The NBA playoff odds are posted all over the internet, and here at Bankroll Sports, we are going to be taking an updated look at the Golden State Warriors vs. Denver Nuggets series. We’ll go game by game and updated all of the NBA odds and final scores for each of the series, so be sure to join us throughout this series, as we will be keeping this and all of the posts up to date for the NBA playoffs.

Golden State Warriors vs. Denver Nuggets Series Odds at
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Golden State Warriors -185
Denver Nuggets +160
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Golden State Warriors vs. Denver Nuggets NBA Playoff Schedule

Warriors Win Series 4-2

Game 1: Golden State Warriors 95 – Denver Nuggets 97
Game 2: Golden State Warriors 131 – Denver Nuggets 117
Game 3: Denver Nuggets 108 – Golden State Warriors 110
Game 4: Denver Nuggets 101 – Golden State Warriors 115
Game 5: Golden State Warriors 100 – Denver Nuggets 107
Game 6: Denver Nuggets 88 – Golden State Warriors 92

Warriors vs. Nuggets Series Updates
Game 1: In a series that was supposed to be up and down the court, both the Nuggets and the Warriors struggled to get things going from the field in Game 1. Some like G Klay Thompson had good games, but the star of the show was the savvy veteran, G Andre Miller, who led all scorers with 28 points. He also hit the layup with just a second left on the clock that ultimately won the game after a feverish fourth quarter that saw both teams throw haymakers at the other. Nuggets 97 – Warriors 95 (Nuggets Lead Series 1-0)

Game 2: Apparently, the way to beat the Nuggets at the Pepsi Center is to beat them at their own game. The Warriors shot 64.6 percent from the field, inclduding hitting 14-of-25 from beyond the arc to score a whopping 131 points, including 35 in each of the final three quarters of the game on Tuesday night. G Stephen Curry, G Klay Thompson, G Jarrett Jack, and F Harrison Barnes each scored at least 21, and there was just no way that the Nuggets were going to be able to keep up with that. Even scoring 64 in the second half wasn’t enough to keep up, as Golden State scored 70 in the second half to counter Denver. Warriors 131 – Nuggets 117 (Series Tied 1-1)

Game 3: G Andre Iguodala missed a three-pointer that would have won the game for the Nuggets, as they blew a 12-point second half lead to the Warriors in a 110-108 victory for the hosts. Golden State got 29 points out of G Stephen Curry, who is playing on a sprained ankle that has to be killing him every time he cuts. G Jarrett Jack knocked down 10-of-14 from the field in a starting role, as the Warriors went with a small lineup that had Denver confused for much of the game. G Ty Lawson did his share, scoring 35 points and dishing out 10 assists, but the rest of the Nuggets just weren’t able to keep up. Scoring just 42 points in the second half wasn’t nearly good enough. Warriors 110 – Nuggets 108 (Warriors Lead Series 2-1)

Game 4: G Stephen Curry only scored nine points in the first, second, and fourth quarters combined, but he put up 22 in the third all by himself to help lead the team to a comfortable victory and to put the Nuggets on the brink of elimination. It’s sad to say the Denver “only” shot 46.5% from the field, but simply put, that wasn’t good enough to get the job done against a team that just got wicked hot for the most part in both the second and third quarters. Golden State shot 55.7% from the field and 42.3% from long range, but most impressive is the fact that they forced 23 turnovers on the defensive end of the court and had 27 assists themselves. Warriors 115 – Nuggets 101 (Warriors Lead Series 3-1)

Game 5: Head Coach Mark Jackson came out after the game and said that the Nuggets were playing dirty, essentially accusing them of trying to hurt G Stephen Curry. Curry finally had a bad game in this series, as he only shot 1-of-7 from beyond the arc and 7-of-19 from the field for the game. F Harrison Barnes did score 23 to help out the cause for the Warriors, but they were never good enough to win the game. All five starters logged double digits for the Nuggets, and G Andre Iguodala perhaps had his best and most meaningful game since coming to the Rockies. He scored 25 points, had 12 boards, and dished out seven of the team’s 26 assists on the day. Thanks to a 31-21 run in the fourth quarter, Golden State did cover its fifth straight game in this series, but it wasn’t good enough to close things out. Nuggets 107 – Warriors 100 (Warriors Lead Series 3-2)

