Armadillo: Tuesday's six-pack
-- Giants win 1-0 for second consecutive day, first time they've won consecutive games 1-0 since August, 1980.
-- Padres lost in 17 innings Sunday, then on a messed-up pop-up Monday, wasting lot of good pitching by starters Rea, Pomeranz.
-- Sharks 6, Blues 3-- San Jose is one game away from Stanley Cup finals.
-- Royals lost Alex Gordon for 4-6 weeks with a broken hand.
-- Draymond Green will play tonight; he got fined but the league backed off on his suspension- the league prefers good TV ratings to actual justice.
-- Atlanta Braves have five of the first 80 picks in the June 9 amateur draft.
**********
Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but........
13) Major league baseball teams aren't allowed to play more than 20 days in a row, so players on Colorado/Pittsburgh had to vote to play Monday, after Sunday's game was rained out in the second inning.
Pirates will now take the field 34 days in a row, Colorado 27, but playing yesterday was better than the Rockies flying in for one day later this season.
12) With Lucas Duda out for an extended time bith back issues, would the Mets trade for a 3B, move David Wright to first? He has been struggling with throws, anyway, this could be the time to put him at first base.
11) Interesting matchup in Chicago tonight: Indians are 7-0 when Josh Tomlin starts on the mound, White Sox are 9-0 when Chris Sale pitches.
10) White Sox announcer Steve Stone was talking about former Braves' slugger Rico Carty (.299 career BA, 204 HRs). Apparently Carty wasn't a trusting soul-- he kept his wallet in hsi uniform pants while he was playing. Seriously.
9) On the Pirate game yesterday afternoon, Colorado announcers were saying that when he played for the Bronx Bombers, New York coaches tried to get Dominic Cervelli to quit and become a minor league coach, like Crash Davis in Bull Durham.
Cervelli just signed a three-year, $31M extension; hope he sends a copy of his checks to New York, so they can see how wrong they were.
8) I've spent a lot of time keeping score at baseball games, was even an official scorer in the minor leagues for two years, but if I started keeping score again, I'd have to change the way I kept score, because of shifting defenses.
A good scorecard is something you can look at six months later and tell what went on in that game, even if you never saw the game. Jotting down "5-3" is no longer enough, because the 3B ("5") might have shifted to the right side of the infield. Now you need to take notes and be more descriptive, in order to be more accurate.
7) Raptors 105, Cavaliers 99- Why do teams play so much better at home?
6) Trevon Blueitt is going back to Xavier; the Musketeers have their top four guys on the perimeter back and are a top 25 team.
5) Drivers in this year's Indianapolis 500 represent 11 different countries.
4) In his last 1,001 innings pitched, Clayton Kershaw's ERA is 1.995.
3) Players who have come to bat with most men on base this season:
Rizzo 150, Polanco 147, Pujols 143, Abreu 137.
2) Players with 100+ PA who have driven in the highest %age of baserunners:
Bruce 26.7%, Betts 24.2%, Markakis 24.2%, Bradley Jr 23.4%
1) Players with 100+ PA who have driven in the lowest %age of baserunners
Gennett 1-64, MTaylor 2-68, Norris 3-85.
-- Giants win 1-0 for second consecutive day, first time they've won consecutive games 1-0 since August, 1980.
-- Padres lost in 17 innings Sunday, then on a messed-up pop-up Monday, wasting lot of good pitching by starters Rea, Pomeranz.
-- Sharks 6, Blues 3-- San Jose is one game away from Stanley Cup finals.
-- Royals lost Alex Gordon for 4-6 weeks with a broken hand.
-- Draymond Green will play tonight; he got fined but the league backed off on his suspension- the league prefers good TV ratings to actual justice.
-- Atlanta Braves have five of the first 80 picks in the June 9 amateur draft.
**********
Armadillo: Tuesday's List of 13: Nobody asked me, but........
13) Major league baseball teams aren't allowed to play more than 20 days in a row, so players on Colorado/Pittsburgh had to vote to play Monday, after Sunday's game was rained out in the second inning.
Pirates will now take the field 34 days in a row, Colorado 27, but playing yesterday was better than the Rockies flying in for one day later this season.
12) With Lucas Duda out for an extended time bith back issues, would the Mets trade for a 3B, move David Wright to first? He has been struggling with throws, anyway, this could be the time to put him at first base.
11) Interesting matchup in Chicago tonight: Indians are 7-0 when Josh Tomlin starts on the mound, White Sox are 9-0 when Chris Sale pitches.
10) White Sox announcer Steve Stone was talking about former Braves' slugger Rico Carty (.299 career BA, 204 HRs). Apparently Carty wasn't a trusting soul-- he kept his wallet in hsi uniform pants while he was playing. Seriously.
9) On the Pirate game yesterday afternoon, Colorado announcers were saying that when he played for the Bronx Bombers, New York coaches tried to get Dominic Cervelli to quit and become a minor league coach, like Crash Davis in Bull Durham.
Cervelli just signed a three-year, $31M extension; hope he sends a copy of his checks to New York, so they can see how wrong they were.
8) I've spent a lot of time keeping score at baseball games, was even an official scorer in the minor leagues for two years, but if I started keeping score again, I'd have to change the way I kept score, because of shifting defenses.
A good scorecard is something you can look at six months later and tell what went on in that game, even if you never saw the game. Jotting down "5-3" is no longer enough, because the 3B ("5") might have shifted to the right side of the infield. Now you need to take notes and be more descriptive, in order to be more accurate.
7) Raptors 105, Cavaliers 99- Why do teams play so much better at home?
6) Trevon Blueitt is going back to Xavier; the Musketeers have their top four guys on the perimeter back and are a top 25 team.
5) Drivers in this year's Indianapolis 500 represent 11 different countries.
4) In his last 1,001 innings pitched, Clayton Kershaw's ERA is 1.995.
3) Players who have come to bat with most men on base this season:
Rizzo 150, Polanco 147, Pujols 143, Abreu 137.
2) Players with 100+ PA who have driven in the highest %age of baserunners:
Bruce 26.7%, Betts 24.2%, Markakis 24.2%, Bradley Jr 23.4%
1) Players with 100+ PA who have driven in the lowest %age of baserunners
Gennett 1-64, MTaylor 2-68, Norris 3-85.
NBA
Tuesday, May 24
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Tuesday's NBA Conference Finals betting preview and odds: Warriors at Thunder
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Oklahoma City raced past the Warriors in Game 3, turning every rebound and every errant pass into an opportunity to get out in transition.
Golden State Warriors at Oklahoma City Thunder (+1, 221.5)
Thunder lead series 2-1
The road to back-to-back championships for the Golden State Warriors ran straight into a wall in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals as the Oklahoma City Thunder dominated in a 133-105 triumph. The Warriors will try to pick themselves back up and avoid a 3-1 hole when they visit the Thunder for Game 4 on Tuesday.
Golden State was the more aggressive team in Game 2 and came away with a 118-91 victory, seemingly correcting all the mistakes that plagued the team in the second half of a Game 1 loss. Those mistakes came back in a big way in Game 3 as Oklahoma City raced past the Warriors, turning every rebound and every errant pass into an opportunity to get out in transition. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for 63 points, 16 rebounds and 14 assists in the emphatic win and most importantly sliced their turnover count from 11 in Game 2 to five in Game 3. “My teammates did a great job of driving the basketball and taking the pressure off of me,” Durant told reporters. “Not letting me handle the ball as much and just taking the pressure off me, and I was trying to make the correct passes and the simple passes.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, TNT
LINE HISTORY: The Warriors opened as one-point road favorites after getting destroyed as road faves in Game 3. The line moved briefly to 1.5 Monday morning but has since returned back to the opening number. The total opened at 222 and, at the time of publication for this preview, has come down a half point to 221.5. Check out the complete line history here.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (82-13, 53-40-2 ATS, 51-43-1 O/U): Twice during their run to the 2015 title the Warriors fell behind 2-1 in a series before ultimately winning, but never were they as thoroughly crushed as they were on Sunday. “We got our butts kicked,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr told reporters. “It doesn’t matter if (the loss was by) one point or 30. You’ve got to look at the tape and you’ve got to figure out how you can be better and then you come back with a better effort. But they were the more desperate team (Sunday), they were beating us to loose balls, to rebounds, and our quick shots just fed their transition.” Warriors All-Star Draymond Green was held to six points on 1-of-9 shooting in the loss and was whistled for a flagrant foul for kicking Oklahoma center Steven Adams in the groin in the second quarter.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (65-31, 46-49-1 ATS, 46-50 O/U): The game was knotted at 40 with under nine minutes left in the first half when Oklahoma City put its foot on the gas, outscoring the Warriors 32-7 over the rest of the half while holding the best shooting team in the NBA to 2-of-23 from the field over that span. The Thunder followed that up with a 45-point third quarter to stun the defending champs and were matter-of-fact about their dominating effort after the game. “We were able to catch the ball, drive, get to the paint and kick-out,” Durant told reporters. “We were letting the ball move and our bodies move and that helped us out.”
TRENDS:
* Warriors are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games playing on 1 days rest.
* Thunder are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games overall.
* Over is 5-1 in Warriors last 6 games following a straight up loss of more than 10 points.
* Over is 4-1 in Thunder last 5 home games.
* Home team is 9-1-1 ATS in the last 11 meetings.
* Over is 7-1 in the last 8 meetings in Oklahoma City.
CONSENSUS: As usual, the Warriors are picking up the majority of the betting action - even as after getting beaten so badly in Game 3. 61 percent of the Consensus picks are on the Dubs. Currently, 69 percent of the wagers are on the Over.
Tuesday, May 24
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Tuesday's NBA Conference Finals betting preview and odds: Warriors at Thunder
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oklahoma City raced past the Warriors in Game 3, turning every rebound and every errant pass into an opportunity to get out in transition.
Golden State Warriors at Oklahoma City Thunder (+1, 221.5)
Thunder lead series 2-1
The road to back-to-back championships for the Golden State Warriors ran straight into a wall in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals as the Oklahoma City Thunder dominated in a 133-105 triumph. The Warriors will try to pick themselves back up and avoid a 3-1 hole when they visit the Thunder for Game 4 on Tuesday.
Golden State was the more aggressive team in Game 2 and came away with a 118-91 victory, seemingly correcting all the mistakes that plagued the team in the second half of a Game 1 loss. Those mistakes came back in a big way in Game 3 as Oklahoma City raced past the Warriors, turning every rebound and every errant pass into an opportunity to get out in transition. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for 63 points, 16 rebounds and 14 assists in the emphatic win and most importantly sliced their turnover count from 11 in Game 2 to five in Game 3. “My teammates did a great job of driving the basketball and taking the pressure off of me,” Durant told reporters. “Not letting me handle the ball as much and just taking the pressure off me, and I was trying to make the correct passes and the simple passes.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, TNT
LINE HISTORY: The Warriors opened as one-point road favorites after getting destroyed as road faves in Game 3. The line moved briefly to 1.5 Monday morning but has since returned back to the opening number. The total opened at 222 and, at the time of publication for this preview, has come down a half point to 221.5. Check out the complete line history here.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (82-13, 53-40-2 ATS, 51-43-1 O/U): Twice during their run to the 2015 title the Warriors fell behind 2-1 in a series before ultimately winning, but never were they as thoroughly crushed as they were on Sunday. “We got our butts kicked,” Golden State coach Steve Kerr told reporters. “It doesn’t matter if (the loss was by) one point or 30. You’ve got to look at the tape and you’ve got to figure out how you can be better and then you come back with a better effort. But they were the more desperate team (Sunday), they were beating us to loose balls, to rebounds, and our quick shots just fed their transition.” Warriors All-Star Draymond Green was held to six points on 1-of-9 shooting in the loss and was whistled for a flagrant foul for kicking Oklahoma center Steven Adams in the groin in the second quarter.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (65-31, 46-49-1 ATS, 46-50 O/U): The game was knotted at 40 with under nine minutes left in the first half when Oklahoma City put its foot on the gas, outscoring the Warriors 32-7 over the rest of the half while holding the best shooting team in the NBA to 2-of-23 from the field over that span. The Thunder followed that up with a 45-point third quarter to stun the defending champs and were matter-of-fact about their dominating effort after the game. “We were able to catch the ball, drive, get to the paint and kick-out,” Durant told reporters. “We were letting the ball move and our bodies move and that helped us out.”
TRENDS:
* Warriors are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games playing on 1 days rest.
* Thunder are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 games overall.
* Over is 5-1 in Warriors last 6 games following a straight up loss of more than 10 points.
* Over is 4-1 in Thunder last 5 home games.
* Home team is 9-1-1 ATS in the last 11 meetings.
* Over is 7-1 in the last 8 meetings in Oklahoma City.
CONSENSUS: As usual, the Warriors are picking up the majority of the betting action - even as after getting beaten so badly in Game 3. 61 percent of the Consensus picks are on the Dubs. Currently, 69 percent of the wagers are on the Over.
NBA
Dunkel
Tuesday, May 24
Golden State @ Oklahoma City
Game 715-716
May 24, 2016 @ 9:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Golden State
134.726
Oklahoma City
128.207
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Golden State
by 6 1/2
218
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Golden State
by 1 1/2
222
Dunkel Pick:
Golden State
(-1 1/2); Under
NBA
Long Sheet
Tuesday, May 24
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GOLDEN STATE (82 - 13) at OKLAHOMA CITY (65 - 31) - 5/24/2016, 9:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
GOLDEN STATE is 52-40 ATS (+8.0 Units) in all games this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 41-33 ATS (+4.7 Units) when the total is greater than or equal to 210 this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 49-39 ATS (+6.1 Units) as a favorite this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) revenging a loss vs opponent this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 19-8 ATS (+10.2 Units) after a loss by 10 points or more over the last 3 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 59-42 ATS (+12.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 41-28 ATS (+10.2 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 67-47 ATS (+15.3 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
OKLAHOMA CITY is 26-35 ATS (-12.5 Units) after scoring 105 points or more this season.
