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Sports Marketwatch
NBA Edition
2/08/2008 4:59 PM EST
By The Team at SportsInsights.com
Welcome to this week's edition of the Sports Marketwatch – NBA
Edition, where the Team at SportsInsights gives sports fans
unprecedented insight into the NBA point-spread marketplace. If
you ever wanted to know what was really happening on the
sportsbook side, you now have an all-access pass with Sports
Marketplace! Initially, the NBA Edition of the Sports
Marketwatch will be a weekly column published on Friday,
normally by around 5PM, Eastern Time.
The staff at SportsInsights.com speaks directly with the line
managers at some of the sports betting industry’s largest
sportsbooks about which games the public is chasing and the
Sharps are pounding. We’ll take a look at what’s in store for
today’s NBA games.
Sports Marketplace – NBA Edition
Recapping Last Week’s NBA Action
The Sports Marketwatch split its two plays last week going 1-1.
For the year, the NBA Sports Marketwatch hasn’t been “much to
write home about” – but the season is still young.
2007-08 NBA Games to Watch: 3-9-0 = 25%
*Source: SportsInsights.com
NBA Sports Marketwatch 2/8/08 – Games to Watch
San Antonio Spurs vs. New York Knicks
We see several factors that indicate potential value on the
Knicks. As usual, SportsInsight’s betting percentages can be a
good guideline for where the Public is betting. An overwhelming
70% of the bets are coming in on the Spurs – even more if you
count teasers and parlays! This has pushed the line from Knicks
+6.5 to +7.5.
In addition to a one point value, the Knicks have lost 7 in a
row – while San Antonio has won three in a row. This yields our
“buy low, sell high” philosophy: we are happy to “buy” the
Knicks while “selling” the Spurs.
Finally, the Spurs aren’t as dominating as they have been in
previous years. They are merely a .500 team on the road, so we
like the +7.5 on the Knicks at home.
New York Knicks +7.5
Boston Celtics vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
The sports marketplace is flashing “huge contrarian play for
smart money” on this game. Almost 80% of bets are coming in on
the mighty Celtics. Even with a large majority of the bets
landing on the Celtics, the line has actually moved from Minny
+6.5 down to +5.5.
Our odds maker friends confirm that “big money” is taking the
other side of “Joe Public.” The “big money” sees a Celtic team
that has struggled a bit over the recent past – and a
rejuvenated Timberwolves team – that is no longer the worst team
in the league! (That distinction now belongs to the Miami Heat.)
We’ll go with the smart money and grab the +6 that is still out
there.
Minnesota Timberwolves +6
Utah Jazz vs. Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are at home and aren’t getting any respect
from the bettors today. More than 70% of the bets are on the
red-hot and NOW, first-place Utah Jazz. The Jazz have won ten in
a row and are the league’s hottest team.
Note, however, that before this streak, Utah was barely above
.500. Indeed, the Jazz are a weak 11-15 on the road while
Sacramento is 15-11 at home. Sacramento has been playing well,
so we’ll “sell” Utah at a high. Take Sacramento as a “live home
dog.”
The large number of bets coming in on Utah has pushed the spread
up to Sacramento +2.5.
Sacramento Kings +2.5
So, here’s a wrap-up of SportsInsights.com analysis for this
week’s Games to Watch for the NBA.
Games to Watch (3-9-0)
New York Knicks +7.5
Minnesota Timberwolves +6
Sacramento Kings +2.5
It should be another exciting weekend in the sports marketplace.
Keep Sports Marketwatch picks handy and your browser pointed to
SportsInsights.com for the latest real-time updates, using our
exclusive Sports Investing tools.
We’ll be back next Friday with the new edition of the Sports
Marketwatch – NBA Edition.
Enjoy the games!
The Team at SportsInsights.com
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