Game 6: The Warriors only scored 92 points in this game, and they only shot 40.3 percent from the floor and 28.0 percent from beyond the arc. It wasn’t a great game by any stretch of the imagination, but the team also hit 23-of-24 attempts from the foul line, as compared to 13-of-21 for the Nuggets. That proved to be the difference in this game. G Klay Thompson was disastrous and scored just seven points, but G Stephen Curry scored 22 for the victors. G Andre Iguodala hit five threes, but the rest of the team went 2-of-20 from long range, and that’s why Denver is going home in upset fashion. Warriors 92 – Nuggets 88 (Warriors Win Series 4-2)

2013 Warriors vs. Nuggets Series Preview

The Warriors and the Nuggets can fly up and down the court for the full 48 minutes, and they both have incredibly deep teams that can take shot after shot with each other. The problem that both have though, is that neither has a great history here in the playoffs of late. Heck, F David Lee is playing in his very first playoff series in his long career, and a lot of his fellow Warriors are saying exactly the same thing.

The Nuggets are going to have to overcome the loss of F Danilo Gallinari, who is now rehabbing his torn ACL in hopes that he might be able to get back on the court for the start of next season. Gone with the Italian are his 16.3 points per game, the second best mark on the club. G Ty Lawson and a total of four others are still good for at least a dozen points per game though, and that’s how Denver beats you. There are no stars on this team, but any number of perhaps eight or nine players could go off for 30 in a game.

Golden State is a little more cut and dry. Lee will get his points in the paint, and he’ll probably get a double-double in every game in this series, but the real production is going to come from the outside. This is the best three-point shooting team in the NBA, knocking down 40.3 percent of its shots from long range. G Stephen Curry, who averaged over 22 points per game last season, set the NBA record for the most three-point shots made in a single season. There is no doubt that stopping Curry is going to be a key for Denver on the perimeter, but it will be equally important to slow down G Klay Thompson and G Jarrett Jack, both of which could do the same type of damage when push comes to shove.

In the end, this isn’t a series that we think is going to be all that competitive. The home team, not surprisingly, won three of the four meetings this year, and the lone exception was when Denver knocked off the Warriors at Oracle Arena in November. We expect to see similar to happen in this series, as the Nuggets should take care of this one in no more than five games.

Warriors vs. Nuggets Series Prediction: Denver Nuggets in 5

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The NBA Trade Deadline is now here, as teams have less than 12 hours to make their final moves for the rest of the season. The action has been hot and heavy over the course of the last day and change, and here is a recap of what we have seen, plus what we might see in the closing hours today…

The biggest blockbuster deal that we have all been waiting for has finally gone done. The New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets have finally agreed on a deal that will send Carmelo Anthony to the Big Apple, his desired destination. New York is expected to give Anthony a three year, $65M extension that will keep him playing at MSG through 2015. The Knicks also received back Chauncey Billups, who will immediately start at the point guard spot, along with Shelden Williams, Renaldo Balkman, and Anthony Carter. In exchange, Denver will be getting Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton, Wilson Chandler, Timofey Mozgov, a first round draft choice, two second round draft choices, and $3M in cash. Melo scored 27 points and had 10 boards in his first game playing with the Knicks, who beat the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night.

The wheeling and dealing wasn’t done there, though. New York also sent off Eddy Curry’s expiring contract and Anthony Randolph for Corey Brewer. Brewer didn’t make it into the lineup on Wednesday.

For Denver, the trades are almost certainly not complete. Gallinari and Felton might never suit up for the Nuggs by the time this is said and done. Felton is now the second former North Carolina Tar Heels point guard on the team, joining Ty Lawson. Rumors also have it that Nene could be sent off in a deal before Thursday’s deadline as well, and he is now the leading point scorer still left on the team at 15.0 per game. Al Harrington, who was signed last summer to a huge free agent deal, now could also be traded. The Nuggets play their first game since the trade tonight against the Boston Celtics at home.

