. 27 turnovers is not the kind of chemistry that wins championships.

As for the Total it was a most unique flow on Sunday – how often do we see a 45-41-69-39 distribution by quarters? Outside of that James explosion in the middle of the third the pacing was Under throughout, even though the shooting was again good. The teams are over 50 percent from the field through two games (150-298), including an exceptional 45-99 from 3-point range. But fast break points shrank from 39 in the opener to 22 in Game #2, and as the teams now have a better feel for just what the opposing rotations are going to be, that familiarity may slow things down a bit more, especially off of shorter rest and with the plane ride to Miami included.

[StarDust Bum]

Spurs search for answers

June 9, 2014


San Antonio Spurs (75-27) at Miami Heat (67-32)

NBA Finals
Game 3 – Series tied 1-1
Tip-off: Tuesday, 9:05 p.m. ET
Sportsbook.ag Line and Total: Miami -4 (-115) & 198.5

The Spurs head to South Beach for Game 3 on Tuesday knowing that they must beat the Heat on the road at some point in order to have a chance to win the NBA championship.

After leaving the Game 1 loss with a leg cramp, SF LeBron James left his mark in a positive way in Game 2. James scored 35 points with 10 rebounds to lead Miami to a crucial 98-96 road win on Sunday despite San Antonio being a four-point favorite in the game. The Spurs missed four crucial free throws in a row when their lead was 87-85 in the fourth and the game’s momentum took a permanent swing in the Heat's favor.

The series now heads back to Miami with the series tied at one game apiece. The Heat are 6-1 SU and 4-3 ATS versus the Spurs when playing at AmericanAirlines Arena over the past three seasons. Overall in that time, Miami is 9-5 SU with both teams having won seven games ATS.

San Antonio is 14-3 ATS this season after a game where it made at least 12 three-point shots, and over the past two seasons, the Spurs are 13-4 ATS off an upset loss as a home favorite.

However, the Heat are 12-4 ATS this season when playing five or less games in 14 days, and are 15-5 ATS in home games as a No. 2 seed in the playoffs over the past three seasons.

The Spurs had their sights set on winning both of their home games and heading to Miami with a 2-0 series lead, but now they desperately need to win a road game just to give themselves a chance in a Game 7 showdown.

PF Tim Duncan (16.8 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 1.3 BPG in playoffs) continues to play extremely well in the post for San Antonio, finishing Game 2 with 18 points and 15 rebounds. San Antonio abandoned Duncan late in the game, so the club should look to get him more touches in Game 3.

PG Tony Parker (17.5 PPG, 5.2 APG in playoffs) had 21 points (8-of-15 FG, 3-of-6 threes) and seven assists in 35 minutes of play in Game 2. Parker took an elbow to the rib area late in the contest and never was comfortable after that. The day off should be good for the Spurs' point guard, as he will need to be aggressive early in Game 3 if he is going to help his team pick up a huge win.

SG Manu Ginobili (14.7 PPG, 4.4 APG, 1.8 SPG in playoffs) has been giving Miami some serious problems in this series with his slashing ability. Ginobili had 19 points (7-of-15 FG) and four assists in just 28 minutes of play in Game 2. The Heat guards are having trouble with his shifty style of play, and San Antonio should continue to feed him the ball and get him some buckets in transition, as his outside shot has been inconsistent this postseason (43% FG, but 38% threes).

The Heat were right there in Game 1 and would’ve had a prime opportunity to steal that game had SF LeBron James (27.5 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.9 SPG in playoffs) stayed healthy. James, however, came back with one of the more memorable performances of his career in Game 2, producing 35 points (14-of-22 FG, 3-of-3 threes), 10 rebounds and two steals in 38 minutes of play. The cramping issues are now behind the forward and his jump shot has looked as good as ever as of late, as James has knocked down 61% FG, including 5-of-6 threes over his past three contests where he's averaging 28.3 PPG.

SG Dwyane Wade (18.4 PPG, 4.1 APG, 4.0 RPG, 1.4 SPG in playoffs) had 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists in Sunday's win. But the Heat were not getting Wade the ball as much as they could have, and when he did have the ball, he was forcing the issue a little much. The shooting guard had five turnovers in the game and will need to have more of an impact scoring the basketball in Game 3.

PF Chris Bosh (15.5 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.2 BPG in playoffs) continued his hot shooting on Sunday, finishing with 18 points (6-of-11 FG, 1-of-2 threes) in 36 minutes. Bosh hit a huge three late in the game from the right wing that would ultimately win Miami the game. He is averaging 21.2 PPG (57% FG, 10-of-20 threes) and 7.2 RPG over the past five games of these playoffs.

