After losing the first two games in the series, the Memphis Grizzlies must win four of the next five games to capture the Western Conference championship of the NBA.

The journey starts with a must-win game this Saturday night.

Saturday, May 25
Western Conference Finals, Game 3: San Antonio Spurs @ Memphis Grizzlies
Sport betting line: Memphis -5

Why San Antonio Might Win ?

There’s one particularly good reason to go with the Spurs: They will be rested. San Antonio has some high-energy players blessed with youthful vigor, such as Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green.

However, the core of the roster is still the Big Three, the trio of Hall of Fame players who lifted the organization to three world championships in 2003, 2005 and 2007: Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobili. These players are all nearing the end of their respective careers. They need time to rejuvenate amidst a punishing playoff schedule.

San Antonio finished a grueling West semifinal series against Golden State late Thursday night last week and then had to start this West final on Sunday afternoon. Coming right back and playing on Tuesday represented a grind for the Spurs, so having three full days off before Game 3 should provide a real boost for the old guys on the San Antonio roster, especially Parker, who had an MRI taken in the in-between time before this game.

Rest is exactly what the Spurs need in order to regroup and keep pace with the younger Grizzlies in this contest.

Why Memphis Might Win ?

At the end of the day, one needs to realize that even though San Antonio is the team leading this series by two games, the odds strongly back Memphis in this specific game. The odds suggest that Memphis will play with supreme focus, intensity and desperation in this spot.

The Grizzlies also have the knowledge that they fell behind the Los Angeles Clippers, 2-0, in the first round of this year’s playoffs. Memphis returned home for Game 3 and spanked the Clippers, engineering a turnaround that led to four straight wins.

Yes, it’s true that San Antonio’s older roster – especially its aging trio of Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, and Manu Ginobili – gets three full days of rest before Game 3. However, that seems like the kind of thing that will help San Antonio in the long run, not necessarily the short run.

Memphis has too much on the line, and will have too much emotion in this, its first Western Conference Finals home game as a franchise, to stumble. The Grizzlies are going to jump out of their shoes with energy, and that tidal wave of effort will wash over the Spurs, drowning San Antonio in what figures to be a decisive Game 3 victory for Memphis.

There should be some tough games ahead in this series, but Game 3 doesn’t figure to be one of them. A close game would have been much more likely if this series had shifted to Tennessee knotted at one game apiece.

Who Will Win?

The sense here is that Memphis, as was the case in its first-round series against the Los Angeles Clippers, will flourish.

Similarly, San Antonio – as was the case in 2012 in the Western Conference Finals against Oklahoma City – will go on the road and get blown out in a Game 3 situation when leading 2-0.

NBA Betting Pick: Memphis -5

Kevin Bradley the Sports Book Manager at Bovada.lv says :
“Looking back at this NFL season, it has been very strange for the book.

Despite the bettors being enamored with Kaepernick over his last five starts, the Ravens covering all three playoff games easily has 60% of the bettors siding with Baltimore early on in the week.”

SUPER BOWL XLVII BETTING LINE:

Baltimore Ravens +4
San Francisco -4

MVP Odds to Win MVP at Bovada.lv?

Colin Kaepernick (SF) QB 7/4
Joe Flacco (BAL) QB 5/2
Ray Lewis (BAL) LB 6/1
Frank Gore (SF) RB 17/2
Ray Rice (BAL) RB 12/1
Michael Crabtree (SF) WR 16/1
Anquan Boldin (BAL) WR 18/1
Torrey Smith (BAL) WR 20/1
Vernon Davis (SF) TE 22/1
Aldon Smith (SF) LB 25/1
Dennis Pitta (BAL) TE 33/1
Ed Reed (BAL) FS 33/1
Randy Moss (SF) WR 40/1
Terrell Suggs (BAL) LB 50/1
LaMichael James (SF) RB 50/1
Patrick Willis (SF) LB 66/1
NaVorro Bowman (SF) LB 66/1
Dashon Goldson (SF) FS 66/1
David Akers (SF) K 66/1
Bernard Pierce (BAL) RB 75/1
Justin Tucker (BAL) K 75/1
Delanie Walker (SF) TE 75/1
Ted Ginn Jr. (SF) WR 75/1
Alex Smith (SF) QB 100/1
Field (anyone else) 22/1

This Sunday, Lin and his New York Knicks will look to carry their momentum into a run-in with the reigning champion Dallas Mavericks.

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Is it too much to ask for the win streak to continue?

Since Jeremy Lin took over as the starting point guard earlier this month the Knicks have climbed both the Eastern Conference standings and the NBA futures. For example, pre-Lin the Knicks sat at 40/1 odds of winning the NBA championship. Now? The line is at just 18/1.

As Lin continues to thrive, setting new benchmarks for a recently-appointed starter, fans across the country will be lining up to share in the fun.

The most optimistic play might be Bovada’s MVP betting line, which has the young Jeremy Lin listed as high as 40/1.

Bet on the NBA with Bovada.

The last time  the two teams met, Dwyane Wade led the Heat over the Dallas Mavericks in six  games. Now, however, a more experienced and even more determined Dirk Nowitzki  seeks vengeance.
How will it  all play out? Bet on the NBA Finals with Bodog.

Though Miami may have had a  dominant Shaquille O’Neal in their line up the last time they fought for the  Larry O’Brien Trophy, this time around they have former two-time MVP LeBron  James.