The New Jersey Nets were figured to be the biggest losers of the trading deadline, as they once again seemed to miss out on acquiring all of the superstars that were available, just like what happened in the offseason. However, we have learned to never count out Mikhail Prokhorov and company, as New Jersey got its man, and it arguably got a better deal than it would’ve gotten had it picked up ‘Melo. In a late breaking deal on Wednesday, the Nets acquired Deron Williams from the Utah Jazz. Jersey sent packing Devin Harris, Derrick Favors, and two draft choices to Utah.

Meanwhile, the Jazz are now absolutely ripe as could be, as they have a ton of pieces to the puzzle that could, but probably won’t be moved by the 3:00 ET deadline today. Favors is a man that a lot of teams are still asking about, especially on a team in which he may never crack the rotation. Remember that Utah still has Al Jefferson, Mehmet Okur, Andrei Kirilenko, and Paul Millsap, essentially all of which have the same type of skill set as Favors does. The Jazz still need a two guard and would be wise to try to send one of these bigs off to make that happen.

Williams won’t necessarily resign with the Nets, as he is reportedly unhappy with the trade. However, he still has a full season under his belt with his current contract and cannot get out until 2012. New Jersey could always turn around and trade him off next year if things don’t work out, but the hope is that Williams becomes the cornerstone to the franchise as it tries to turn around its misery.

We mentioned two days ago that the Atlanta Hawks were looking for a point guard, and they finally found their man, though it came at a hefty price tag. Atlanta traded Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, Maurice Evans, and a first round draft choice to the Washington Wizards for Hilton Armstrong and Kirk Hinrich. If you’re the Wiz, you have to love this deal, as it rids you of Hinrich, who is only standing in the way of the growth of John Wall, and it gives you yet another draft pick to try to build around. Atlanta gets its point guard, but it takes three key players out of its rotation to do so.

The Cleveland Cavaliers made a nice move in the middle of the night on Wednesday as well, picking up Baron Davis and a lottery draft pick this coming year to the Los Angeles Clippers for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon. Davis is clearly at the tail end of his career, and it is clear that the team just wanted to move him for the sake of moving him. It essentially cost a first round pick to do so, but this might not be the end of the world for an LA team that does have a ton of players under the age of 25 on its team. It might also be a nice switch for Williams, who has just seemed to be totally lost since losing LeBron James to the Miami Heat this past offseason.

Speaking of the Heat, they could be in on a minor move as well, though teams don’t seem to be all that interested in their most tradeable asset, Mike Miller. Still, keep an eye on this situation, as Miami is trying to bring in another veteran big to help out Chris Bosh on the inside.

Up the road, the Orlando Magic are surely looking to make a move, especially after losing to the Sacramento Kings last night. General Manager Otis Smith knows that he really needs to make a major move sooner than later, or he’ll probably end up losing Dwight Howard in two seasons to free agency, a la LeBron James, something that would seal his fate and cost him his job for sure. The problem is finding the pieces to the puzzle to deal since Orlando already made the big time trade with the Phoenix Suns earlier this season. Could Steve Nash be coming to Orlando? What about Zach Randolph? The Randolph deal makes some sense, though it would require reportedly sending back at least Brandon Bass and Jason Richardson to do so, a heavy price to pay.

Teams are also contacted the Memphis Grizzlies about the availability of Hasheem Thabeet, who has largely been a tremendous bust in his career after being a high draft choice two seasons ago.

The Portland Trail Blazers are still trying to make a move, but it’s a question as to what they’re looking for. There are plenty of bigs to trade on this team, and it seems like the only names that aren’t being bantered around just a bit are those of Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge. Aside from that though, it all seems to be fair game, and anyone coming to the table with the right asking price can seemingly get anyone else they want off of this team. One of those talks are with the Charlotte Bobcats, who have had inquiries about Gerald Wallace. That deal doesn’t seem to be in the makings though, as Wallace is still looked at as the cornerstone of Charlotte’s team.

We’ll keep you up to date here at Bankroll Sports with all of the ins and outs of the 2011 NBA Trade Deadline rumors!

The sports betting world has taken more twists and turns over this past week, and here at Bankroll Sports, we’re taking some time to rant of the worst from the week that was in the gambling world.

