By Richard Gardner | Sportsbook Manager
The 2010 FIBA World Championship tips off Saturday in Turkey and runs all the way until Sept. 12. We’ve posted our odds to win the tournament and have been seeing modest action to date, though we expect it to heat up as the action gets underway.
The United States heads in as the 1/2 favorite to win, despite not having won the competition since 1994. After the Americans, it’s Spain at 3/1, Greece at 12/1, Serbia at 20/1 and host Turkey at 25/1.
Not surprisingly, the large majority of the bets we’ve booked have been on the United States to win. A combination of the fact the American side features the likes of NBA stars Kevin Durant and Chauncey Billups, plus good-old-fashioned patriotism, is the reason for that. As we saw during this summer’s World Cup, our bettors love to bet on their home country, and I expect that trend to continue when we start releasing lines for the individual games, even if we’re not talking about a “Dream Team” here.
I do, however, expect we’ll see a number of bets – perhaps from our sharper, less emotional players – on Spain, which won this competition in 2006. Granted, the Spaniards will have to play without Pau Gasol, who will be taking a well-deserved break from the court, but at 3/1, you’re getting a great team with a decent payout. Just ask Gasol himself.
"They're a great team, whoever plays," Gasol tell the Associated Press. "They're preparing very well and I hope they can emulate that in the tournament. It'll be tough, but they look prepared to keep winning more titles."
Ditto for U.S coach Mike Krzyzewski, who says, "Spain's got a great team. They're as good as anybody." Although he’s sure to add that Spain would be better with Gasol.
If you’re looking for a medium shot to make a small bet on, how about Turkey, the host side, at 25/1? This team will definitely be fired up to perform well at home, and the country’s sports fans are famous for their enthusiasm. Hedo Turkoglu will have to play out of his mind if Turkey is to upset the favorites, but a home team should never be underestimated.
While I’ve got your attention, we recently posted odds on who will be named the 2011 NBA MVP. The current favorite? Kevin Durant at 5/2, which might come as a bit of a surprise for some of you. After Durant, it’s Kobe Bryant at 3/1, LeBron James at 9/2 (the two-time defending MVP, now with the Miami Heat), Dwight Howard at 13/2, and Dwyane Wade at 9/1.