OKLAHOMA CITY is 28-39 ATS (-14.9 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
OKLAHOMA CITY is 6-6 against the spread versus GOLDEN STATE over the last 3 seasons
GOLDEN STATE is 8-5 straight up against OKLAHOMA CITY over the last 3 seasons
7 of 13 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
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NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up
Tuesday, May 24
Oklahoma City-Golden State (OC 2-1)
Thunder was up 25 at half in Game 3, cruised to an easy win. Warriors starters other than Curry/Thompson shot 5-21 from floor. Golden State won seven of last ten games with Oklahoma City; two of three games in this series stayed under. Warriors are 2-3 in their last five visits here; four of those five games went over total. Thunder won four of last five home games. Golden State is 2-3 in its last five road games. Time to step up for Warriors here, or else they'll be down 3-games-to-1.
Playoff tally: Favorites vs spread: 26-18, Over: 13-31
Second round: Favorites: 13-8, over: 12-9
Conference final: Favorites: 3-4, over: 3-3-1
NBA
Tuesday, May 24
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Trend Report
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9:00 PM
GOLDEN STATE vs. OKLAHOMA CITY
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Golden State's last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Golden State's last 6 games when playing Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City is 2-3-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Golden State
Oklahoma City is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games when playing Golden State
Dunkel
Tuesday, May 24
Golden State @ Oklahoma City
Game 715-716
May 24, 2016 @ 9:00 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Golden State
134.726
Oklahoma City
128.207
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Golden State
by 6 1/2
218
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Golden State
by 1 1/2
222
Dunkel Pick:
Golden State
(-1 1/2); Under
NBA
Long Sheet
Tuesday, May 24
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GOLDEN STATE (82 - 13) at OKLAHOMA CITY (65 - 31) - 5/24/2016, 9:05 PM
Top Trends for this game.
GOLDEN STATE is 52-40 ATS (+8.0 Units) in all games this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 41-33 ATS (+4.7 Units) when the total is greater than or equal to 210 this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 49-39 ATS (+6.1 Units) as a favorite this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 10-2 ATS (+7.8 Units) revenging a loss vs opponent this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 19-8 ATS (+10.2 Units) after a loss by 10 points or more over the last 3 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 59-42 ATS (+12.8 Units) when playing against a team with a winning record over the last 2 seasons.
GOLDEN STATE is 41-28 ATS (+10.2 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game this season.
GOLDEN STATE is 67-47 ATS (+15.3 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game - 2nd half of the season over the last 3 seasons.
OKLAHOMA CITY is 26-35 ATS (-12.5 Units) after scoring 105 points or more this season.
OKLAHOMA CITY is 28-39 ATS (-14.9 Units) versus poor defensive teams - allowing 99+ points/game this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
OKLAHOMA CITY is 6-6 against the spread versus GOLDEN STATE over the last 3 seasons
GOLDEN STATE is 8-5 straight up against OKLAHOMA CITY over the last 3 seasons
7 of 13 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
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NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up
Tuesday, May 24
Oklahoma City-Golden State (OC 2-1)
Thunder was up 25 at half in Game 3, cruised to an easy win. Warriors starters other than Curry/Thompson shot 5-21 from floor. Golden State won seven of last ten games with Oklahoma City; two of three games in this series stayed under. Warriors are 2-3 in their last five visits here; four of those five games went over total. Thunder won four of last five home games. Golden State is 2-3 in its last five road games. Time to step up for Warriors here, or else they'll be down 3-games-to-1.
Playoff tally: Favorites vs spread: 26-18, Over: 13-31
Second round: Favorites: 13-8, over: 12-9
Conference final: Favorites: 3-4, over: 3-3-1
NBA
Tuesday, May 24
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Trend Report
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9:00 PM
GOLDEN STATE vs. OKLAHOMA CITY
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Golden State's last 6 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Golden State's last 6 games when playing Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City is 2-3-1 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Golden State
Oklahoma City is 3-7 SU in its last 10 games when playing Golden State
Game 4 - Warriors at Thunder
May 24, 2016
For the first time in these playoffs, the reigning NBA champion trails in a series. Oklahoma City (65-31 straight up, 46-49-1 against the spread) dominated Golden State in Sunday’s Game 3 at Chesapeake Energy Arena, coasting to a 133-105 win as a two-point home underdog. The 238 combined points soared ‘over’ the 219.5-point total.
Golden State (82-13 SU, 53-40-2 ATS) trailed by six after the first quarter, then went into intermission down 25 points after the Thunder went on a 38-19 roll in the second quarter. The lead would reach 37 going into the final stanza.
Billy Donovan’s club scored only 16 points in the fourth, but it still produced the highest output of any team in this postseason. The 133 was a franchise-record in the playoffs.
Russell Westbrook led the way with 30 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds and two steals. Kevin Durant had a game-high 33 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field. Durant made all 12 of his free throws, pulled down eight boards and blocked three shots.
Serge Ibaka added 14 points, eight rebounds and two rejections, while Andre Roberson contributed 13 points and six boards. In only 18 minutes of playing time from off the bench, Enes Kanter tallied 10 points and 12 rebounds. Dion Waiter had 13 points, three rebounds and three assists.
In the losing effort, Steph Curry had 24 points, five rebounds and three assists, but he struggled at a 3-of-11 clip from downtown. Klay Thompson finished with 18 points but was limited to one rebound and one assist compared to three turnovers. No other Warrior scored in double figures. They made only 41.3 percent of their overall shots, hitting only 10-of-33 from deep.
OKC dominated the boards by a 52-38 margin. The Thunder made 50 percent of its overall shots, going 8-of-25 from 3-point range. They did a lot of work at the charity stripe, draining 33-of-37 attempts (89.2%).
For tonight’s Game 4, the Westgate SuperBook opened the matchup as a pick ‘em with a total of 222 points. After moving to one, the number was increased to 1.5 points early Monday night. The total was down to 221.5 as of early this morning. OKC was available on the money line for a +105 return (risk $100 to win $105). For first-half wagers, it’s a pick ‘em.
With its outright victory in Game 3, OKC improved to 1-1-1 ATS in its three games as a home underdog. Meanwhile, Golden State has compiled a 1-4 spread record when listed as a road favorite by 3.5 points or fewer.
VegasInsider.com's Chris David had this take on Game 4: “Tuesday’s game is a very tough handicap because the eyeball test should have you leaning to Oklahoma City after what we saw from them on Sunday. However, you can’t ignore the fact that Golden State hasn’t dropped back-to-back games all season. The Warriors have gone 12-0 in these situations and more importantly, they’ve produced an 8-3-1 record at the betting counter. This includes a 3-0 mark in the playoffs with victories coming by 27, 7 and 27 points.
“The one close call took place in Game 4 at Portland from the Moda Center, which is often considered one of the toughest venues in the NBA and very similar to Chesapeake Energy Arena since it’s the only pro game in town. Golden State won the contest in overtime 132-125 and as I’ve noted before, the offensive production shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Warriors are averaging just under 121 points per game in these situations and seeing a team total of 110 ½ for Tuesday’s contest could have you leaning to their high side.”
OKC now owns a 37-11 SU record and a 24-23-1 ATS mark in its home games. Golden State has won 36 of its 46 road outings while posting a 25-19-2 spread ledger it its road contests.
The ‘under’ cashed in the first two games of this series before the ‘over’ appeared in Game 3. The ‘under’ also went 2-1 in three regular-season meetings.
The ‘over’ is 51-43-1 overall for the Warriors, 26-20 in their road assignments.
The ‘under’ is 50-46 overall for the Thunder, 28-20 in their home contests.
David had this opinion for the total: “Even though the ‘over’ connected easily in Game 3, the oddsmakers didn’t rush to adjust the total for Game 4 and have kept the number in the same neighborhood. The effort from OKC on Sunday was the sixth time they scored 130-plus points this season. Looking at the following games, the Thunder’s offense has proven they’re not a fluke by averaging 111 PPG. Coincidentally, they have a team total of 110 ½ as well for Tuesday and the numbers tell you’ll that the outcome should be tight.”
Tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. Eastern tonight on TNT.
**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**
-- The last time Golden State trailed in a series was when the Cavs took a 2-1 advantage in last year’s NBA Finals. On that occasion, the Warriors responded to win three consecutive games and win the world title.
-- Gamblers could have taken Toronto at 200/1 odds to win the NBA championship after getting run out of Quicken Loans Arena in Game 2. After back-to-back home wins, however, the Raptors have pulled even with Cleveland at 2-2 in the Eastern Conference finals.
-- Dwane Casey’s squad raced out to an 18-point lead in last night’s Game 4 at Air Canada Centre, only to fall down by three midway through the fourth quarter. Nevertheless, the Cavaliers went cold in the final five minutes and Toronto regained the lead and captured a 105-99 win to even the best-of-seven set. The Raptors won outright as six-point home underdogs, while the 204 combined points slipped ‘over’ the 197-point total. They hooked up money-line supporters with a sweet +230 payout (paid $230 on $100 wagers).
-- After struggling immensely for the most part in the first two rounds of the playoffs, Toronto All-Stars DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry have erupted in back-to-back home wins over Cleveland. Lowry was nothing short of sensational, scoring 35 points on 14-of-20 shooting from the field. The Villanova product hit 4-of-7 from 3-point range and also produced five rebounds, five assists and three steals. DeRozan finished with 32 points on 14-of-23 shooting. Bismack Biyombo has been terrific in the last two contests, snaring 14 rebounds while rejecting three shots.
-- Toronto starting center Jonas Valinciunas was available for Game 4 for the first time since spraining his ankle in Game 3 at Miami in the East semifinals. Casey opted not to play him, though, but gamblers can certainly count on seeing the big man in Game 5 at Cleveland. Valinciunas had recorded four straight double-doubles before being sidelined.
-- The Westgate opened Cleveland as a 10.5-point home favorite vs. Toronto in Wednesday’s Game 5 at Quicken Loans Arena. The total was 198.5 on the send-out, but the betting shop quickly moved it down to 198 points.
-- Doug Gottlieb said this on his show Monday: “I like Cleveland plus the points tonight. I love the Cavs at 6.5.” When his sidekick said, “ The Cavs are +6.5?” Gottlieb: “Yes.” Then after getting corrected, Gottlieb said, “That’s what I meant. I like the Cavs getting the points.” Huh? Anyway, when Gottlieb quickly looked to transition to another topic, here’s where he went: “So The Bachelor starts tonight…” Need I say more?
May 24, 2016
For the first time in these playoffs, the reigning NBA champion trails in a series. Oklahoma City (65-31 straight up, 46-49-1 against the spread) dominated Golden State in Sunday’s Game 3 at Chesapeake Energy Arena, coasting to a 133-105 win as a two-point home underdog. The 238 combined points soared ‘over’ the 219.5-point total.
Golden State (82-13 SU, 53-40-2 ATS) trailed by six after the first quarter, then went into intermission down 25 points after the Thunder went on a 38-19 roll in the second quarter. The lead would reach 37 going into the final stanza.
Billy Donovan’s club scored only 16 points in the fourth, but it still produced the highest output of any team in this postseason. The 133 was a franchise-record in the playoffs.
Russell Westbrook led the way with 30 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds and two steals. Kevin Durant had a game-high 33 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field. Durant made all 12 of his free throws, pulled down eight boards and blocked three shots.
Serge Ibaka added 14 points, eight rebounds and two rejections, while Andre Roberson contributed 13 points and six boards. In only 18 minutes of playing time from off the bench, Enes Kanter tallied 10 points and 12 rebounds. Dion Waiter had 13 points, three rebounds and three assists.
In the losing effort, Steph Curry had 24 points, five rebounds and three assists, but he struggled at a 3-of-11 clip from downtown. Klay Thompson finished with 18 points but was limited to one rebound and one assist compared to three turnovers. No other Warrior scored in double figures. They made only 41.3 percent of their overall shots, hitting only 10-of-33 from deep.
OKC dominated the boards by a 52-38 margin. The Thunder made 50 percent of its overall shots, going 8-of-25 from 3-point range. They did a lot of work at the charity stripe, draining 33-of-37 attempts (89.2%).
For tonight’s Game 4, the Westgate SuperBook opened the matchup as a pick ‘em with a total of 222 points. After moving to one, the number was increased to 1.5 points early Monday night. The total was down to 221.5 as of early this morning. OKC was available on the money line for a +105 return (risk $100 to win $105). For first-half wagers, it’s a pick ‘em.
With its outright victory in Game 3, OKC improved to 1-1-1 ATS in its three games as a home underdog. Meanwhile, Golden State has compiled a 1-4 spread record when listed as a road favorite by 3.5 points or fewer.
VegasInsider.com's Chris David had this take on Game 4: “Tuesday’s game is a very tough handicap because the eyeball test should have you leaning to Oklahoma City after what we saw from them on Sunday. However, you can’t ignore the fact that Golden State hasn’t dropped back-to-back games all season. The Warriors have gone 12-0 in these situations and more importantly, they’ve produced an 8-3-1 record at the betting counter. This includes a 3-0 mark in the playoffs with victories coming by 27, 7 and 27 points.