Rap Sheet Picture of the Week
F DeMarcus Cousins and G John Wall, who wrapped up their collegiate careers by getting embarrassed in the dance by West Virginia on Saturday night.

Boy, can you totally stick it for that lousy performance you put up on Saturday, Kentucky Wildcats! After watching the mighty Jayhawks and Orange fall before you, how dare you come out so flat against a very dangerous West Virginia team with a berth in the Final Four on the line! You had crushed your previous three foes by an average of 25.7 points per game in this tournament, and everyone was still waiting for the best games out of F Patrick Patterson, G John Wall, and F DeMarcus Cousins.

Never happened. Oops. Now, HC John Calipari has to go back to the drawing board, as he is likely losing his four best players to the NBA Draft this year, and in spite of the fact that he has totally ruined a number of schools with recruiting violations over the years, he still doesn’t have any National Championships to boast about on his resume.

Speaking of teams that have been incredibly upsetting, what the heck happened to everyone in that so-called “powerful” Midwest Bracket? The #1 Kansas Jayhawks, #2 Ohio State Buckeyes, #3 Georgetown Hoyas, and #4 Maryland Terrapins have all long since been forgotten, and the two teams left standing in this region on Sunday were arguably the two that went through the most chaos all year long. Tennessee had to deal with the whole New Year’s Day fiasco that got G Tyler Smith kicked off the team. Michigan State had injury woes with G Kalin Lucas suffering a torn Achilles tendon in the second round of the tourney. Yet, experience has ruled the day once again, as HC Tom Izzo is laughing at his other “great coaches” out of this bracket, as he has the final laugh with his second straight trip to the Final Four.

Our attention is turned to the NBA betting world as well this week. Hey Denver Nuggets, what’s going on with you guys? You’ve got one of the best offenses in the NBA at 107.1 points per game, but over your L/2 weeks, you’ve only averaged 97.7 points per game. No wonder why you’re 0-6-1 ATS in those seven games! Now, the punishment is that you’re sitting in the #3 hole coming into tonight’s game with Dallas, and you could fall all the way down to #8 by the time this is said and done, as the Trail Blazers are only 3.5 games behind you with eight to play. Guess who else is on your slate this week as well on the road?

The intense NBA Playoff action has got off to a great start as most teams have at least played 2 games in their opening round match-ups. There have been few upsets and unexpected outcomes like the underdog Chicago Bulls upsetting the defending NBA Champions the Boston Celtics in the opening round. Cleveland, Los Angeles, and Boston are among the most heralded big names heading into the post-season as they are leading favorites to make it to the NBA Finals. However, we will take a look at few of the teams that could play the spoiler role and be the Cinderella type story usually only found in March Madness. If you also have any confidence that these underdogs may have what it takes to pull of big upsets, take advantage of betting odds now while you could really cash-in to make huge profits.

Chicago Bulls

Chicago upset over Boston may have opened a lot of eyes, but this was really not that big of a surprise. The Bulls rallied to close out the season winning 12 of their last 16 games which also included a victory over the Celtics. The emergence of Derrick Rose towards the end of the season has given the Bulls a much needed boost. Rose also dropped 36 in the opening round two point victory in Boston. Chicago’s ability to at least split the two games in Boston was better than expect considering how well the Celtics have played at home. The Bulls could really have a chance to put the defending Champions a way if they could take advantage of the home games. If the Bulls can indeed come out victorious in the series, they will get winner of Philadelphia and Orlando in the semi-finals. Both of those teams have been inconsistent and closed out the season poorly. Of course for anyone to make the NBA Finals out of the Eastern Conference they would have to find away to beat Cleveland at home. Still the +3500 odds are eye catching and even though it may seem nearly impossible for the Bulls to put together this type of run, it is definitely worth the consideration.

