With the 2007/08 NBA regular season in the books, the 16 teams that got invites to the postseason are ready to roll in the “real” season.
On Saturday, April 18, 2008 the NBA postseason will begin with four series kicking off and the rest of the playoff sked beginning the following day.
Here is a look at some interesting postseason matchups with team futures odds from SPORTSBETTING.COM in parentheses.
Washington Wizards (+5000) at Cleveland Cavaliers (+3000)
LeBron James won the regular season scoring title and the Cavs are listed at -125 to win the series, while the Wizards are sitting at -105.
It’s déjà vu as Cleveland and Washington met in the first round last year and the Cavs took the series in four straight.
This season the two teams have split the season series going 2-2 ATS and SU and the Total has gone Over in three out of the four matchups.
The early betting action on this one is leaning towards King James and crew, as the Cleveland has received 61% of the series volume.
Phoenix Suns (+700) at San Antonio Spurs (+550)
Shaquille O’Neal was acquired by Phoenix for this exact situation—to act as a foil to the Spurs’ Tim Duncan.
The Suns have gone 3-1 SU and ATS vs. Phoenix and all four of the teams’ matchups have gone Under the Total.
The oddsmakers and the public are still not convinced the addition of Shaq will help the Suns, as the Spurs are listed as -150 series favorites and receiving 68% of the wagering action.
Dallas Mavericks (+2500) at New Orleans Hornets (+1500)
Seeded second overall in the Western Conference, that’s right second in the West, the New Orleans Hornets also took top spot in the Southwest Division; a far cry from their 39-43 record from a year ago.
It’s even Stephen when it comes to head-to-head betting stats. The Mavs and Hornets split the season series going 2-2 SU, ATS and on the O/U, however the two have gone Under the Total in eight of their last 11.
SPORTSBETTING.COM has the Hornets favored to take the series at -145 and the Mavs as +115 underdogs.
In this one, the underdog is getting a bit more attention, as Dallas has 53% of bettors backing them.
Denver Nuggets (+6000) at Los Angeles Lakers (+200)
Los Angeles’ acquisition of Pau Gasol in February has worked wonders for the team and in conjunction with Kobe Bryant the Lakers look like a definite favorite to be playing well into June.
The Lakers are a prohibitive series favorite against the Nuggets, as L.A. is listed at –750, while Denver are a hefty +450 underdog.
When you look at the season series it’s all Lakers too. L.A. went 3-0 SU in meetings with Denver and L.A. supporters profited in all three matchups to boot, as their team covered the spread in each.
For bettors, it’s all LA, although the volume on the series has been low (likely due to the hefty price tag on LA), with the Lakers seeing 83% of all the action.
Atlanta Hawks (+30,000) at Boston Celtics (+175)
In a matchup of the odds-on favorite for the NBA championship and the team considered to be the longest shot, no one is seeing an upset here. The Celtics are -6000 favorites.
Boston managed to win all three meetings between the two teams, going 2-1 ATS, while you might want to note that all three games went Under.
Very few bettors are braving a series wager on the Hawks, as it is all Boston money coming in (93%).
The NBA postseason is about to get underway and many are hoping for a Boston Celtics Los Angeles Lakers final. Will it happen? The first step to that answer starts this weekend.
Enjoy all the playoff action. Stop by SPORTSBETTING.COM for half juice lines on Friday, great bonuses and tons of playoff prop plays.