“The one close call took place in Game 4 at Portland from the Moda Center, which is often considered one of the toughest venues in the NBA and very similar to Chesapeake Energy Arena since it’s the only pro game in town. Golden State won the contest in overtime 132-125 and as I’ve noted before, the offensive production shouldn’t come as a surprise. The Warriors are averaging just under 121 points per game in these situations and seeing a team total of 110 ½ for Tuesday’s contest could have you leaning to their high side.”
OKC now owns a 37-11 SU record and a 24-23-1 ATS mark in its home games. Golden State has won 36 of its 46 road outings while posting a 25-19-2 spread ledger it its road contests.
The ‘under’ cashed in the first two games of this series before the ‘over’ appeared in Game 3. The ‘under’ also went 2-1 in three regular-season meetings.
The ‘over’ is 51-43-1 overall for the Warriors, 26-20 in their road assignments.
The ‘under’ is 50-46 overall for the Thunder, 28-20 in their home contests.
David had this opinion for the total: “Even though the ‘over’ connected easily in Game 3, the oddsmakers didn’t rush to adjust the total for Game 4 and have kept the number in the same neighborhood. The effort from OKC on Sunday was the sixth time they scored 130-plus points this season. Looking at the following games, the Thunder’s offense has proven they’re not a fluke by averaging 111 PPG. Coincidentally, they have a team total of 110 ½ as well for Tuesday and the numbers tell you’ll that the outcome should be tight.”
Tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 p.m. Eastern tonight on TNT.
**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**
-- The last time Golden State trailed in a series was when the Cavs took a 2-1 advantage in last year’s NBA Finals. On that occasion, the Warriors responded to win three consecutive games and win the world title.
-- Gamblers could have taken Toronto at 200/1 odds to win the NBA championship after getting run out of Quicken Loans Arena in Game 2. After back-to-back home wins, however, the Raptors have pulled even with Cleveland at 2-2 in the Eastern Conference finals.
-- Dwane Casey’s squad raced out to an 18-point lead in last night’s Game 4 at Air Canada Centre, only to fall down by three midway through the fourth quarter. Nevertheless, the Cavaliers went cold in the final five minutes and Toronto regained the lead and captured a 105-99 win to even the best-of-seven set. The Raptors won outright as six-point home underdogs, while the 204 combined points slipped ‘over’ the 197-point total. They hooked up money-line supporters with a sweet +230 payout (paid $230 on $100 wagers).
-- After struggling immensely for the most part in the first two rounds of the playoffs, Toronto All-Stars DeMar DeRozan and Kyle Lowry have erupted in back-to-back home wins over Cleveland. Lowry was nothing short of sensational, scoring 35 points on 14-of-20 shooting from the field. The Villanova product hit 4-of-7 from 3-point range and also produced five rebounds, five assists and three steals. DeRozan finished with 32 points on 14-of-23 shooting. Bismack Biyombo has been terrific in the last two contests, snaring 14 rebounds while rejecting three shots.
-- Toronto starting center Jonas Valinciunas was available for Game 4 for the first time since spraining his ankle in Game 3 at Miami in the East semifinals. Casey opted not to play him, though, but gamblers can certainly count on seeing the big man in Game 5 at Cleveland. Valinciunas had recorded four straight double-doubles before being sidelined.
-- The Westgate opened Cleveland as a 10.5-point home favorite vs. Toronto in Wednesday’s Game 5 at Quicken Loans Arena. The total was 198.5 on the send-out, but the betting shop quickly moved it down to 198 points.
-- Doug Gottlieb said this on his show Monday: “I like Cleveland plus the points tonight. I love the Cavs at 6.5.” When his sidekick said, “ The Cavs are +6.5?” Gottlieb: “Yes.” Then after getting corrected, Gottlieb said, “That’s what I meant. I like the Cavs getting the points.” Huh? Anyway, when Gottlieb quickly looked to transition to another topic, here’s where he went: “So The Bachelor starts tonight…” Need I say more?
OKC seeks 3-1 series lead
May 24, 2016
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (82-13) at OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER (65-31)
Western Conference Finals
Sportsbook.ag Line: Golden State -1.5, Total: 221.5
The Warriors will be hoping to prevent a 3-1 series deficit when they face the Thunder in Game 4 on Tuesday.
Golden State was the most dominant team in regular season history, but the team now finds itself in serious trouble in the Western Conference Finals. The Warriors were absolutely embarrassed on Sunday night, losing 133-105 as 2.5-point favorites in Game 3. They shot a miserable 41.3% from the floor in that loss, but they also allowed the Thunder to make 50.0% of their shots. The Warriors will need to be a lot better on both ends of the floor in Tuesday’s Game 4 or they’ll be facing an insurmountable 3-1 series deficit.
One thing that bodes well for Golden State is the fact that the team is 10-2 ATS revenging a loss versus an opponent this season. The team is also 18-8 ATS revenging a straight up loss as a favorite versus an opponent over the past two seasons. Both teams will be entering this game at full strength, so hopefully injuries will not play a role in the outcome of this game.
If the Warriors are going to get back into this series then PF Draymond Green (16.6 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 6.5 APG, 2.1 BPG, 1.5 SPG in playoffs) will need to play well for the Warriors. He has been miserable in this series and truly hit rock bottom last game, scoring just six points on 1-for-9 shooting from the field. Green also had just four boards and three assists and his team is counting on him to post a near triple-double. He’ll also need to keep his cool in this game, as Green is a flagrant foul away from an automatic suspension.
PG Stephen Curry (25.3 PPG, 5.6 APG, 5.4 RPG, 1.6 SPG in playoffs) is also going to need to step his game up moving forward. The regular season MVP has been lousy for Golden State, shooting just 7-for-17 from the field and 3-for-11 from the outside in Game 3. He had 24 points in the game, but that total was a bit misleading and he must find a way to be more efficient the rest of the series. It’d be wise for Steve Kerr to put the ball in his hands a lot more in Game 4.
The Thunder have been playing extremely well in the postseason and look like the better team in this series. The reason Oklahoma City has emerged with a 2-1 series lead has been because of the emergence of SF Kevin Durant (27.8 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.3 APG in playoffs). It was not long ago that Durant was considered the best player in the NBA and he has been playing like it throughout the postseason. He had 33 points on 10-for-15 shooting from the field in Game 3 and will need to continue to be aggressive moving forward. The Warriors have no match for him and his jumper is better than ever right now.
It has also helped the Thunder that PG Russell Westbrook (25.3 PPG, 11.1 APG, 2.2 SPG in playoffs) has outplayed Curry in this series. Westbrook had 30 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds and two steals in Game 3 of this series and his athleticism and speed have given the Warriors a ton of issues. He’ll need to keep attacking the rim the remainder of this series.
May 24, 2016
GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (82-13) at OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER (65-31)
Western Conference Finals
Sportsbook.ag Line: Golden State -1.5, Total: 221.5
The Warriors will be hoping to prevent a 3-1 series deficit when they face the Thunder in Game 4 on Tuesday.
Golden State was the most dominant team in regular season history, but the team now finds itself in serious trouble in the Western Conference Finals. The Warriors were absolutely embarrassed on Sunday night, losing 133-105 as 2.5-point favorites in Game 3. They shot a miserable 41.3% from the floor in that loss, but they also allowed the Thunder to make 50.0% of their shots. The Warriors will need to be a lot better on both ends of the floor in Tuesday’s Game 4 or they’ll be facing an insurmountable 3-1 series deficit.
One thing that bodes well for Golden State is the fact that the team is 10-2 ATS revenging a loss versus an opponent this season. The team is also 18-8 ATS revenging a straight up loss as a favorite versus an opponent over the past two seasons. Both teams will be entering this game at full strength, so hopefully injuries will not play a role in the outcome of this game.
If the Warriors are going to get back into this series then PF Draymond Green (16.6 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 6.5 APG, 2.1 BPG, 1.5 SPG in playoffs) will need to play well for the Warriors. He has been miserable in this series and truly hit rock bottom last game, scoring just six points on 1-for-9 shooting from the field. Green also had just four boards and three assists and his team is counting on him to post a near triple-double. He’ll also need to keep his cool in this game, as Green is a flagrant foul away from an automatic suspension.
PG Stephen Curry (25.3 PPG, 5.6 APG, 5.4 RPG, 1.6 SPG in playoffs) is also going to need to step his game up moving forward. The regular season MVP has been lousy for Golden State, shooting just 7-for-17 from the field and 3-for-11 from the outside in Game 3. He had 24 points in the game, but that total was a bit misleading and he must find a way to be more efficient the rest of the series. It’d be wise for Steve Kerr to put the ball in his hands a lot more in Game 4.
The Thunder have been playing extremely well in the postseason and look like the better team in this series. The reason Oklahoma City has emerged with a 2-1 series lead has been because of the emergence of SF Kevin Durant (27.8 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.3 APG in playoffs). It was not long ago that Durant was considered the best player in the NBA and he has been playing like it throughout the postseason. He had 33 points on 10-for-15 shooting from the field in Game 3 and will need to continue to be aggressive moving forward. The Warriors have no match for him and his jumper is better than ever right now.
It has also helped the Thunder that PG Russell Westbrook (25.3 PPG, 11.1 APG, 2.2 SPG in playoffs) has outplayed Curry in this series. Westbrook had 30 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds and two steals in Game 3 of this series and his athleticism and speed have given the Warriors a ton of issues. He’ll need to keep attacking the rim the remainder of this series.
Warriors' Green fined, not suspended
May 23, 2016
NEW YORK (AP) Draymond Green was fined $25,000 but not suspended by the NBA on Monday for kicking Oklahoma City center Steven Adams in the groin.
The league also upgraded the foul to a flagrant 2, which would have resulted in an automatic ejection had officials given it that ruling when it happened. That moved him closer to an automatic suspension for accumulation of flagrant foul points.
But Green will be on the court when the Warriors try to even the Western Conference finals at 2-2 on Tuesday at Oklahoma City.
Green was called for a flagrant 1 foul after he was fouled by Adams with 5:57 remaining in the second quarter and kicked his leg up into Adams' groin. Though the Thunder felt it was intentional, Green and Warriors coach Steve Kerr said they believed the flagrant would actually be rescinded by the league.
NBA Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Kiki VanDeWeghe disagreed.
''After a thorough investigation that included review of all available video angles and interviews with the players involved and the officials working the game, we have determined that Green's foul was unnecessary and excessive and warranted the upgrade and fine,'' VanDeWeghe said in a statement.
''During a game, players - at times - flail their legs in an attempt to draw a foul, but Green's actions in this case warranted an additional penalty.''
The NBA determines a flagrant 1 foul to include ''unnecessary contact.'' A flagrant 2 is defined as ''unnecessary and excessive contact.''
Green now has three flagrant foul points during the postseason. One more will force him to miss Golden State's next game.
Green was an All-Star and the runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year, but had a dismal game as Oklahoma City took a 2-1 lead. He was 1 for 9 from the field with six points and the Warriors were outscored by 43 points when he was on the court.
May 23, 2016
NEW YORK (AP) Draymond Green was fined $25,000 but not suspended by the NBA on Monday for kicking Oklahoma City center Steven Adams in the groin.
The league also upgraded the foul to a flagrant 2, which would have resulted in an automatic ejection had officials given it that ruling when it happened. That moved him closer to an automatic suspension for accumulation of flagrant foul points.
But Green will be on the court when the Warriors try to even the Western Conference finals at 2-2 on Tuesday at Oklahoma City.
Green was called for a flagrant 1 foul after he was fouled by Adams with 5:57 remaining in the second quarter and kicked his leg up into Adams' groin. Though the Thunder felt it was intentional, Green and Warriors coach Steve Kerr said they believed the flagrant would actually be rescinded by the league.
NBA Executive Vice President of Basketball Operations Kiki VanDeWeghe disagreed.
''After a thorough investigation that included review of all available video angles and interviews with the players involved and the officials working the game, we have determined that Green's foul was unnecessary and excessive and warranted the upgrade and fine,'' VanDeWeghe said in a statement.
''During a game, players - at times - flail their legs in an attempt to draw a foul, but Green's actions in this case warranted an additional penalty.''
The NBA determines a flagrant 1 foul to include ''unnecessary contact.'' A flagrant 2 is defined as ''unnecessary and excessive contact.''
Green now has three flagrant foul points during the postseason. One more will force him to miss Golden State's next game.
Green was an All-Star and the runner-up for Defensive Player of the Year, but had a dismal game as Oklahoma City took a 2-1 lead. He was 1 for 9 from the field with six points and the Warriors were outscored by 43 points when he was on the court.
ON BASKETBALL: Green's history may have helped him
May 24, 2016
MIAMI (AP) Draymond Green has a history, and in this case it seems to have been helpful.
He's a kicker.
Only a minute before the overly excitable Golden State forward kicked Oklahoma City's Steven Adams in the midsection during Game 3 of the Western Conference finals on Sunday night, his leg flailing upward either clumsily or intentionally depending on perspective, he was under the basket as teammate Stephen Curry missed a 3-pointer.
Green went up and tried to tip in the rebound. He missed.
Here's the notable part of that otherwise nondescript play: His right leg went up in similar fashion that time as well, a reaction easily unnoticed because no defender was within reach of his size 15 foot, nobody got kicked and nobody ended up in a heap on the court in pain afterward.