Denver Nuggets

Is it that surprisingly that Los Angeles is huge -450 favorites to win the Western Conference. Probably not considering how they have dominated the teams out West all season with a demanding 44-8 record in the conference. However, history tells us that the odds to make it back to the NBA Finals after losing in the Finals the year before are against you by a fairly good margin. Taking the consideration that something will happen to the dominate Lakers along the stretch; there is only one team that could really step up to challenge in the West and that is the Denver Nuggets. Sure the Lakers won 3 out of 4 over the Nuggets through the regular season and it would seem absurd to bet against them. However, Denver is rather streaky team that can put together strings of wins. After a dominating 113-84 victory in Game 1 over New Orleans, you would not expect their to be too much trouble in the series. The next series would include two tough post-season teams in Dallas or San Antonio. Here again Denver talent should prevail and keep building some confidence that will give them a new attitude with the Lakers when the opportunity for a championship is on the line. The +800 odds help make this scenario look better as well. It comes down to this, sure the Lakers are everyone’s favorites to win the West but if anyone can beat the Lakers then who would it be? We say Denver.

Orlando Magic

Think we would forget one of most dominant teams from earlier in the season? Sure Orlando gave up an 18 point deficit to Philadelphia in an embarrassing loss in game 1, but they may have been the best thing to happen for Orlando. Expect them to come out firing in Wednesday’s second game with the 76ers. Remember Orlando for large majority of the season contended with Cleveland and Boston for Eastern Conference supremacy. However, after the injury to Jameer Nelson midway through the season the Magic’s momentum took a crucial blow. Even without Nelson, Orlando handed Cleveland their biggest loss of the season when they blew out the Cavaliers 116-87 back on April 3rd. The most likely scenario that plays out in the Eastern Conference will be Orlando rallying back against Philadelphia and then taking down either Chicago or Boston in the semi-finals. This would set the stage for a classic 7 games series with Orlando and after that huge victory a few weeks ago does anyone really think the Magic will doubt if they can beat Cleveland? Dwight Howard ability to control the glass will make a big difference in the long run and if Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis can find away to score some points then rest assured you have not heard the last from the Magic.

The NBA regular season will end later this week as we head towards the post-season. The Cleveland Cavaliers have locked up home court advantage throughout their Eastern Conference playoff run and are one game away from clinching home court advantage in the NBA Finals if they can make it that far in the playoffs. The Cavaliers are coming off a huge blowout win over the defending Champions the Boston Celtics 107-76 on Sunday. The Cavaliers big win over the number 2 ranked team in the East is actually Cleveland’s biggest victory in franchise history over the Celtics. The Cavaliers amazing home game run extended to a mark of 38-1 inside Quicken Loans Arena with the victory. The Cavaliers appear to be big favorites considering they will get the majority of the games at home were they have been unstoppable. However, the Eastern Conference has been extremely tough this year as Orlando blew out Cleveland a few short weeks ago similar to the Cavaliers big win over Boston. The 3 horse race all season out of the East will carry over to the post-season. In the Western Conference, the Los Angeles Lakers are still the big favorites after a big win over Denver last Thursday night. The return of Andrew Bynum will only be more beneficial for the Lakers who have appeared as the top notch team in the West all season. However teams like Denver, Houston, and Portland have really closed out the year strong and could be teams to put together impressive runs in the playoffs. We give brief breakdown of the major contenders for the 2009 NBA Playoffs along with their odds to win it all.

Eastern Conference

Cleveland Cavaliers (7/5)

The Cavaliers extremely impressive home record makes them big favorites in the NBA playoffs. Their 38-1 record is among the best ever string of runs by a home team in NBA history. Lebron James is averaged 28.3 points per game, but more importantly is getting a lot of help from the rest of the team. Cleveland only lost one game all season at home meaning for them to be beaten in the playoffs a team is going to have to win at least one game in Cleveland while sweeping the Cavaliers away from Cleveland. Good luck with that.

Boston Celtics (4/1)

The Celtics chances to repeat as NBA Champions took a big hit with their embarrassing loss to Cleveland. However, Boston has played very well to close out the season winning 8 of their last 10 games. The Celtics are another team that plays very well at home with a 34-6 record for the season. However, Boston is only 4-4 against Orlando and Cleveland on the year meaning they have been anything but dominant over the top teams in the East. Still the Celtics know what it takes to be Champions, but can they do it again?