Ever since it  was announced last summer that James - along with All-Star forward Chris Bosh -  would join Wade in South   Beach, the team has been  pegged as a title favorite. Though their regular season campaign had its ups  and downs, there’s no denying the potential the star-studded roster has shown  over the course of this postseason.

After a brief  adjustment following a Game 1 loss to the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern  Conference Finals, the Heat showed an unparalleled dominance over the remainder  of the series. Do the Mavericks even stand a chance?

The Miami Heat  are listed as -4.5 favorites in Game 1 and have long had the advantage in long  term futures play. Provided the club can keep getting production from the Big  Three and a reasonable presence from the rest of their shallow roster, a  championship is well within reach.

Get all your  NBA odds at Bodog Sportsbook.

The Preakness Stakes is the shortest leg of the three-race series at 1 3/16 miles. And while Animal Kingdom showed he has no problem going the 1 ¼ mile distance of the Kentucky Derby, the big question is whether he has the speed needed to win the Preakness Stakes – especially with Shackleford, Flashpoint and Dance City in the field.

Get all your 2011 Preakness Stakes odds at the Bodog Racebook!

The NBA’s 2010-11 MVP Derrick Rose led the Bulls with 33 points in the game, knowing how important it was to take that pivotal game and swing momentum back Chicago’s way. Rose is averaging 32 points-per-game in the series, proving why he’s the NBA’s youngest MVP, and he’s hoping to carry that onto a NBA Finals MVP Award.

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This wasn’t Chicago’s easiest win. They trailed early in the fourth quarter when Rose and Taj Gibson caught fire and combined for 22 of the team’s 26 points to snatch the victory.

The Bulls are still looking for their first NBA championship in the post-Michael Jordan era, while the Hawks are looking for their first championship period since relocating from St. Louis.

Bodog has the Bulls with 7/2 odds of winning the NBA championship, while the Hawks have 100/1 odds overall, but the outcome of Thursday’s Game 6 will impact those numbers greatly.

Can Joe Johnson, Jeff Teague, Al Horford and the Hawks rise above the overwhelming odds, or will Derrick Rose and Co. move to their first Eastern Conference Final since they won it all in 1998?

Get all your NBA odds at Bodog.

The situation hasn’t exactly improved ever since.

Although the Heat have put together a solid 2010-11 campaign - one that has seen them rise to the top of the NBA pile and then back down again (they currently trail the Chicago Bulls in the East) - they’ll have to prove that they can defeat Boston if they hope to compete for a championship this summer.

In three meetings so far, the Celtics have swept the board, winning by eight, five and three points in October, November and February respectively. Can Miami avoid the season sweep with a win this Sunday?

BOSTON CELTICS at MIAMI HEAT
Starts 3:30pm Sunday 11th April - Live on ABC.

Bet on Heat/Celtics with Bodog.   Get all your NBA odds at Bodog.

Although the actual field of contenders was far deeper than a simple pair, the minds of the public were made up that the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat were at the top of the pile.

In mid-March, however, that same public is not so sure.

This Thursday the Miami Heat will host the Los Angeles Lakers less than three months after handing them a Christmas Day beating, but a second victory might not be as attainable as the first.

The Heat have struggled of late, dropping recent contests to a number of worthwhile opponents. Miami have lost four straight games heading into the week, and will be charged with the task of slowing down a Lakers squad that’s won seven consecutive of their own.

Will the Heat be able to bounce back in time for the big reunion? And at what point will the Heat (with 3/1 odds of winning the NBA championship, tied with LA for the league’s best) fall out of the top spot altogether?

Get all your NBA odds at Bodog. You can Bet on the Heat/Lakers with Bodog.

The fantasy draft is a new format for the NHL and one that has hockey fans excited about an All-Star game that has been growing stale for quite some time. The premise is simple and goes back to the schoolyard or backyard rink when teams were decided by two captains picking the players. The best player goes first, as captains pick players alternately.

Bodog have put together odds and betting lines on which player will be the first one taken and, also, who will be the last one drafted. Now, it is worth noting that the last selection must be a forward since all goalies and all defencemen have to be chosen before Round 15 of the draft.

The two team captains are Eric Staal of the Carolina Hurricanes and Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings, so they’re out of the running for both categories. In addition, two alternate captains for each team will be named later and will assist the captains in the selection process.

So let’s get to which player is likely to go first. There are two favourites, Vancouver’s Henrik Sedin, the reigning MVP of the league, and Washington’s Alex Ovechkin, a fairly decent player himself. Both Sedin and Ovechkin are getting 4/1 odds to be selected first overall. After that it’s Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby at 5/1, followed by the Lightning’s star sniper, Steven Stamkos, at 7/1.

It will be interesting to see how the captains play this.

You have to think that if Lidstrom gets the first pick, which will be determined by a coin toss, that he might be tempted to look at his fellow Swedish countryman Sedin.

And if patriotism plays any part, Staal, a Canadian, might be pressured into picking Crosby first. Of course, Sid the Kid is widely considered the best player in the world, so it’s not like anyone would accuse Staal of favouritism.
As for Ovechkin, the Capitals’ sniper is suffering through a rather disappointing season to date. One of the most dangerous goal-scorers in the game today, the Russian superstar has failed to match the torrid pace of his previous campaigns.

Get all your 2011 NHL All-Star Game odds and make your hockey bets at Bodog.