So Green has done this before. Lots of times, it turns out. There was an aggregated bunch of clips posted to social media showing Green's legs going all sorts of directions after shots and drives, sometimes making contact and sometimes not. And Green does have a reputation for being aggressive, like most great defenders do. He's the sort of player that doesn't mind being called a pest.
But dirty or suspension-worthy?
In this case, damning video and the fact that he got Adams in the midsection in Game 2 as well notwithstanding, it didn't seem so and the NBA agreed. So after spending the bulk of Monday deliberating what to do next, the decision came down that Green will be eligible to play in Game 4 of the series Tuesday in Oklahoma City.
(By the way, the Thunder lead the series 2-1 - easily overlooked amid Kickgate.)
Predictably and immediately, there was Twitter outrage because Twitter's favorite thing is outrage. Green wasn't suspended, yet Cleveland's Dahntay Jones got a one-game ban just one day earlier for striking Toronto's Bismack Biyombo in the midsection. And the NBA surely knew that letting Green play in Game 4 would get conspiracy theorists to say that the league not having a one-size-fits-all approach was done to favor the champions.
Green is a starter, an elite defender for the Warriors. Golden State needs him.
Jones is a backup who has scored 20 points all season. Cleveland hardly needs him.
Yet in this case, it's Green's history that oddly enough seemed to work in his favor. He's hardly a poster child for good behavior; he leads the NBA in postseason technicals this year, and tied for third-most in the regular season in that department. He's also one more flagrant away from an automatic suspension in these playoffs. But for now, he plays on.
''During a game, players - at times - flail their legs in an attempt to draw a foul,'' NBA Executive Vice President for Basketball Operations Kiki VanDeWeghe said in the release announcing the league's decision on Green.
He's right, but that might not have been what this was.
This seemed like just more crazy-leggedness from Green.
He didn't get away scot-free. The foul was upgraded to a flagrant-2 and will cost Green $25,000. The upgrade to the flagrant-2 was the NBA's way of saying he should have been ejected Sunday, although making him stick around for the rest of Oklahoma City's 133-105 win was probably a harsher punishment than getting to watch it from the sanctity of the locker room would have been.
The Thunder were phenomenal in Game 3. Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan has more than held his own against Rick Carlisle, Gregg Popovich and Steve Kerr - all champion coaches, all coaches of the year - so far in his first NBA playoffs. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are playing off each other maybe as well as ever. A different role player seems to step up nightly, Adams included.
They have the Warriors in trouble, without question.
But of course, Green kicking Adams in the midsection wound up being a much bigger story than the Thunder kicking the Warriors in the mouth. And if Green and his teammates don't figure out a solution soon, they'll be kicking themselves while the Thunder play in the NBA Finals.
May 24, 2016
MIAMI (AP) Draymond Green has a history, and in this case it seems to have been helpful.
He's a kicker.
Only a minute before the overly excitable Golden State forward kicked Oklahoma City's Steven Adams in the midsection during Game 3 of the Western Conference finals on Sunday night, his leg flailing upward either clumsily or intentionally depending on perspective, he was under the basket as teammate Stephen Curry missed a 3-pointer.
Green went up and tried to tip in the rebound. He missed.
Here's the notable part of that otherwise nondescript play: His right leg went up in similar fashion that time as well, a reaction easily unnoticed because no defender was within reach of his size 15 foot, nobody got kicked and nobody ended up in a heap on the court in pain afterward.
So Green has done this before. Lots of times, it turns out. There was an aggregated bunch of clips posted to social media showing Green's legs going all sorts of directions after shots and drives, sometimes making contact and sometimes not. And Green does have a reputation for being aggressive, like most great defenders do. He's the sort of player that doesn't mind being called a pest.
But dirty or suspension-worthy?
In this case, damning video and the fact that he got Adams in the midsection in Game 2 as well notwithstanding, it didn't seem so and the NBA agreed. So after spending the bulk of Monday deliberating what to do next, the decision came down that Green will be eligible to play in Game 4 of the series Tuesday in Oklahoma City.
(By the way, the Thunder lead the series 2-1 - easily overlooked amid Kickgate.)
Predictably and immediately, there was Twitter outrage because Twitter's favorite thing is outrage. Green wasn't suspended, yet Cleveland's Dahntay Jones got a one-game ban just one day earlier for striking Toronto's Bismack Biyombo in the midsection. And the NBA surely knew that letting Green play in Game 4 would get conspiracy theorists to say that the league not having a one-size-fits-all approach was done to favor the champions.
Green is a starter, an elite defender for the Warriors. Golden State needs him.
Jones is a backup who has scored 20 points all season. Cleveland hardly needs him.
Yet in this case, it's Green's history that oddly enough seemed to work in his favor. He's hardly a poster child for good behavior; he leads the NBA in postseason technicals this year, and tied for third-most in the regular season in that department. He's also one more flagrant away from an automatic suspension in these playoffs. But for now, he plays on.
''During a game, players - at times - flail their legs in an attempt to draw a foul,'' NBA Executive Vice President for Basketball Operations Kiki VanDeWeghe said in the release announcing the league's decision on Green.
He's right, but that might not have been what this was.
This seemed like just more crazy-leggedness from Green.
He didn't get away scot-free. The foul was upgraded to a flagrant-2 and will cost Green $25,000. The upgrade to the flagrant-2 was the NBA's way of saying he should have been ejected Sunday, although making him stick around for the rest of Oklahoma City's 133-105 win was probably a harsher punishment than getting to watch it from the sanctity of the locker room would have been.
The Thunder were phenomenal in Game 3. Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan has more than held his own against Rick Carlisle, Gregg Popovich and Steve Kerr - all champion coaches, all coaches of the year - so far in his first NBA playoffs. Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook are playing off each other maybe as well as ever. A different role player seems to step up nightly, Adams included.
They have the Warriors in trouble, without question.
But of course, Green kicking Adams in the midsection wound up being a much bigger story than the Thunder kicking the Warriors in the mouth. And if Green and his teammates don't figure out a solution soon, they'll be kicking themselves while the Thunder play in the NBA Finals.
NBA MONEYLINE
NBA > (715) GOLDEN STATE@ (716) OKLAHOMA CITY | 2016-05-24 21:05:00 - 2016-05-24 21:05:00
Play ON GOLDEN STATE using money line in All games revenging a loss vs opponent
The record is 28 Wins and 3 Losses for the last two seasons (+22.15 units)
NBA > (715) GOLDEN STATE@ (716) OKLAHOMA CITY | 2016-05-24 21:05:00 - 2016-05-24 21:05:00
Play ON GOLDEN STATE using money line in Road games revenging a loss vs opponent
The record is 19 Wins and 7 Losses for the last three seasons (+16.05 units)
------------------
TOP POWERLINES
NBA > (715) GOLDEN STATE @ (716) OKLAHOMA CITY | 2016-05-24 21:05:00 - 2016-05-24 21:05:00
Line: OKLAHOMA CITY2 BTB PowerLine: OKLAHOMA CITY-7
Edge On: OKLAHOMA CITY (9)
NBA > (715) GOLDEN STATE@ (716) OKLAHOMA CITY | 2016-05-24 21:05:00 - 2016-05-24 21:05:00
Play ON GOLDEN STATE using money line in All games revenging a loss vs opponent
The record is 28 Wins and 3 Losses for the last two seasons (+22.15 units)
NBA > (715) GOLDEN STATE@ (716) OKLAHOMA CITY | 2016-05-24 21:05:00 - 2016-05-24 21:05:00
Play ON GOLDEN STATE using money line in Road games revenging a loss vs opponent
The record is 19 Wins and 7 Losses for the last three seasons (+16.05 units)
------------------
TOP POWERLINES
NBA > (715) GOLDEN STATE @ (716) OKLAHOMA CITY | 2016-05-24 21:05:00 - 2016-05-24 21:05:00
Line: OKLAHOMA CITY2 BTB PowerLine: OKLAHOMA CITY-7
Edge On: OKLAHOMA CITY (9)
Preview: Warriors (73-9) at Thunder (55-27)
Date: May 24, 2016 9:00 PM EDT
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Draymond Green knows who is responsible for his kick to the groin of Thunder center Steven Adams: Russell Westbrook and the rest of the NBA stars who get to the foul line with a whole lot of salesmanship.
Green's kick felled the 7-foot, 255-pound Adams during the second quarter of Golden State's Game 3 loss to Oklahoma City in the Western Conference finals on Sunday night. Westbrook later said Green kicked Adams intentionally - and that didn't go over well with the Warriors' standout.
'There are multiple plays where I did it later in the game when I got fouled and my right leg went up,' Green said Monday. 'I always do it. Russell said I did it on purpose, but he's part of the superstar group that started all this acting in the NBA.'
Green even pointed to a play at the end of the second quarter, when Green fouled Westbrook on a long 3-pointer.
'Russell Westbrook kicked me at the end of the half,' Green said. 'He just didn't happen to catch me where I caught Steven Adams.'
Westbrook wasn't thrilled with Green's comments, calling Green's foul on the 3-pointer a 'dumb play on his part.'
'I've never been fined for one flop since I've been playing in the NBA,' Westbrook said. 'I don't know about no flopping or nothing. I don't know how to flop. But it seems like he was the one that was flailing, kicking his legs out and stuff yesterday. It wasn't me.'
Green was called for a flagrant 1 foul and Adams later noted that Green had kneed him in the same spot during Game 2. Green was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Monday and the foul was upgraded to a flagrant 2, but he was not suspended and will be in uniform when the defending champion Warriors try to even the series at 2-2.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he needs Green at his best.
'He needs to refocus a little bit,' Kerr said. 'He'll admit it. It was not one of his best games - in fact, it was one of his worst. The great thing with Draymond is he always turns it around. He's one of the great competitors that we have in the league, that we have on our team. When things aren't looking great, he usually plays his best.'
Kerr knows Green might have made himself a target for the officials.
'Does he have to be careful? I guess,' Kerr said. 'Now, people are watching for him or whatever. He's just going to play, he's going to be himself, and we'll see what happens.'
Green insists the hit that sent Adams to the floor wasn't that big a deal.
'I can see how somebody can think it was intentional, but yet nobody can go in my head and say, `Draymond was thinking about kicking him and he kicked him,'' Green said. 'If you watch my reaction, I walk back to the three-point line, clap everybody's hands, turn around and look like, `What's the dude on the floor for?''
Green scored six points, made 1 of 9 shots and committed four turnovers in a game to forget. Normally one of the league's best defenders, he was beaten numerous times individually by the Thunder, and the Warriors were outscored by 43 points with him on the floor.
With the crowd booing loudly every time Green touched the ball, he couldn't make plays to shut Thunder fans up.
'That's what was frustrating to me,' he said. 'I was just bad. I missed a couple easy ones and it just kind of killed my whole game. That was pretty frustrating, especially with all the boos, because I love boos and it usually helps me play well. It was frustrating that I couldn't get it going.'
Green has been below his standard throughout the series. He's averaging 13 points on 37 percent shooting in the series, and just 5.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists. In the regular season, Green averaged 14 points on 49 percent shooting, 9.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists.
Warriors guard Stephen Curry expects Green to improve. Green bounced back after a poor Game 3 in a first-round loss to Houston to post 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists in a 121-94 victory in Game 4.
'He's mentally strong, so nothing that happened last night is going to affect Game 4 except light a fire probably,' Curry said. 'You can look at trends and all that. In the Houston series, he was able to understand what he needed to do differently. He's a very smart guy. He has a great eye for the game. I think it matters to him a lot to have an impact on the game. He'll find a way.'
SERIES AT A GLANCE
GAME 1
Thunder at Warriors
Mon, May 16 Final 108 to 102
Recaps
GAME 2
Thunder at Warriors
Wed, May 18 Final 91 to 118
Recaps
GAME 3
Warriors at Thunder
Sun, May 22 Final 105 to 133
Recaps
GAME 4
Warriors at Thunder
Tue, May 24 - 9:00PM EDT
GAME 5
Thunder at Warriors
Thu, May 26 - 9:00PM EDT
GAME 6
Warriors at Thunder
Sat, May 28 - 9:00PM EDT
GAME 7
Thunder at Warriors
Mon, May 30 - 9:00PM EDT
Date: May 24, 2016 9:00 PM EDT
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) Draymond Green knows who is responsible for his kick to the groin of Thunder center Steven Adams: Russell Westbrook and the rest of the NBA stars who get to the foul line with a whole lot of salesmanship.
Green's kick felled the 7-foot, 255-pound Adams during the second quarter of Golden State's Game 3 loss to Oklahoma City in the Western Conference finals on Sunday night. Westbrook later said Green kicked Adams intentionally - and that didn't go over well with the Warriors' standout.
'There are multiple plays where I did it later in the game when I got fouled and my right leg went up,' Green said Monday. 'I always do it. Russell said I did it on purpose, but he's part of the superstar group that started all this acting in the NBA.'
Green even pointed to a play at the end of the second quarter, when Green fouled Westbrook on a long 3-pointer.
'Russell Westbrook kicked me at the end of the half,' Green said. 'He just didn't happen to catch me where I caught Steven Adams.'
Westbrook wasn't thrilled with Green's comments, calling Green's foul on the 3-pointer a 'dumb play on his part.'
'I've never been fined for one flop since I've been playing in the NBA,' Westbrook said. 'I don't know about no flopping or nothing. I don't know how to flop. But it seems like he was the one that was flailing, kicking his legs out and stuff yesterday. It wasn't me.'