Orlando Magic (8/1)

The Magic got the big win over Cleveland back in the first week of April, but they have now lost 3 of their last 4 games. Orlando got off to a tremendous start to the season, but really suffered a hit with the loss of Jameer Nelson despite putting together some solid winning streaks in recent weeks. Also, Rashard Lewis will likely miss the final games of the regular season with a knee injury and the Magic simply look to be too banged up down the stretch to be a legitimate threat as they appeared earlier this year.

Team to Watch – Chicago Bulls (100/1)

The Chicago Bulls have won 4 straight games and 12 of their last 15 games during that stretch. Chicago has put together a solid home record this season that is always crucial during the post season. If the Bulls can keep up the momentum and get some more big performances from Ben Gordon, they could really pull off a string off upsets and perhaps take down either Boston or Orlando who they will be likely playing in the opening round.

Western Conference

Los Angeles Lakers (8/5)

Thursday night’s victory over the emerging Denver Nuggets was icing on the cake for Western Conference bragging rights. The Lakers simply looked too strong for their closest competitors in the West and are big favorites at 4/9 favorites to make it to the NBA Finals. The Lakers got beat by a streaking Portland team on Friday 106-98, but they still appear to be too strong in terms of being beat in an entire series. The Lakers have had more problems with the teams in the Eastern Conference this season and until someone proves us wrong we will ride the Lakers bandwagon.

Denver Nuggets (20/1)

The Nuggets are really playing well to close out the season despite their setback to the Lakers last Thursday. Carmelo Anthony and J.R Smith are becoming a dynamic duo posting big figures every night. The Nuggets have put together wins in 13 of their last 15 games The Nuggets could face the Dallas Mavericks in the opening round if things were to stay the same. Denver would not mind the pairing considering they are a perfect 4-0 on the season against Dallas. If the Nuggets could keep the momentum rolling I am sure they will be eager to get their chance at a series with the Lakers.

Portland Trailblazers (25/1)

The Trailblazers are in a heated battle with the Houston Rockets for 3rd place in the West as both teams stand at a mark of 52-28. The Trailblazers and the Rockets have also both put on a solid 4 game winning streak as Portland will get the Thunder and the Nuggets in the final two games. The battle for 3rd dictates whether they will get New Orleans or San Antonio in the playoffs. The Trailblazers have played the most solid basketball the 2nd half of the season and they should give teams problems if they can stay hot.

Team to watch – Houston Rockets (20/1)

The Rockets have put together 4 straight wins along with Portland. The only difference is Houston beat up on the Trailblazers 102-88 to start their winning streak. The Rockets have what it takes to match-up with the other teams from the West in the playoffs giving them a chance to knock off some wins in the postseason. The only thing is the Rockets have failed to beat the Lakers once this season at 0-4 meaning any dream type run at an NBA Finals may be more of a dream than a reality.

This will be the first edition of a set of weekly articles that will come out just before every weekend breaking down the best proposition bets for the weekend. Basically, we will break down some of the most interesting and intriguing prop bets heading into the weekend for you to consider placing bets on to earn some cash on your days off work. We will be reviewing and studying every sport to give the best prop bet at the right time for your money while also trying to include the always popular prop bets as well. Take a look at these Top 3 Prop Bets for you to consider heading into the weekend..

Bet #1 – PGA Golf (The Masters)
Head to Head – Paul Casey (-130) vs. Sergio Garcia (Even) (Thursday)
The PGA Tour will make a stop in Augusta, Georgia this weekend to tee off for the first Major Tournament of the 2009 campaign. The Masters has been one of the most beautiful and exciting golf spectacles for many years now providing some great action for the PGA Tour’s first big event. Bodog Sportsbook has many great betting actions on the event from head to head matchups, opening round group odds, and more. We found a very interesting match-up between Paul Casey and Sergio Garcia. Garcia made the news earlier this season as he closed in on Tiger Woods number 1 ranking while Woods was still recovering from knee surgery. However, Garcia has been playing anything but strong over the past few weeks heading into the Masters. Garcia has played in 4 events and has not been in the top 10 once including a 77th finish in the Shell Houston Open last week. Casey on the other hand won the Shell Houston Open making it his first victory in the United States and jumped from 12th to 6th in the world rankings. Garcia has never been consistent at Augusta National and we expect some more of the same type performance this weekend. While Casey will be riding a wave of confidence and we expect him to play well. Consider placing an above average type bet on Casey. Pick – Casey -130