PF Rashard Lewis (5.1 PPG, 2.0 RPG in playoffs) continues to make a huge impact offensively for the Heat, as he finished Game 2 with 14 points on 5-of-9 FG (3-of-7 threes). Lewis has now scored in double-figures in four straight contests, averaging 13.8 PPG on 50% FG and 48% threes during this hot streak.

[StarDust Bum]

Heat know Spurs will be ready in Game 3

June 9, 2014


MIAMI (AP) - Dwyane Wade thinks there's no one better than the Miami Heat at dealing with the mental challenge of the playoffs. In his eyes, only one other team might compare.

He's talking about the San Antonio Spurs.

That's why Wade believes these NBA Finals are just getting started.

When he looks at the Spurs, he sees qualities his own team has, including an ability to break down a loss and quickly correct things. It's what Miami did before Game 2 of the finals and it's what Wade expects the Spurs to do before the title series resumes with Game 3 in Miami on Tuesday night.

''You never put them away,'' Wade said. ''I think they always believe and it's the same with us. You can't, you won't, put us away because we're always going to believe. That's why this is a perfect, different animal, kind of series. They're the other team like us. They don't lose much and when they do they come back and be better in the next game. So we've got to come out and do the same thing.''

That would explain why on Monday, instead of a day off, the Heat gathered to watch video of Game 2.

By winning in San Antonio to even the finals at 1-1, home-court advantage now belongs to the Heat. But no one in their locker room thinks it's going to get easy now.

''They came out great. They played a great game,'' Spurs guard Tony Parker said after Miami's 98-96 win in Game 2, the 13th straight time the Heat immediately followed a postseason loss with a victory. ''Now it's our turn to go over there and get one. We played pretty well all season long on the road and so we're going to have two great opportunities to try to come up with a win.''

Miami has won a franchise-record 11 straight postseason games at home.

The last team to win a playoff game in Miami was the Spurs, winning Game 1 of last season's finals.

''We are in a tough situation because we've got to go to Miami and we've got to get one,'' Spurs guard Manu Ginobili said. ''We don't want to come back here 3-1 down. It's very hard to overcome that. Definitely going to be a great challenge for the team to play in an arena like that and having to win.''

A challenge, sure, but it's one Heat coach Erik Spoelstra knows the Spurs can handle.

''Coming back here there has to be an incredible sense of focus and urgency,'' Spoelstra said Monday. ''They're a veteran, poised, championship-level team that's been through a lot. The crowd won't affect them much.''

Neither team thought it played all that well in the game that it won so far in these finals.

The Spurs turned the ball over too much for their liking in Game 1 - the game that will be remembered for the air conditioning malfunction and cramps inside a steamy building forcing LeBron James to leave in the final minutes. In Game 2, the Heat weren't thrilled with a slow start and how they spent much of the game playing from behind.

When James got rolling in the third quarter, things started swinging Miami's way in Game 2. When he found Chris Bosh for the 3-pointer that put Miami ahead for good with 1:18 left, it was just another example of the four-time MVP setting a teammate up for a big play.

''I'm going to make the right play,'' said James, who signaled to Bosh about what he wanted on that play. ''To have that trust from my teammates, they know when I've got the ball, I'm going to make the right play. Doesn't mean it's going to go in. Doesn't mean it's going to result in a win, but they believe in my ability.''

The pressure, if Miami had not found a way to win in the final moments of Game 2, would have been enormous on the two-time defending champions.

Now, it seems to have shifted to the Spurs.

''It doesn't matter what we've been through before,'' Spurs forward Tim Duncan said. ''We're here now again.''

The last time these teams met in Miami at this time of year, the Heat wound up spraying champagne in their locker room.

It's tempting, Bosh acknowledged, to think that all Miami needs to do for a third straight championship is stay unbeaten at home.

But Bosh won't let himself go there.

''I can only think about Game 3,'' Bosh said. ''We've played well at home this postseason. I think we feel we have an advantage now. We have to make sure that we play well and keep it that way.''

[StarDust Bum]

Game 3 - Spurs at Heat

June 10, 2014

The NBA Finals continue Tuesday from American Airlines Arena as the Heat and Spurs resume their best-of-seven battle. Miami evened up the series 1-1 on Sunday with a 98-96 victory in Game 2 from the AT&T Center in San Antonio. After leaving in the fourth quarter of Game 1 to cramps, LeBron James rebounded with a 35-point performance in Game 2 and helped the Heat hold off the Spurs as 4 ½-point road underdogs.