Green was called for a flagrant 1 foul and Adams later noted that Green had kneed him in the same spot during Game 2. Green was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Monday and the foul was upgraded to a flagrant 2, but he was not suspended and will be in uniform when the defending champion Warriors try to even the series at 2-2.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he needs Green at his best.
'He needs to refocus a little bit,' Kerr said. 'He'll admit it. It was not one of his best games - in fact, it was one of his worst. The great thing with Draymond is he always turns it around. He's one of the great competitors that we have in the league, that we have on our team. When things aren't looking great, he usually plays his best.'
Kerr knows Green might have made himself a target for the officials.
'Does he have to be careful? I guess,' Kerr said. 'Now, people are watching for him or whatever. He's just going to play, he's going to be himself, and we'll see what happens.'
Green insists the hit that sent Adams to the floor wasn't that big a deal.
'I can see how somebody can think it was intentional, but yet nobody can go in my head and say, `Draymond was thinking about kicking him and he kicked him,'' Green said. 'If you watch my reaction, I walk back to the three-point line, clap everybody's hands, turn around and look like, `What's the dude on the floor for?''
Green scored six points, made 1 of 9 shots and committed four turnovers in a game to forget. Normally one of the league's best defenders, he was beaten numerous times individually by the Thunder, and the Warriors were outscored by 43 points with him on the floor.
With the crowd booing loudly every time Green touched the ball, he couldn't make plays to shut Thunder fans up.
'That's what was frustrating to me,' he said. 'I was just bad. I missed a couple easy ones and it just kind of killed my whole game. That was pretty frustrating, especially with all the boos, because I love boos and it usually helps me play well. It was frustrating that I couldn't get it going.'
Green has been below his standard throughout the series. He's averaging 13 points on 37 percent shooting in the series, and just 5.3 rebounds and 4.7 assists. In the regular season, Green averaged 14 points on 49 percent shooting, 9.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists.
Warriors guard Stephen Curry expects Green to improve. Green bounced back after a poor Game 3 in a first-round loss to Houston to post 18 points, eight rebounds and six assists in a 121-94 victory in Game 4.
'He's mentally strong, so nothing that happened last night is going to affect Game 4 except light a fire probably,' Curry said. 'You can look at trends and all that. In the Houston series, he was able to understand what he needed to do differently. He's a very smart guy. He has a great eye for the game. I think it matters to him a lot to have an impact on the game. He'll find a way.'
SERIES AT A GLANCE
GAME 1
Thunder at Warriors
Mon, May 16 Final 108 to 102
Recaps
GAME 2
Thunder at Warriors
Wed, May 18 Final 91 to 118
Recaps
GAME 3
Warriors at Thunder
Sun, May 22 Final 105 to 133
Recaps
GAME 4
Warriors at Thunder
Tue, May 24 - 9:00PM EDT
GAME 5
Thunder at Warriors
Thu, May 26 - 9:00PM EDT
GAME 6
Warriors at Thunder
Sat, May 28 - 9:00PM EDT
GAME 7
Thunder at Warriors
Mon, May 30 - 9:00PM EDT
Armadillo: Wednesday's six-pack
-- NFL awarded Super Bowls to Atlanta-Miami-LA; two of those three cities are getting new stadiums, which is not a coincidence.
-- Nationals 7, Mets 4-- Matt Harvey wouldn't asnwer questions after game. Uh-oh.
-- Bengals' TE Tyler Eifert hurt his ankle in the Pro Bowl, had it operated on this week, may miss Cincinnati's season opener. What took so long?
-- BYU's football team has a tough September: Arizona, @ Utah, then UCLA, West Virginia at home. They also visit Michigan State, Boise State, Cincinnati later on.
-- 28 college football teams changed head coaches this year, 22% of all I-A teams.
-- Oklahoma City 118, Golden State 94-- Thunder go up 3-1; defending champs are in real trouble- they gave up 70+ points in first half of this game.
**********
Armadillo: Wednesday's List of 13: Mid-week musings.......
13) Under Armour, UCLA signed a 15-year, $280M apparel/shoe deal this week, which will make entitled athletes in football/basketball complain that they're not going to get a piece of that pie. They are getting a free college education, so there's that.
12) In a probably-related development, Pac-12 football teams will play fewer 10:30 kickoff games, in part so Under Armour brand can get more eastern exposure on TV.
11) Monday night in Miami, Logan Morrison took a marginal pitch for a strike and before the TV people could mute their field mikes, Morrison unleashed a string of obscenities against plate umpire Lance Barksdale. Good stuff.
10) Former NBA vet Kerry Kittles signed on as an assistant coach at Princeton.
9) ACC-Big 14 basketball challenge is a mere six months away; Michigan State-Duke is the premere matchup. UNC-Indiana, Ohio State-Virginia, Purdue-Louisville are some of the other featured games.
8) Devin Watson, who scored 20.3 ppg as a soph at San Francisco LY, transferred to San Diego State, where he will sit out this year, then play two more years. More good news for Steve Fisher; Malik Pope dropped out of the NBA Draft, will go back to school for another year. Decisions like that will mean a lot next winter.
7) Delaware Blue Hens finally hired a basketball coach, Notre Dame assistant coach Martin Inglesby, who has ties to the Philadelphia area. Plus Mike Brey used to be the Delaware coach, so that helps. Delaware has very few players; hiring a coach on May 24 is not the ideal way to run an athletic program.
6) Looking thru all-time college records today, noticed that Rams' QB Case Keenum holds I-A records for most career passing yards (19,217) and pssing TDs (217). it didn't prevent the Rams from spending a king's ransom on acquiring Jared Goff to take Keenum's job, but those records are still impressive.
5) Are there any phone booths left in this country? Was watching a movie the other night and someone ran to a phone booth to make a call, which automatically makes it a fairly old movie, I guess.
4) Was doing NFL research today; Carolina beat the Buccaneers twice LY, 37-23 and 38-10. Panthers scored nine TDs in the two games: two by the defense, with five of the seven TDs scored by the offense coming on drives of less than 50 yards.
3) NHL's Florida Panthers had 103 points this year, most they've ever had in their 23-year history, but they just fired their scouting dorector who had been with the team for 14 years, thru seven head coaches and five GMs. There is a battle there between the analytics people and the old school people, and analytics people are winning.
2) Long time ago, November 1993, I'm an assistant high school basketball coach, in my first year at this school, whose program was a mess. Our head coach is a great guy but he was in over his head at this job. After the second game of the year (we had won the first game), there were some attitude problems in the group.
Coach said something after that game that I've never forgotten: "So we lose a game and the rats start jumping off the ship", one of the all-time best quotes I've heard.
That is where the Warriors are now; their bandwagon is emptying quickly; nitwit media people have declared this series over, even though nine NBA teams have rallied from 3-1 deficits to win their series. Steve Kerr will probably rally his troops with an "us against the world" speech, since no one thinks Golden State can rally now.
We'll see.
1) White Sox TV voice Jason Benetti has an inspirational story; he was born with cerebral palsy, but never let that stop him. He went to college at Syracuse, then got his law degree from Wake Forest. He later joined ESPN and now has a job broadcasting ball in the major leagues, and he is very good at it. Good for him.
-- NFL awarded Super Bowls to Atlanta-Miami-LA; two of those three cities are getting new stadiums, which is not a coincidence.
-- Nationals 7, Mets 4-- Matt Harvey wouldn't asnwer questions after game. Uh-oh.
-- Bengals' TE Tyler Eifert hurt his ankle in the Pro Bowl, had it operated on this week, may miss Cincinnati's season opener. What took so long?
-- BYU's football team has a tough September: Arizona, @ Utah, then UCLA, West Virginia at home. They also visit Michigan State, Boise State, Cincinnati later on.
-- 28 college football teams changed head coaches this year, 22% of all I-A teams.
-- Oklahoma City 118, Golden State 94-- Thunder go up 3-1; defending champs are in real trouble- they gave up 70+ points in first half of this game.
**********
Armadillo: Wednesday's List of 13: Mid-week musings.......
13) Under Armour, UCLA signed a 15-year, $280M apparel/shoe deal this week, which will make entitled athletes in football/basketball complain that they're not going to get a piece of that pie. They are getting a free college education, so there's that.
12) In a probably-related development, Pac-12 football teams will play fewer 10:30 kickoff games, in part so Under Armour brand can get more eastern exposure on TV.
11) Monday night in Miami, Logan Morrison took a marginal pitch for a strike and before the TV people could mute their field mikes, Morrison unleashed a string of obscenities against plate umpire Lance Barksdale. Good stuff.
10) Former NBA vet Kerry Kittles signed on as an assistant coach at Princeton.
9) ACC-Big 14 basketball challenge is a mere six months away; Michigan State-Duke is the premere matchup. UNC-Indiana, Ohio State-Virginia, Purdue-Louisville are some of the other featured games.
8) Devin Watson, who scored 20.3 ppg as a soph at San Francisco LY, transferred to San Diego State, where he will sit out this year, then play two more years. More good news for Steve Fisher; Malik Pope dropped out of the NBA Draft, will go back to school for another year. Decisions like that will mean a lot next winter.
7) Delaware Blue Hens finally hired a basketball coach, Notre Dame assistant coach Martin Inglesby, who has ties to the Philadelphia area. Plus Mike Brey used to be the Delaware coach, so that helps. Delaware has very few players; hiring a coach on May 24 is not the ideal way to run an athletic program.
6) Looking thru all-time college records today, noticed that Rams' QB Case Keenum holds I-A records for most career passing yards (19,217) and pssing TDs (217). it didn't prevent the Rams from spending a king's ransom on acquiring Jared Goff to take Keenum's job, but those records are still impressive.
5) Are there any phone booths left in this country? Was watching a movie the other night and someone ran to a phone booth to make a call, which automatically makes it a fairly old movie, I guess.
4) Was doing NFL research today; Carolina beat the Buccaneers twice LY, 37-23 and 38-10. Panthers scored nine TDs in the two games: two by the defense, with five of the seven TDs scored by the offense coming on drives of less than 50 yards.
3) NHL's Florida Panthers had 103 points this year, most they've ever had in their 23-year history, but they just fired their scouting dorector who had been with the team for 14 years, thru seven head coaches and five GMs. There is a battle there between the analytics people and the old school people, and analytics people are winning.
2) Long time ago, November 1993, I'm an assistant high school basketball coach, in my first year at this school, whose program was a mess. Our head coach is a great guy but he was in over his head at this job. After the second game of the year (we had won the first game), there were some attitude problems in the group.
Coach said something after that game that I've never forgotten: "So we lose a game and the rats start jumping off the ship", one of the all-time best quotes I've heard.
That is where the Warriors are now; their bandwagon is emptying quickly; nitwit media people have declared this series over, even though nine NBA teams have rallied from 3-1 deficits to win their series. Steve Kerr will probably rally his troops with an "us against the world" speech, since no one thinks Golden State can rally now.
We'll see.
1) White Sox TV voice Jason Benetti has an inspirational story; he was born with cerebral palsy, but never let that stop him. He went to college at Syracuse, then got his law degree from Wake Forest. He later joined ESPN and now has a job broadcasting ball in the major leagues, and he is very good at it. Good for him.
NBA
Wednesday, May 25
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday's NBA Conference Finals betting preview and odds: Raptors at Cavaliers
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Raptors lost the first two games in Cleveland by an average of 25 points but they ignored the opinions of people saying they would be swept to post two impressive victories.
Toronto Raptors at Cleveland Cavaliers (-10.5, 199)
Series tied 2-2
The Cleveland Cavaliers are suddenly locked in a fierce battle in the Eastern Conference finals after once being in position to roll over the Toronto Raptors. Two victories by Toronto changed the complexion of the now-tied series, and it is a best-of-three competition when the series returns to Cleveland for Wednesday's Game 5.
The Raptors lost the first two games in Cleveland by an average of 25 points but they ignored the opinions of people saying they would be swept to post two impressive victories. "We've been playing with our backs against the wall," Toronto shooting guard DeMar DeRozan said at a press conference after scoring 32 points in Monday's 105-99 victory. "We never cared what anybody else thought. It was a challenge for us every single day. We've been counted out and we like that challenge." Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue didn't play ineffective power forward Kevin Love in the fourth quarter for the second consecutive contest but pinpointed his team's mistakes as the biggest factor in the Game 4 loss. "We came up short," Lue said in his postgame press conference. "We had a few defensive breakdowns that you can't have down the stretch of a game, especially in the playoffs, and they executed every time we made a mistake."
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
LINE HISTORY: The Cavaliers opened as 10-point home favorites against the Raptors for Game 5. The line was bumped up a half point early Tuesday morning to -10.5, which is where it sits at the time of publication of this preview. The total opened at 198 and was bumped up to 199 at the same time as the spread was moved. Check out the complete line history here.
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (66-34, 52-48 ATS, 49-50-1 O/U): Getting a combined 67 points on 28-of-43 shooting from point guard Kyle Lowry (35) and DeRozan was huge for Toronto as the two All-Stars have both experienced some struggles in the postseason. "One thing about us, we can take the bad with the good any day," DeRozan said. "It's life, man. You can't get too down when things are not going your way, but you understand the work that you put in all summer, all throughout the season, for moments like this. You've got to be ready." The Raptors expect center Jonas Valanciunas (ankle) to be ready for the first time in the series to team up with defensive dynamo Bismack Biyombo, who has averaged 20 rebounds and 3.5 blocked shots over the past two games.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (67-27, 44-47-3 ATS, 47-47 O/U): Love, who tweaked his knee in the second half, averaged just 6.5 points on 5-of-23 shooting in the two games in Toronto and has no explanation for his poor play. "I had a lot of great shots, I just didn't knock them down," Love told reporters. "It's as simple as that. I had a lot of confidence in shooting the ball, a lot of really wide open 3's, especially to start that first quarter. A number of them went in and out so I just need to continue to stay aggressive." Point guard Kyrie Irving bounced back with 26 points and suffering through a 3-of-19 shooting performance in Game 3 when he scored a series-low 13 points.