Bet #2 NBA (Denver at Los Angeles) (Thursday)
The Los Angeles Lakers host the Denver Nuggets late Thursday night at home in a showdown of front runners in the Western Conference. The Lakers are winners of 4 straight games and own a 2-1 record against the Nuggets so far this season. However, Denver is playing better than any team in the league perhaps winning 12 of their last 13 games and 7 straight. In the previous meetings these games have stayed unpredictably low in scoring despite both teams tendency to have high scoring averages. While nearly all indications point to the Lakers having a big night considering they are playing at home where they are 33-5 this season and Andrew Bynum will possibly return to the lineup. However, we are going to take Denver in this game considering how well they have been shooting the ball to be the spoiler this Thursday. J.R Smith and Carmelo Anthony have led the team in scoring every game since the middle of March. Both standouts are averaging right at 20 points per game over the winning streak. Even though Kobe Bryant has been stellar against the Nuggets this season, we expect Denver to have a similar outcomes as they did back in the previous meeting back in February when they got the victory 90-79 except this time there will be more points scored. Pick – Denver

Bet #3 – Kentucky Derby (May 2nd)
Whether you are a fan of horse racing or not, one thing is for sure that when you hear the Kentucky Derby you know it means something special. While most bettors tend to shy away from Horse Racing bets because they simply may not keep up with the sport, betting on a horse race may be the most profitable sport to bet on considering you always get great odds. The 2009 run for the roses is being hyped to be a very exciting spectacle mainly because there are so many great horses with legitimate shots to win this year. One of the horses to have your eye on is “I Want Revenge.” This California bred horse is a proven runner who captured a win just a few weeks back at the Gotham at Aqueduct. I Want Revenge is being posted as a 7/2 favorite to win the entire event this weekend. The horse is quickly emerging as the leading favorite to be covered in the blanket of roses after the most famous dash in horse racing on May 2nd. However, go ahead and get the odds while they are still reasonable and if you do not feel comfortable picking I Want Revenge as a winner be sure to place the horse for a bet to be a top 3 finisher. Pick – “I Want Revenge” (7/2)

The NBA regular season a little more than halfway through and there is a pretty clear sight of who are the front runners with the chance for a few more teams to make a surprise down the stretch. The Eastern Conference appears to be the strength of the league with the powerhouses of Boston, Cleveland, and Orlando. Out West we still await a contender to emerge to be able to challenge the L.A Lakers and the most likely team to take that role is the San Antonio Spurs. At this time in the season is when all the predictions start coming out and the betting lines are changing every day with new future odds. We break down the top 3 teams in each conference and provide some insight on some teams to keep an eye on that could surprise down the stretch.

Eastern Conference

Boston Celtics (36-9)

The defending NBA Champions had the best start in NBA history at 27-2. However, the Celtics rang in the New Year poorly losing 4 out of their first 5 games and even 7 out of 9 at one point. The tough weeks of basketball exposed the first sign of troubles from Boston that we have seen in some time. Despite the tough stretch that featured 3 of 4 of their last losses on the road, Boston has bounced back with a vengeance. The Celtics have now knocked off 7 straight wins including a big win over what many call the best team in the league the Orland Magic last Thursday night 90-80. The difference in the wins and losses is how the Celtics play defense. In the Celtics last 4 defeats, the opponents were averaging 100.2 points per game. However, in the last 7 victories the Celtics have held opposing teams to only 88 points. The Celtics are 2^nd behind Cleveland in scoring defense this season and that has always been a big attribute to their success. With the troubles seemingly out of the way, Boston appears to be right back where they left last off last year.

