We opined a few weeks ago that it would be
hard for the NBA not to be rooting for a Final that matched up Kobe Bryant and
LeBron James. The "Prospective Bets" lines (available exclusively at SPORTSBETTING.com) has the Game 1 line
of a Lakers-Cavs final with Cleveland listed at -4.5 (yes, you can bet that
line today, and in fact bet on any potential game for the Finals).
Last night, the Lakers came one step closer
to making that dream a reality when they defeated the Denver Nuggets at the STAPLES Center in Game 1 of the Western
Conference final by a score of 105-103.
The sports
betting public took a bit of a hit when the Lakers failed to cover as -6.5
point favorites (67% of all the action on that game was tilted to the Lakers).
The game also stayed under the total.
Tonight, the scene moves to Cleveland, where the Cavs
can do their part by defeating the Orlando Magic.
Heading into Game 1, the odds on the game
see the Cavs listed as 9-point home faves with the Total set at 185.
Online
sportsbooks have installed the Cavs as overwhelming faves in Series Price
betting, listing Cleveland at -700 with Orlando as a +550
underdog.
In First Half betting tonight, the Cavs are
favored by 5-points with the Total set at 93.5.
During these playoffs, Cleveland has yet to lose a game SU going 8-0
and has also been near-perfect ATS going 7-0-1 ATS. They have put together a
mark of 2 overs and 6 unders in those games.
The Magic, on the other hand, are 8-5
straight up, but more importantly to sports bettors, they have posted a mark of
6-7 ATS.
They have been a solid "Under" bet so far,
with a mark of 4 overs and 9 unders in the post-season.
But make note, as the Magic have definitely
been trouble for the Cavaliers when it comes to the pointspread. In their last
11 meetings, Orlando
is an impressive 10-1 ATS, including a perfect 5-0 ATS in the last five.
In the last 20 times that the Cavs have
hosted the Magic, Orlando again has the edge going 12-8 ATS and has cashed in
the last five straight games in Cleveland-the Over/Under has gone 6-14 in the
same time.
The NBA playoffs march on and with it, of
course, is a mountain
of NBA betting.
The sports betting public has weighed in
heavily on this game. Most online sportsbooks are seeing the Cavaliers getting
the majority of action. SPORTSBETTING.com
is reporting 61% of all the action coming in on Lebron and crew.