TRENDS:
* Raptors are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 road games.
* Cavaliers are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 home games.
* Under is 6-1 in Raptors last 7 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game.
* Over is 8-2 in Cavaliers last 10 Wednesday games.
* Home team is 7-0 ATS in the last 7 meetings.
CONSENSUS: Somewhat shockingly, at the time of publication of this preview, the Raptors are picking up 59 percent of the Consensus action. It seems as though #WeTheNorth is getting noticed a bit further south. As usual in the NBA Playoffs, Over is grabbing the majority of the total wagers at 61 percent.
Wednesday, May 25
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday's NBA Conference Finals betting preview and odds: Raptors at Cavaliers
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Raptors lost the first two games in Cleveland by an average of 25 points but they ignored the opinions of people saying they would be swept to post two impressive victories.
Toronto Raptors at Cleveland Cavaliers (-10.5, 199)
Series tied 2-2
The Cleveland Cavaliers are suddenly locked in a fierce battle in the Eastern Conference finals after once being in position to roll over the Toronto Raptors. Two victories by Toronto changed the complexion of the now-tied series, and it is a best-of-three competition when the series returns to Cleveland for Wednesday's Game 5.
The Raptors lost the first two games in Cleveland by an average of 25 points but they ignored the opinions of people saying they would be swept to post two impressive victories. "We've been playing with our backs against the wall," Toronto shooting guard DeMar DeRozan said at a press conference after scoring 32 points in Monday's 105-99 victory. "We never cared what anybody else thought. It was a challenge for us every single day. We've been counted out and we like that challenge." Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue didn't play ineffective power forward Kevin Love in the fourth quarter for the second consecutive contest but pinpointed his team's mistakes as the biggest factor in the Game 4 loss. "We came up short," Lue said in his postgame press conference. "We had a few defensive breakdowns that you can't have down the stretch of a game, especially in the playoffs, and they executed every time we made a mistake."
TV: 8:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
LINE HISTORY: The Cavaliers opened as 10-point home favorites against the Raptors for Game 5. The line was bumped up a half point early Tuesday morning to -10.5, which is where it sits at the time of publication of this preview. The total opened at 198 and was bumped up to 199 at the same time as the spread was moved. Check out the complete line history here.
ABOUT THE RAPTORS (66-34, 52-48 ATS, 49-50-1 O/U): Getting a combined 67 points on 28-of-43 shooting from point guard Kyle Lowry (35) and DeRozan was huge for Toronto as the two All-Stars have both experienced some struggles in the postseason. "One thing about us, we can take the bad with the good any day," DeRozan said. "It's life, man. You can't get too down when things are not going your way, but you understand the work that you put in all summer, all throughout the season, for moments like this. You've got to be ready." The Raptors expect center Jonas Valanciunas (ankle) to be ready for the first time in the series to team up with defensive dynamo Bismack Biyombo, who has averaged 20 rebounds and 3.5 blocked shots over the past two games.
ABOUT THE CAVALIERS (67-27, 44-47-3 ATS, 47-47 O/U): Love, who tweaked his knee in the second half, averaged just 6.5 points on 5-of-23 shooting in the two games in Toronto and has no explanation for his poor play. "I had a lot of great shots, I just didn't knock them down," Love told reporters. "It's as simple as that. I had a lot of confidence in shooting the ball, a lot of really wide open 3's, especially to start that first quarter. A number of them went in and out so I just need to continue to stay aggressive." Point guard Kyrie Irving bounced back with 26 points and suffering through a 3-of-19 shooting performance in Game 3 when he scored a series-low 13 points.
TRENDS:
* Raptors are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 road games.
* Cavaliers are 5-0 ATS in their last 5 home games.
* Under is 6-1 in Raptors last 7 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game.
* Over is 8-2 in Cavaliers last 10 Wednesday games.
* Home team is 7-0 ATS in the last 7 meetings.
CONSENSUS: Somewhat shockingly, at the time of publication of this preview, the Raptors are picking up 59 percent of the Consensus action. It seems as though #WeTheNorth is getting noticed a bit further south. As usual in the NBA Playoffs, Over is grabbing the majority of the total wagers at 61 percent.
NBA
Dunkel
Wednesday, May 25
Toronto @ Cleveland
Game 717-718
May 25, 2016 @ 8:30 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Toronto
120.704
Cleveland
134.377
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Cleveland
by 13 1/2
205
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Cleveland
by 10 1/2
198 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Cleveland
(-10 1/2); Over
NBA
Long Sheet
Wednesday, May 25
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TORONTO (66 - 34) at CLEVELAND (67 - 27) - 5/25/2016, 8:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TORONTO is 31-44 ATS (-17.4 Units) after scoring 105 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
TORONTO is 8-18 ATS (-11.8 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
TORONTO is 51-65 ATS (-20.5 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
CLEVELAND is 38-46 ATS (-12.6 Units) as a favorite this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
CLEVELAND is 7-7 against the spread versus TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
CLEVELAND is 7-7 straight up against TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
7 of 14 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NBA
Short Sheet
Wednesday, May 25
Toronto at Cleveland, 8:35 ET
Toronto: 7-19 ATS in road games after playing a game as an underdog
Cleveland: 14-3 ATS after allowing 55 or more in the first half in 2 straight games
NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up
Wednesday, May 25
Toronto-Cleveland (2-2)
Home team has dominated series, winning all four games by average of 18 points. Over is 6-3-1 in last ten series games. Raptors lost last four games in Cleveland (0-3 vs spread in last three)- hosts won last seven series games. Four of last six Toronto games went over the total. Lowry/DeRozan went a combined 28-43 in Game 4, scoring 67 points; can they produce close to that in Cleveland? Cavaliers won/covered last four home games; this is a best-of-3 series now.
Playoff tally: Favorites vs spread: 26-18, Over: 13-31
Second round: Favorites: 13-8, over: 12-9
Conference final: Favorites: 3-5, over: 3-4-1
NBA
Wednesday, May 25
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8:30 PM
TORONTO vs. CLEVELAND
Toronto is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Cleveland
Toronto is 5-10 ATS in its last 15 games
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Cleveland is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games
Dunkel
Wednesday, May 25
Toronto @ Cleveland
Game 717-718
May 25, 2016 @ 8:30 pm
Dunkel Rating:
Toronto
120.704
Cleveland
134.377
Dunkel Team:
Dunkel Line:
Dunkel Total:
Cleveland
by 13 1/2
205
Vegas Team:
Vegas Line:
Vegas Total:
Cleveland
by 10 1/2
198 1/2
Dunkel Pick:
Cleveland
(-10 1/2); Over
NBA
Long Sheet
Wednesday, May 25
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TORONTO (66 - 34) at CLEVELAND (67 - 27) - 5/25/2016, 8:35 PM
Top Trends for this game.
TORONTO is 31-44 ATS (-17.4 Units) after scoring 105 points or more over the last 2 seasons.
TORONTO is 8-18 ATS (-11.8 Units) in road games when playing against a team with a winning record - 2nd half of the season over the last 2 seasons.
TORONTO is 51-65 ATS (-20.5 Units) versus good offensive teams - scoring 99+ points/game over the last 2 seasons.
CLEVELAND is 38-46 ATS (-12.6 Units) as a favorite this season.
Head-to-Head Series History
CLEVELAND is 7-7 against the spread versus TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
CLEVELAND is 7-7 straight up against TORONTO over the last 3 seasons
7 of 14 games in this series have gone OVER THE TOTAL over the last 3 seasons
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NBA
Short Sheet
Wednesday, May 25
Toronto at Cleveland, 8:35 ET
Toronto: 7-19 ATS in road games after playing a game as an underdog
Cleveland: 14-3 ATS after allowing 55 or more in the first half in 2 straight games
NBA
Armadillo's Write-Up
Wednesday, May 25
Toronto-Cleveland (2-2)
Home team has dominated series, winning all four games by average of 18 points. Over is 6-3-1 in last ten series games. Raptors lost last four games in Cleveland (0-3 vs spread in last three)- hosts won last seven series games. Four of last six Toronto games went over the total. Lowry/DeRozan went a combined 28-43 in Game 4, scoring 67 points; can they produce close to that in Cleveland? Cavaliers won/covered last four home games; this is a best-of-3 series now.
Playoff tally: Favorites vs spread: 26-18, Over: 13-31
Second round: Favorites: 13-8, over: 12-9
Conference final: Favorites: 3-5, over: 3-4-1
NBA
Wednesday, May 25
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Trend Report
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8:30 PM
TORONTO vs. CLEVELAND
Toronto is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Cleveland
Toronto is 5-10 ATS in its last 15 games
Cleveland is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home
Cleveland is 10-2 SU in its last 12 games
East Finals Game 5 Essentials
May 25, 2016
Eastern Conference - Game 5 - Series tied 2-2
Toronto at Cleveland (-10.5/199), 8:35 p.m. ET - ESPN
This will be the first Game 5 of Cleveland’s 2016 postseason.
They’re 0-1 coming off a loss, so the Cavs haven’t necessarily dealt with the adversity they have faced well, but they’re expecting a return home will help them stabilize themselves as they look to move one win from a return to the NBA Finals.
Despite the 2-2 tie, Sportsbook.ag has set the series prices at -1150 for favored Cleveland while enticing Toronto backers with a return of +700. The Cavs are favored by 10.5 in Game 5, while the total has been set at 199.
For Toronto, this will be the third Game 5 of its playoff run, but will also be a new experience since the first two came at Air Canada Centre. Their group won’t have much to reference from personal experience going forward since the organization is making their first appearance in a conference finals and only head coach Dwane Casey and backup point guard Cory Joseph have championship experience, but that hasn’t been a detriment over the past week.
The Raptors are figuring things out as they go, and have proven to be quite resilient in guaranteeing themselves at least a Game 6 in an East finals series where they fell by 50 combined points in the first two contests. Toronto is just 2-6 on the road thus far in the playoffs and was 24-17 in the regular season. The Raptors lost their only regular-season game at Quicken Loans Arena 122-100, so they’ve been outscored by an average of 24 points in three losses in Cleveland.
Of course, none of that really matters at this point. The Raptors find themselves in a situation no one expected they would be in, an upset away from a series lead over heavily favored Cleveland and just two away from a spot in the Finals as Eastern Conference champs. Although they’ve done nothing on the road, the All-Star backcourt of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan did figure things out at the Air Canada Centre against this group. Lowry scored 35 points on 14-for-20 shooting in Game 4 and averaged 27.5 points per game after scoring a total of 18 points on 8-for-28 shooting in his two outings in Cleveland, shooting 1-for-15 3-point range. If he’s his usual fearless self, Toronto will have a puncher’s chance. If he doubts himself, or needs to decompress, odds are good that the Raptors won’t have a chance.
DeRozan has actually been good in every game in the series. He averaged 20 points per game in Cleveland over the first two games, shooting nearly 50 percent from the field, then stepped his game up in Canada, shooting 26-for-47 (55 pct) while scoring 32 points in the Raptors wins. Despite limiting his game by staying primarily inside the 3-point line, he’s been able to get to the free-throw line while also setting himself up for easy looks.
Because he’s been such a catalyst and this game means so much, it wouldn’t be surprising to see LeBron James find himself defending DeRozan more than he has all series. Offensively, James hasn’t forced the issue at all, shooting 77.5 percent (38-for-49) while averaging 25 points, 8.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists in the series, but after playing a postseason-high 46 minutes in Game 4, he’s ready to do whatever it takes to make sure the Cavs are playing in the NBA Finals next week.
“I’m comfortable playing him whatever he feels good (playing), I’m comfortable with,” head coach Tyronn Lue said Tuesday. “We talked about it before the game and the night before about how his body felt and wanting to play more minutes because we knew it was a big game for us, but it didn’t work out.”
Lineup combinations will be a major point of emphasis in this Game 5, since Kevin Love sat during the fourth quarter for the second straight game and was available despite ankle and possibly tweaking his knee after stepping on an official’s foot. He’s shot 5-for-23 over the last two games, including 3-for-11 from 3-point range, so Lue has gone with Channing Frye in key situations, preferring his height and more accurate shooting touch as opposed to going small and playing Love.
Bismack Biyombo has been the x-factor for the Raptors and has altered the course of the series with his rim protection. Tristan Thompson, considered Cleveland’s primary threat at the basket, has been outplayed by the 6-foot-10 center, who has come up with an average of 20 rebounds and 3.5 blocks over the last two games after grabbing just nine total boards over the course of the first two losses. His activity will be essential on the road.
Besides Love finding his range, the Cavs are hoping that being back home will guarantee Kyrie Irving being a positive factor in the series. He had 26 points and six assists in Game 4, but was just 3-for-19 in Saturday’s 99-84 loss, which came out of nowhere considering he’s averaged 26.5 points while shooting 59 percent from the field in leading the Cavs to a 2-0 lead.