Orlando Magic (33-9)

The Magic that is Orlando comes in the form of 6’11 Dwight Howard. Howard has been superb this year and so has the rest of the Orlando lineup. Howard leads the league in rebounds (14rpg), blocked shots (3.2bpg), and also supports with 20 points every game. However, it has not been all the achievement of one man. Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, and Jameer Nelson are all averaging at least 17 points while the Magic are averaging 101 points per contest. Orlando had won 8 straight games before their loss to Boston on Thursday night and they own a 7 ½ game over Atlanta in the Southeast. Orlando is the only team out of the top 3 in the Eastern Conference to have captured a victory over the L.A Lakers this season which is clearly the best team right now in the West. The Magic are actually 2-0 over the Lakers and many think they are the most complete team at this point in the season.

Cleveland Cavaliers (32-8)

Cleveland appeared to be the best team out of the East only a matter of a few short weeks ago. However, the Cavaliers have gone 2-2 in their last 4 games with losses over the Lakers and Trailblazers. Not to mention Cleveland is facing some key injuries over the last few days. Starting shooting guard Delonte West has a broken wrist and will miss 4-6 weeks. Also starting center Zydrunas Ilgauskas has a fractured ankle and will miss 3-4 weeks. Despite the small dark cloud that has recently developed over the team, Cleveland is still among the best in the NBA. Lebron James is 2^nd in the NBA in scoring with 27.8 points and the team seems to be playing better behind him than they have in past seasons. The Cavs also are a perfect 20-0 at home meaning that they could be very tough to beat at playoff time.

Team to watch…

Philadelphia 76ers (20-21)

The 76ers have risen from the dead after they were nearly written off with a 13-20 start. However, they have now put together 7 straight wins before a tough loss to Dallas on Monday night. Considering how inconsistent the rest of the East is behind the top 3, the 76ers have a chance to really make things interesting if they can put together another similar streak.

Western Conference

Los Angeles Lakers (34-8)

The Lakers clearly look to be favorites again out of the Western Conference as they have a 5 game advantage over any other team from the West and a huge 10 ½ game lead in the Pacific division. Kobe Bryant’s 26.4 points per game is good for 3^rd best in the league and the Lakers lead the NBA with 108 points per contest as a team. A few short weeks ago the Lakers appeared that they would be unchallenged this year in the conference, but they are realizing that the San Antonio Spurs are playing very well and will attempt to give them a challenge for frontrunner in the West. Los Angeles has won 13 of their past 16 games including big wins over Boston and Cleveland in the process. If nothing else drastically changes, the Lakers will likely make another run towards the NBA Finals.

San Antonio Spurs (29-13)

A lot of questions arose after the Spurs got off to a slow start losing 5 of their first 7 games. However, San Antonio bounced back winning 7 of their next 8 and the momentum has not slowed down much since. The Spurs have now won their last 4 games and 8 of their last 10 including a huge battle where they took down the Lakers 112-111. Tim Duncan and Tony Parker continue to lead the way both averaging 20.4 points per contest. The Spurs win over the Lakers proved that they are back on the right track and not ready to hand over the season quite yet to the Lakers considering Los Angeles is everybody’s pick to win the West. San Antonio gets another big match-up with the Lakers this Sunday and it will be interesting to see how things shake up this time inside the Staples Center. Look for the Spurs to be playing their best basketball as they usually do around post season time.

Denver Nuggets (28-15)

Giving up Allen Iverson may not been a big of mistake as people first thought. Chauncey Billups is averaging nearly 20 points and the Nuggets seem to be in better shape than the Pistons. Carmelo Anthony leads the team with 21 points, but has missed some valuable playing time recently due to a broken hand. Despite their star player missing time on the court, the Nuggets have still managed to win 8 of their last 11 games. Anthony participated in some workouts on Thursday and it should not be long before he rejoins the lineup. Denver will desperately need him back considering they are bout to embark on an 8 game road adventure at the start of February. The Nuggets are only 11-9 on the road this year and how they perform in the next few weeks away from home will definitely make an impact on their ability to maintain their 2 ½ game lead over Portland in the Northwest.

Team to watch…

New Orleans Hornets (26-14)

The Hornets proved last year that they could really come alive during the playoffs. Chris Paul has played like Chris Paul with 21.2ppg and an NBA leading 11 assist per game. New Orleans may have been expected to be in better position at this point in the season, but they are still only a mere 2 games back to the Spurs and definitely in striking range.