Miami’s victory wasn’t surprising to VegasInsider.com handicapper Kevin Rogers, who used the Heat as a top selection on Sunday night. Rogers explained his rationale for Game 2, “It’s become pretty public knowledge Miami’s ability to bounce back off a loss in the playoffs over the last few seasons, going 13-0 straight up and 12-1 against the spread in their last 13 situations. I’d rather ride a trend than go against it and I’ll likely back this angle going forward.”

The lone ATS loss for the Heat during this stretch came in this year’s postseason when Miami rallied past Brooklyn for a 96-94 victory in Game 5 but failed to cover as a seven-point home favorite.

Looking ahead to Game 3, oddsmakers opened Miami as a four-point favorite and a few sportsbooks have added the hook (4 ½) to the Heat.

Rogers believes bettors will have another angle to back the Heat in Game 3. He said, “The Heat fall into a profitable situation when they’re tied 1-1 in a series. In these situations, Miami owns a 4-1 record both SU and ATS in Game 3’s of a series after losing the series opener. The lone loss during this stretch came on the road at San Antonio in Game 3 of last summer’s NBA Finals. During the first title run for this group, the Heat lost the finals opener at Oklahoma City, but captured Game 2. In Game 3 back in South Florida, Erik Spoelstra’s team beat the Thunder, 91-85 as four-point favorites en route to winning the championship.”

Before you run to the counter and bang Miami, it should be noted that San Antonio was the best road team (30-11 SU, 25-16 ATS) during the regular season. However, Rogers makes us aware that the playoffs have been a different story for San Antonio on the road.

He explained, “Miami snapped San Antonio’s nine-game home winning streak with a victory in Game 2, and the Spurs can turn the tables on the Heat, who have won all eight games played at the American Airlines Arena in the playoffs, while covering six times. What’s troubling is that the Spurs have cashed just twice in eight road games this postseason, but they did win the Western Conference title by knocking off Oklahoma City in Game 6 of the conference finals.”

As Rogers mentioned, San Antonio is 3-5 SU and 2-6 ATS on the road in the postseason. As road ‘dogs in this year’s playoffs, the Spurs are 2-2 both SU and ATS, winning Game 3 at Portland and Game 6 at OKC.

Miami’s postseason record at home is perfect (8-0 SU, 6-2 ATS) this season and what’s even more impressive, the Heat are 38-7 in South Florida since LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh formed their alliance in 2010.

San Antonio does own one of those seven wins against the Heat during this span. However, after watching Game 2 play out, it appears the talking heads on television, radio and social media have already started to “flip-flop” and hop on the Heat’s bandwagon.

Agreeing with the so-called pundits are the oddsmakers, who have now made the Heat a minus-150 favorite (Bet $100 to win $66) to win the NBA Finals. Prior to Game 2, bettors could’ve taken Miami as high as a 9/5 betting choice (Bet $100 to win $180). San Antonio is a plus-130 underdog (Bet $100 to win $130) heading into Game 3.

Is everybody overreacting to Miami’s two-point victory in Game 2?

Absolutely, but I also believe everybody overreacted to San Antonio’s 15-point win in Game 1.
These are the two best teams in the Association and this matchup is practically even. The difference will be LeBron’s shooting vs. the Spurs’ shooting and that’s how it played out in the first two games.

In the opener, the Spurs went 14-of-16 (88%) from the field in the fourth quarter, which included a perfect 6-of-6 from 3-point range. On Sunday, San Antonio went 6-of-17 (35%) from the field in the fourth and only mustered up 18 points, which was half (36) of what the produced final 12 minutes of Game 1.

LeBron’s production was great in Game 2 and not surprising. It was the sixth game in this year’s playoffs that he’s posted 30-plus points and I believe he won the game for the Heat in the third quarter. That’s when he scored 14 of his 35 and kept the Spurs from running them out of the building. It’s rare to see San Antonio put up 36 points in a quarter and not hold a lead by double digits but that was the case on Sunday.

So what should bettors expect for the rest of the series?

At least for the next two games in Miami, I’d be a little hesitant to back San Antonio’s offense on the road. In this year’s playoffs, the Spurs have had four great offensive performances (112.3 PPG) on the road and they went 2-2 with the losses coming by a combined three points. When the attack struggled by their standards in the other four games (93.5 PPG), they went 1-3.

Including Game 2, LeBron has now scored 30 or more points in four of his last six playoff encounters against San Antonio. In the other two, he posted 25 points.