As we anticipated coming in, James/DeRozan and Irving/Lowry is ultimately going to decide this series, but the first time, Toronto is going to take the court in Cleveland confident that they can hang with the Cavs. That could make all the difference.
May 25, 2016
Eastern Conference - Game 5 - Series tied 2-2
Toronto at Cleveland (-10.5/199), 8:35 p.m. ET - ESPN
This will be the first Game 5 of Cleveland’s 2016 postseason.
They’re 0-1 coming off a loss, so the Cavs haven’t necessarily dealt with the adversity they have faced well, but they’re expecting a return home will help them stabilize themselves as they look to move one win from a return to the NBA Finals.
Despite the 2-2 tie, Sportsbook.ag has set the series prices at -1150 for favored Cleveland while enticing Toronto backers with a return of +700. The Cavs are favored by 10.5 in Game 5, while the total has been set at 199.
For Toronto, this will be the third Game 5 of its playoff run, but will also be a new experience since the first two came at Air Canada Centre. Their group won’t have much to reference from personal experience going forward since the organization is making their first appearance in a conference finals and only head coach Dwane Casey and backup point guard Cory Joseph have championship experience, but that hasn’t been a detriment over the past week.
The Raptors are figuring things out as they go, and have proven to be quite resilient in guaranteeing themselves at least a Game 6 in an East finals series where they fell by 50 combined points in the first two contests. Toronto is just 2-6 on the road thus far in the playoffs and was 24-17 in the regular season. The Raptors lost their only regular-season game at Quicken Loans Arena 122-100, so they’ve been outscored by an average of 24 points in three losses in Cleveland.
Of course, none of that really matters at this point. The Raptors find themselves in a situation no one expected they would be in, an upset away from a series lead over heavily favored Cleveland and just two away from a spot in the Finals as Eastern Conference champs. Although they’ve done nothing on the road, the All-Star backcourt of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan did figure things out at the Air Canada Centre against this group. Lowry scored 35 points on 14-for-20 shooting in Game 4 and averaged 27.5 points per game after scoring a total of 18 points on 8-for-28 shooting in his two outings in Cleveland, shooting 1-for-15 3-point range. If he’s his usual fearless self, Toronto will have a puncher’s chance. If he doubts himself, or needs to decompress, odds are good that the Raptors won’t have a chance.
DeRozan has actually been good in every game in the series. He averaged 20 points per game in Cleveland over the first two games, shooting nearly 50 percent from the field, then stepped his game up in Canada, shooting 26-for-47 (55 pct) while scoring 32 points in the Raptors wins. Despite limiting his game by staying primarily inside the 3-point line, he’s been able to get to the free-throw line while also setting himself up for easy looks.
Because he’s been such a catalyst and this game means so much, it wouldn’t be surprising to see LeBron James find himself defending DeRozan more than he has all series. Offensively, James hasn’t forced the issue at all, shooting 77.5 percent (38-for-49) while averaging 25 points, 8.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists in the series, but after playing a postseason-high 46 minutes in Game 4, he’s ready to do whatever it takes to make sure the Cavs are playing in the NBA Finals next week.
“I’m comfortable playing him whatever he feels good (playing), I’m comfortable with,” head coach Tyronn Lue said Tuesday. “We talked about it before the game and the night before about how his body felt and wanting to play more minutes because we knew it was a big game for us, but it didn’t work out.”
Lineup combinations will be a major point of emphasis in this Game 5, since Kevin Love sat during the fourth quarter for the second straight game and was available despite ankle and possibly tweaking his knee after stepping on an official’s foot. He’s shot 5-for-23 over the last two games, including 3-for-11 from 3-point range, so Lue has gone with Channing Frye in key situations, preferring his height and more accurate shooting touch as opposed to going small and playing Love.
Bismack Biyombo has been the x-factor for the Raptors and has altered the course of the series with his rim protection. Tristan Thompson, considered Cleveland’s primary threat at the basket, has been outplayed by the 6-foot-10 center, who has come up with an average of 20 rebounds and 3.5 blocks over the last two games after grabbing just nine total boards over the course of the first two losses. His activity will be essential on the road.
Besides Love finding his range, the Cavs are hoping that being back home will guarantee Kyrie Irving being a positive factor in the series. He had 26 points and six assists in Game 4, but was just 3-for-19 in Saturday’s 99-84 loss, which came out of nowhere considering he’s averaged 26.5 points while shooting 59 percent from the field in leading the Cavs to a 2-0 lead.
As we anticipated coming in, James/DeRozan and Irving/Lowry is ultimately going to decide this series, but the first time, Toronto is going to take the court in Cleveland confident that they can hang with the Cavs. That could make all the difference.
Cavs lose series lead, aura to Raptors
May 24, 2016
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio (AP) Upon their return from Canada, the Cavaliers had nothing to declare at U.S. Customs.
Their lead in the Eastern Conference finals had already been confiscated.
Cleveland was stripped of its dominance and a 2-0 advantage during a long weekend in Toronto, where the growing-confident-by-the-shot Raptors, propelled by a crowd and city that believes they can make the NBA Finals, won two straight games.
''They flipped the script on us,'' Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said.
After being throttled by a combined 50 points in Games 1 and 2, the Raptors turned a series that began with blowouts into a best-of-3, winner-take-all slugfest. There wasn't supposed to be a Game 5, and now there will be a Game 6 as well.
Unable to contain Toronto All-Star guards Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan from scoring or keep Raptors super sub Bismack Biyombo off the boards, the Cavs have put themselves in a predicament.
Gone is their entire margin for error, some of their swagger and any aura of invincibility that surrounded them after reeling off 10 straight wins to open the postseason.
And as the teams prepared for Game 5 on Wednesday night, the pressure has swung back on superstar LeBron James and the Cavs, who spent Tuesday in film sessions breaking down went wrong during their visit to Toronto.
There was plenty to process from Monday's 105-99 loss.
Cleveland came out flat, falling behind by 16 in the first half and relying too much on its 3-point shooting, which has suddenly gone as cold as a Saskatchewan winter.
The Cavs fought their way back using a smaller lineup that didn't include the suddenly struggling Kevin Love, but they didn't have enough down the stretch as costly defensive lapses - and terrific shot-making by Lowry and DeRozan - helped the Raptors even the series.
No offense to rapper Drake and Toronto's rowdy fans, but Lue was happy to escape ''We The North.''
''Now it's our chance to come back, get some home cooked meals and have a chance to play in front of our home crowd,'' he said.
James, who logged 46 minutes in Game 4, did not speak to the media on Tuesday, choosing to stay far from the view of reporters and cameras.
Lue has carefully administered the four-time MVPs minutes during the second half of the regular season and playoffs, hoping to keep James as fresh as possible. James pushed himself harder in Game 4, and Lue said that was the plan.
''We talked about it before the game and the night before how his body felt and wanting to play more minutes because we knew it was a big game for us, but it didn't work out,'' Lue said.
James maximized his minutes in Game 4, scoring 29 on 11-of-16 shooting with nine rebounds and six assists. But he was somewhat passive in the fourth quarter, attempting just one shot in the final 5:28.
Again, Lue said that was by design as the Cavs took what the Raptors' defense gave them.
''LeBron knows when he has to take over a basketball game, but also knows he has to trust his teammates,'' Lue said.
James' faith in Love is being tested.
Cleveland's big man has lost his shooting touch at the worst time possible. After going 1-for-9 in Game 3, Love was only 4-of-14 in Game 4, and Lue left him on the bench in the fourth, playing Channing Frye instead.
Love's confidence appears shaken, but Lue insists there's nothing wrong that can't be fixed by the ball falling through the net.
''He's just missed shots. That's part of the game,'' Lue said. ''He's been playing great all playoffs and at some point you're going to miss some shots, but that's not our main concern, we gotta be better defensively and we're going to make shots.''
The Raptors have been daring the Cavs to launch from behind the arc. Without center Jonas Valanciunas, who could return in Game 5 from a sprained right ankle, Toronto gave up 106 inside points in the first two games before adjusting in Games 3 and 4 by packing the paint and forcing Cleveland to rely on its outside attack.
It was a risky move by coach Dwane Casey and his staff, but the strategy paid off and helped the Raptors reverse the series.
Casey has watched his young team survive a pair of knockout punches by the Cavs only to get up and deliver two of their own. They'll need at least another big one to stop James from getting to his sixth straight Finals.
After being counted out by many, the Raptors have a chance.
''It's a feel,'' Casey said. ''It's a rhythm. It's confidence. But I will say this: It's going to be a different animal back in Cleveland.''
May 24, 2016
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio (AP) Upon their return from Canada, the Cavaliers had nothing to declare at U.S. Customs.
Their lead in the Eastern Conference finals had already been confiscated.
Cleveland was stripped of its dominance and a 2-0 advantage during a long weekend in Toronto, where the growing-confident-by-the-shot Raptors, propelled by a crowd and city that believes they can make the NBA Finals, won two straight games.
''They flipped the script on us,'' Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said.
After being throttled by a combined 50 points in Games 1 and 2, the Raptors turned a series that began with blowouts into a best-of-3, winner-take-all slugfest. There wasn't supposed to be a Game 5, and now there will be a Game 6 as well.
Unable to contain Toronto All-Star guards Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan from scoring or keep Raptors super sub Bismack Biyombo off the boards, the Cavs have put themselves in a predicament.
Gone is their entire margin for error, some of their swagger and any aura of invincibility that surrounded them after reeling off 10 straight wins to open the postseason.
And as the teams prepared for Game 5 on Wednesday night, the pressure has swung back on superstar LeBron James and the Cavs, who spent Tuesday in film sessions breaking down went wrong during their visit to Toronto.
There was plenty to process from Monday's 105-99 loss.
Cleveland came out flat, falling behind by 16 in the first half and relying too much on its 3-point shooting, which has suddenly gone as cold as a Saskatchewan winter.
The Cavs fought their way back using a smaller lineup that didn't include the suddenly struggling Kevin Love, but they didn't have enough down the stretch as costly defensive lapses - and terrific shot-making by Lowry and DeRozan - helped the Raptors even the series.
No offense to rapper Drake and Toronto's rowdy fans, but Lue was happy to escape ''We The North.''
''Now it's our chance to come back, get some home cooked meals and have a chance to play in front of our home crowd,'' he said.
James, who logged 46 minutes in Game 4, did not speak to the media on Tuesday, choosing to stay far from the view of reporters and cameras.
Lue has carefully administered the four-time MVPs minutes during the second half of the regular season and playoffs, hoping to keep James as fresh as possible. James pushed himself harder in Game 4, and Lue said that was the plan.
''We talked about it before the game and the night before how his body felt and wanting to play more minutes because we knew it was a big game for us, but it didn't work out,'' Lue said.
James maximized his minutes in Game 4, scoring 29 on 11-of-16 shooting with nine rebounds and six assists. But he was somewhat passive in the fourth quarter, attempting just one shot in the final 5:28.
Again, Lue said that was by design as the Cavs took what the Raptors' defense gave them.
''LeBron knows when he has to take over a basketball game, but also knows he has to trust his teammates,'' Lue said.
James' faith in Love is being tested.
Cleveland's big man has lost his shooting touch at the worst time possible. After going 1-for-9 in Game 3, Love was only 4-of-14 in Game 4, and Lue left him on the bench in the fourth, playing Channing Frye instead.
Love's confidence appears shaken, but Lue insists there's nothing wrong that can't be fixed by the ball falling through the net.
''He's just missed shots. That's part of the game,'' Lue said. ''He's been playing great all playoffs and at some point you're going to miss some shots, but that's not our main concern, we gotta be better defensively and we're going to make shots.''
The Raptors have been daring the Cavs to launch from behind the arc. Without center Jonas Valanciunas, who could return in Game 5 from a sprained right ankle, Toronto gave up 106 inside points in the first two games before adjusting in Games 3 and 4 by packing the paint and forcing Cleveland to rely on its outside attack.
It was a risky move by coach Dwane Casey and his staff, but the strategy paid off and helped the Raptors reverse the series.
Casey has watched his young team survive a pair of knockout punches by the Cavs only to get up and deliver two of their own. They'll need at least another big one to stop James from getting to his sixth straight Finals.
After being counted out by many, the Raptors have a chance.
''It's a feel,'' Casey said. ''It's a rhythm. It's confidence. But I will say this: It's going to be a different animal back in Cleveland.''
SERIES AT A GLANCE
GAME 1
Raptors at Cavaliers
Tue, May 17 Final 84 to 115
Recaps
GAME 2
Raptors at Cavaliers
Thu, May 19 Final 89 to 108
Recaps
GAME 3
Cavaliers at Raptors
Sat, May 21 Final 84 to 99
Recaps
GAME 4
Cavaliers at Raptors
Mon, May 23 Final 99 to 105
Recaps
GAME 5
Raptors at Cavaliers
Wed, May 25 - 8:30PM EDT
GAME 6
Cavaliers at Raptors
Fri, May 27 - 8:30PM EDT
GAME 7
Raptors at Cavaliers
Sun, May 29 - 8:30PM EDT
GAME 1
Raptors at Cavaliers
Tue, May 17 Final 84 to 115
Recaps
GAME 2
Raptors at Cavaliers
Thu, May 19 Final 89 to 108
Recaps
GAME 3
Cavaliers at Raptors
Sat, May 21 Final 84 to 99
Recaps
GAME 4
Cavaliers at Raptors
Mon, May 23 Final 99 to 105
Recaps
GAME 5
Raptors at Cavaliers
Wed, May 25 - 8:30PM EDT
GAME 6
Cavaliers at Raptors
Fri, May 27 - 8:30PM EDT
GAME 7
Raptors at Cavaliers
Sun, May 29 - 8:30PM EDT
Armadillo: Thursday's six-pack
-- Giants 4, Padres 3 (10)-- Giants are 9-0 against San Diego this season.
-- Vin Scully turned down a chance to call the All-Star Game in his final season as a broadcaster.
-- Jackie Bradley Jr's hitting streak is now at 29 games.
-- Indians 4, White Sox 3-- Chicago is now 4-11 in its last 15 games, leads Indians by only a half-game in AL Central.
-- Sharks 5, Blues 2-- St Louis made Stanley Cup finals in their first three years of existence (1967-70); they haven't been back since.
-- Cavaliers 116, Raptors 78-- Another uninteresting game. The average margin of victory in these five games has been 21.8 points.
**********
Armadillo: Thursday's List of 13: Doing some thinking out loud.......
13) Wednesday was the deadline for NBA prospects to drop out of the draft and go back to school-- at least 45 players have done that. Dillon Brooks, Tyler Dorsey both went back to school, making Oregon a national title contender next winter.
12) Purdue gets big man Caleb Swanigan back for next year: "I'm going back to school. I feel I'm only a 2nd round pick and I can do better than that. I love Purdue.'' Boilermakers still need better guard play, but Swanigan's return is important.
11) Clemson also got very good news that Jaron Blossonggame will return to school; Littlejohn Coliseum was re-done last winter, so Brad Brownell will be on the hot seat to make the NCAAs next year. When boosters kick in a lot of money to refurbish an arena, they expect results. With Blossingame, Clemson can make the NCAAs.
10) USC appears to be the big loser Wednesday; they lost two starters, their point guard and center, despite thought that neither one will get drafted. Trojans were going to be a top 15 team if both kids came back. Now they're out of the top 25. .
9) Similar bad news at Seton Hall, after Isaiah Whitehead stayed in the draft- had he stayed in school, he would've been a preseason All-American, and Kevin Willard is a much smarter coach. Whitehead may or may not get picked in the first round.
8) Los Angeles Rams will travel 32,072 miles this coming season, most of any team; even without their London trip, Rams would travel 5th-most miles in league.
7) There are six teams who will travel less than 10,000 miles this year, all from the two north divisions-- Lions-Packers-Bears-Ravens-Browns-Steelers.
6) Memphis Grizzlies offered their coaching job to Miami assistant David Fizdale, who has been an NBA assistant for 14 years. Grizzlies are tough team to work for; in last four years, they've fired a coach who went 56-26, then a coach who went 42-40 despite using 28 players, the most players an NBA team has ever had in one season.
5) Odubel Herrera, Yasiel Puig were both benched this week for not running balls out. Herrera returned to the lineup and homered Wednesday afternoon.
4) Rougned Odor punched an opponent in the face 11 days ago; when does he get suspended? Baseball does this so badly; by the time he gets suspended, we'll forget what he got suspended for. For that fight, the suspension should've been immediate.
3) Giancarlo Stanton is hitting .214 this year and is hurt again; this is his 7th year in the major leagues- he's played more than 123 games twice. I look at the guy and I see a WWE wrestler; he is too damn bulked-up to play baseball. Yes I'm bitter because he has been on my fantasy team since he was an 18-year old in the Florida State League, but how can a guy like this have only one season with 90+ RBI?
2) Imagine how bitter you would be if you were paying Stanton's salary? The meat of his big-money deal doesn't start for two more years-- starting in 2018, Stanton will make an average of $31M a year for 11 years, from age 28 to 38. Oy.
1) Matt Harvey is 3-7, 6.08 this season; he's allowed 73 hits in 53.1 IP. No bueno.
-- Giants 4, Padres 3 (10)-- Giants are 9-0 against San Diego this season.
-- Vin Scully turned down a chance to call the All-Star Game in his final season as a broadcaster.
-- Jackie Bradley Jr's hitting streak is now at 29 games.
-- Indians 4, White Sox 3-- Chicago is now 4-11 in its last 15 games, leads Indians by only a half-game in AL Central.
-- Sharks 5, Blues 2-- St Louis made Stanley Cup finals in their first three years of existence (1967-70); they haven't been back since.
-- Cavaliers 116, Raptors 78-- Another uninteresting game. The average margin of victory in these five games has been 21.8 points.
**********
Armadillo: Thursday's List of 13: Doing some thinking out loud.......
13) Wednesday was the deadline for NBA prospects to drop out of the draft and go back to school-- at least 45 players have done that. Dillon Brooks, Tyler Dorsey both went back to school, making Oregon a national title contender next winter.
12) Purdue gets big man Caleb Swanigan back for next year: "I'm going back to school. I feel I'm only a 2nd round pick and I can do better than that. I love Purdue.'' Boilermakers still need better guard play, but Swanigan's return is important.
11) Clemson also got very good news that Jaron Blossonggame will return to school; Littlejohn Coliseum was re-done last winter, so Brad Brownell will be on the hot seat to make the NCAAs next year. When boosters kick in a lot of money to refurbish an arena, they expect results. With Blossingame, Clemson can make the NCAAs.
10) USC appears to be the big loser Wednesday; they lost two starters, their point guard and center, despite thought that neither one will get drafted. Trojans were going to be a top 15 team if both kids came back. Now they're out of the top 25. .
9) Similar bad news at Seton Hall, after Isaiah Whitehead stayed in the draft- had he stayed in school, he would've been a preseason All-American, and Kevin Willard is a much smarter coach. Whitehead may or may not get picked in the first round.
8) Los Angeles Rams will travel 32,072 miles this coming season, most of any team; even without their London trip, Rams would travel 5th-most miles in league.
7) There are six teams who will travel less than 10,000 miles this year, all from the two north divisions-- Lions-Packers-Bears-Ravens-Browns-Steelers.
6) Memphis Grizzlies offered their coaching job to Miami assistant David Fizdale, who has been an NBA assistant for 14 years. Grizzlies are tough team to work for; in last four years, they've fired a coach who went 56-26, then a coach who went 42-40 despite using 28 players, the most players an NBA team has ever had in one season.
5) Odubel Herrera, Yasiel Puig were both benched this week for not running balls out. Herrera returned to the lineup and homered Wednesday afternoon.
4) Rougned Odor punched an opponent in the face 11 days ago; when does he get suspended? Baseball does this so badly; by the time he gets suspended, we'll forget what he got suspended for. For that fight, the suspension should've been immediate.
3) Giancarlo Stanton is hitting .214 this year and is hurt again; this is his 7th year in the major leagues- he's played more than 123 games twice. I look at the guy and I see a WWE wrestler; he is too damn bulked-up to play baseball. Yes I'm bitter because he has been on my fantasy team since he was an 18-year old in the Florida State League, but how can a guy like this have only one season with 90+ RBI?
2) Imagine how bitter you would be if you were paying Stanton's salary? The meat of his big-money deal doesn't start for two more years-- starting in 2018, Stanton will make an average of $31M a year for 11 years, from age 28 to 38. Oy.
1) Matt Harvey is 3-7, 6.08 this season; he's allowed 73 hits in 53.1 IP. No bueno.
NBA
Thursday, May 26
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Thursday's NBA Conference Finals betting preview and odds: Thunder at Warriors
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Oklahoma City is the first team to post 72 points in the first half of back-to-back playoff games since the 1987 Los Angeles Lakers.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Golden State Warriors (-7.5, 220)
Thunder lead series 3-1
The Oklahoma City Thunder have made the defending champion Golden State Warriors look like a lottery team in the last two games and are on the verge of advancing to the NBA Finals. The Warriors will try to stave off elimination and pull within 3-2 in the series when they host Game 5 on Thursday.
The Thunder have been more aggressive, more athletic, faster and much better at executing on both ends of the floor in 3 1/2 of the first four games of the series and scored 72 first-half points in each of the last two contests while winning both by an average of 26 points. “You’re not always going to play a perfect game,” Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan told reporters. “You have to have some resiliency and some toughness and some fight to you. I think our team has it.” The Warriors looking for some resiliency as they attempt to stay in the series and MVP Stephen Curry insisted that the team wasn’t done. "The series isn't over," Curry told reporters. "We've got to believe in ourselves. It's obviously frustration. It's a terrible feeling once again not stepping up and being ourselves and playing our game. But I think we're a special team. This isn't how we're going to go out."
TV: 9 p.m. ET, TNT
LINE HISTORY: The Warriors opened as 7.5-point favorites, with their backs against the wall for Game 5. The books dropped the line down to -7 on Wednesday morning and that is where it sits at the time of publication of this preview. The total opened at 221 and has dropped sharply down to 219.5 during the opening 12 hours on the board. Check out the complete line history here.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (66-31, 47-49-1 ATS, 46-51 O/U): Oklahoma City stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have been strong in the series, and Westbrook filled up the boxscore with his first triple-double of the postseason with 36 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in the 118-94 Game 4 triumph. “Russell plays with incredible passion,” Donovan told reporters. “He has such great force and great will. He’s a really high basketball IQ player. He sees a lot of things going on out there. His effort and his energy throughout the course of the entire game, with our team, was terrific.” Westbrook is averaging 27.3 points, 11.8 assists and 3.8 steals in the series.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (82-14, 53-41-2 ATS, 51-44-1 O/U): Curry had one burst in the third quarter of Game 2 that propelled Golden State to its lone win in the series but went 5-of-21 from 3-point range in the last two games and committed six turnovers in Game 4. The MVP could use more help from All-Star Draymond Green, who heard boos all night from Oklahoma City fans on Tuesday after avoiding a suspension for kicking Thunder center Steven Adams in the groin and matched Curry with six turnovers while going 1-of-7 from the floor. “I bring the energy to this team, and I have not been that," Green told reporters. “I think our energy goes as my energy goes, and I've been awful. ... At the end of the day, I know I've got to be better in Game 5.”
TRENDS:
* Thunder are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games overall.
* Warriors are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 home games.
* Under is 5-1 in Thunder last 6 games following a straight up win.
* Under is 5-1 in Warriors last 6 games following a ATS loss.
* Home team is 10-1-1 ATS in the last 12 meetings.
CONSENSUS: The early returns for the Consensus are 52 percent of the picks on the Thunder and 66 percent of the wagers on the Over.
Thursday, May 26
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Thursday's NBA Conference Finals betting preview and odds: Thunder at Warriors
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oklahoma City is the first team to post 72 points in the first half of back-to-back playoff games since the 1987 Los Angeles Lakers.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Golden State Warriors (-7.5, 220)
Thunder lead series 3-1
The Oklahoma City Thunder have made the defending champion Golden State Warriors look like a lottery team in the last two games and are on the verge of advancing to the NBA Finals. The Warriors will try to stave off elimination and pull within 3-2 in the series when they host Game 5 on Thursday.
The Thunder have been more aggressive, more athletic, faster and much better at executing on both ends of the floor in 3 1/2 of the first four games of the series and scored 72 first-half points in each of the last two contests while winning both by an average of 26 points. “You’re not always going to play a perfect game,” Oklahoma City coach Billy Donovan told reporters. “You have to have some resiliency and some toughness and some fight to you. I think our team has it.” The Warriors looking for some resiliency as they attempt to stay in the series and MVP Stephen Curry insisted that the team wasn’t done. "The series isn't over," Curry told reporters. "We've got to believe in ourselves. It's obviously frustration. It's a terrible feeling once again not stepping up and being ourselves and playing our game. But I think we're a special team. This isn't how we're going to go out."
TV: 9 p.m. ET, TNT
LINE HISTORY: The Warriors opened as 7.5-point favorites, with their backs against the wall for Game 5. The books dropped the line down to -7 on Wednesday morning and that is where it sits at the time of publication of this preview. The total opened at 221 and has dropped sharply down to 219.5 during the opening 12 hours on the board. Check out the complete line history here.
ABOUT THE THUNDER (66-31, 47-49-1 ATS, 46-51 O/U): Oklahoma City stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook have been strong in the series, and Westbrook filled up the boxscore with his first triple-double of the postseason with 36 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in the 118-94 Game 4 triumph. “Russell plays with incredible passion,” Donovan told reporters. “He has such great force and great will. He’s a really high basketball IQ player. He sees a lot of things going on out there. His effort and his energy throughout the course of the entire game, with our team, was terrific.” Westbrook is averaging 27.3 points, 11.8 assists and 3.8 steals in the series.
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (82-14, 53-41-2 ATS, 51-44-1 O/U): Curry had one burst in the third quarter of Game 2 that propelled Golden State to its lone win in the series but went 5-of-21 from 3-point range in the last two games and committed six turnovers in Game 4. The MVP could use more help from All-Star Draymond Green, who heard boos all night from Oklahoma City fans on Tuesday after avoiding a suspension for kicking Thunder center Steven Adams in the groin and matched Curry with six turnovers while going 1-of-7 from the floor. “I bring the energy to this team, and I have not been that," Green told reporters. “I think our energy goes as my energy goes, and I've been awful. ... At the end of the day, I know I've got to be better in Game 5.”
TRENDS:
* Thunder are 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games overall.
* Warriors are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 home games.
* Under is 5-1 in Thunder last 6 games following a straight up win.
* Under is 5-1 in Warriors last 6 games following a ATS loss.
* Home team is 10-1-1 ATS in the last 12 meetings.
CONSENSUS: The early returns for the Consensus are 52 percent of the picks on the Thunder and 66 percent of the wagers on the Over.