Similar to the first two games played in San Antonio, total bettors are looking at a number of 198 for Game 3. The ‘over’ cashed in the opener while the ‘under’ connected on Sunday and if it wasn’t for a tight game late, the ‘over’ could’ve hit in Game 2 as well.

Miami has watched the ‘over’ go 12-4-1 in the postseason while San Antonio has watched the total go 4-4 on the road in the playoffs.

If you’re undecided on the side or total tonight, you should check out the Prop Bets and Exotic Wagers from Sportsbook.ag.

For example, here are the latest odds on how the NBA Finals will end.

5 Games Heat Win 15/2 (Bet $100 to win $750)
5 Games Spurs Win 17/2 (Bet $100 to win $850)
6 Games Heat Win 2/1 (Bet $100 to win $200)
6 Games Spurs Win 6/1 (Bet $100 to win $600)
7 Games Heat Win 4/1 (Bet $100 to win $400)
7 Games Spurs Win 11/5 (Bet $100 to win $220)

Tonight’s game will tip at 9:05 p.m. ET with ABC providing national coverage.

Game 4 will take place on Thursday from American Airlines Arena.

[StarDust Bum]

Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack


-- Indians' 3B Lonnie Chisenhall turned into Mike Schmidt for a night; he hit three HRs, had nine RBI as the Indians beat Texas 17-7.

-- Derek Fisher will get $25M for five years to coach the Knicks. He's never been a coach before; $5M a year is pretty good entry level pay.

-- Orioles have been outscored 46-7 in Ubaldo Jimenez' six home starts (0-6).

-- Baltimore's Nick Markakis is 25-60 (.417) in the first inning this season.

-- Pirates' Neil Walker had an emergency appendectomy, allowing Pittsburgh to bring up its prize prospect Gregory Polanco from AAA.

-- Rays lost 3-0 to Seattle, ninth time they've been shut out this season; they lost 13 of their last 14 games.


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Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but..........

13) The college football playoff this January is going to be huge; they finally hit on the goldmine that has been waiting there for a long time. Think national media will be surprised by how big this is going to be.

12) NCAA settled one of the video game lawsuits for $20M or so; would be ironic if Ed O'Bannon's lawsuit was to bring down NCAA; they were ones who pushed him to go to UCLA to force Jerry Tarkanian to retire at UNLV, when he was rebuilding his team after the great 1989-91 run. O'Bannon blew out his knee in a pickup game, was never really the same again, which led him to this point.

11) Minnesota Twins sent Jason Kubel down to AAA, if they can’t trade him in 10 days, after signing Kendrys Morales. Heath Bell used his opt-out for the Orioles and is now a free agent. Only a truly desperate bullpen will pick him up. Morales was in the lineup Monday, hitting 6th as the DH.

10) Michigan State didn’t have a great recruiting year in basketball, but they did pick up West Virginia transfer Eron Harris, who scored 17 ppg for WVU last season- he has to sit out this coming season, will have two years left to play.

9) Dayton picked up a transfer from James Madison couple weeks ago, but lost starting PG Khari Price this weekend, in what appears to be the case of a kid just wanting to go to school closer to home. Louisiana Tech is a rumored destination for the young man.

8) USC’s leading scorer Byron Wesley winds up transferring to Gonzaga, where he is supposed to be eligible immediately. He’ll help the Zags with scoring from the wing. USC will have a lot of new guys this fall.

7) Tennessee-VCU, Michigan State-Navy will be a twinbill in Annapolis November 14, start of an annual event Navy will host to tip-off college basketball season. Other three teams will change each year.

6) That just made me realize that I’m going to be in Las Vegas for the start of college basketball this fall, and for ESPN’s college hoop marathon—that’ll be fun.

5) Florida State sold out its football season tickets for the first time since 2003, proving once again, that if you build it and win, they will come.

4) 13 times this year a pitcher threw 125+ pitches in game. Cole Hamels has done it three times, CJ Wilson twice. Eight others once each.

3) Had no idea that when an NFL player fires his agent, he has to wait five days to hire another one; some of these guys could change their mind 8-10 times in that long a period, then wind up with the same agent they originally fired.

2) An accountant familiar with such things estimated a pro athlete on a $500,000 contract winds up taking home around $265,000, which is good pay but it ain’t $500K.

1) Jacksonville Jaguars are putting a party deck in their stadium, one with two pools and 16 cabanas, which will go for $12,500 a day, or $250 per person. Someday they’ll probably be an actual casino in an NFL stadium.