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Suspension behind him, Magic following Lewis' lead

Basketball Betting Lines

05/14/2010 -

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -It might have seemed a little odd on the eve of the Orlando Magic's training camp when Rashard Lewis delivered a message to teammates about ``sacrifice'' and ``unselfishness.''

After all, it was Lewis, the Magic's highest-paid player, who was suspended 10 games for testing positive for an elevated testosterone level. The only thing more stunning than his drug test was that he was the one - of all people - to talk about discipline.

Not so shocking anymore.

Overcoming the stigma of the suspension, Lewis has become the example teammates use to explain why the Magic are back in the Eastern Conference finals. A season spent neglecting individual accolades, ``Sweet Lew'' is again living up to his nickname with some big playoff performances.

``The only thing I felt could stop us this year was guys have egos or being selfish,'' Lewis said. ``My main thing was, at the end of the day, it'll all come down to who's going to sacrifice for that game, that year.

``We got a lot of talent on this team. We got guys that sit on the bench that could go and start on other teams. Just told them the word of this year, the biggest word is 'sacrifice.'''

Lewis stayed true to his message, even when it resulted in criticism.

His 14.1 points per game were the fewest of his career since he became a regular starter in the 1999-2000 season with Seattle. Some felt the production was not up to par for a player making $18.8 million this season.

``People have their little he said, she said like, 'This guy's getting paid this amount of money but he's not producing,''' Lewis said.

Things weren't always as bad as they seemed.

Lewis' 43 percent shooting was the same as when he was an All-Star last year. The difference was, with the addition of Vince Carter and a talent-rich roster, Lewis had almost 400 fewer shot attempts this season.

``It was a little tough some times,'' Lewis said. ``Some nights you lose ball games and you're not taking very many shots, it's tough. You look at yourself in the mirror and feel like you could have been the reason that you lost, or you could have been the reason that you could have won if you had been more aggressive and taken more shots.''

The message has resonated with teammates.

The Magic swept through the first two rounds and have won 14 straight games. They will face the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals, which start Sunday in Orlando. The Celtics ousted LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers in six games after Thursday night's 94-85 win.

After hitting several game-winning shots in last year's run to the NBA finals, Lewis averaged 17 points per game in the second round, showing he can still make shots when needed most.

But it's the individual sacrifices where teammates say he's made his biggest mark.

Carter, an eight-time All-Star, had his lowest scoring numbers in years. Dwight Howard and Jameer Nelson saw their scoring averages dip, too.

The Magic, finishing with the league's second-best record behind Cleveland, didn't even have a player in the top 20 in points per game. They all credit Lewis with motivating them to focus on the team's goals first.

``It's hard to be selfish with this group,'' Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said. ``You would stand out, and not in a good way.''

The Magic also never let Lewis' suspension become a distraction.

They rolled out to a 17-4 start this season, getting solid stints from newcomers Ryan Anderson and Brandon Bass. Looking back, players believe that early bit of adversity was actually a good thing.

``Nobody wants to see anybody suspended or anything, but I think it helped us in the long run,'' Nelson said. ``We had guys step up big time, and I think it helps us out for this part of the season, the playoffs.''

Part of the reason Lewis didn't take much criticism is because he is a lanky, 6-foot-10 forward, even though the supplement he tested positive for contained the steroids precursor DHEA. He also is only the sixth player to test positive for performance-enhancing drugs since the NBA began testing in 1999.

Lewis has maintained the elevated testosterone levels came from an over-the-counter supplement that he didn't know had the banned substance.

``I think it was more of a non-issue than anything because of the fact my career does not have a bad background, not a history of getting in trouble or taking steroids, whatever you want to call it,'' he said. ``I think people gave me the benefit of the doubt that it was a total mistake.''

Lewis has made up for it in the playoffs.

He had game-changing 3s in the final seconds of regulation in Games 1 and 4, among others, in the Eastern Conference finals last year to down Cleveland. With Howard sidelined in foul trouble at times in the playoffs this season, Lewis has helped Orlando's offense remain in rhythm.

Never one to shy away from taking the big shot, the biggest thing now for Lewis is knowing when he's needed to take over.

``If we win, I have no problem with taking fewer shots,'' Lewis said. ``But if needed, you'll most definitely see the fire in my eyes.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Mayweather picked to beat De La Hoya
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA -- Golden Boy Oscar De La Hoya and his rival Floyd Mayweather Jr. arrived at the MGM Grand here Wednesday amid the pomp and pandemonium befitting two of the biggest stars in the sport who are about to duke it out for the WBC super welterweight crown this Saturday (Sunday in Manila).

As of Wednesday, MySportsbook.com closed its book with Mayweather a favorite to defeat De La Hoya at -170 (a $100 bet wins $70), while De La Hoya is a +140 underdog (a $100 bet wins $140).

Mayweather arrived at about 11:30 a.m. on a big truck with his face and a big "World's Best Pound-for-Pound" sign scribbled across the vehicle. He was accompanied by his entourage made up of rappers and his training team.

A crowd of close to 3,000 eager fans packed the MGM Grand lobby, with their cameras in tow, all trying to vie for position to get a good angle at Mayweather, who is acknowledged as the world's best fighter pound-for-pound.

Eric Gomez, Golden Boy Promotions vice-president, described the fan turnout as "amazing" and swore he had never seen anything quite like this event.

"The crowd was fantastic. Everybody was just too eager to see the two fighters," said ALA manager Michael Aldeguer, who was among those who waited at the lobby together with his ward Rey "Boom Boom" Bautista and AJ Banal.

De La Hoya made his own grand entrance at the hotel lobby at around 12:30 p.m. accompanied by GBP chief executive officer Richard Schaefer and trainer Freddie Roach.

The same group of fans who trooped to see Mayweather also lingered around to get a close look at De La Hoya, who has been secretly working out at a Las Vegas gym for days after arriving from his main training camp in Puerto Rico.

The golden boy then took part in a closed-door afternoon workout with Bautista and Banal. The two, along with Aldeguer and wife Christine, as well as an HBO crew were the only ones allowed inside the gym.

De La Hoya and Mayweather take part in today's final press conference before the official weigh-in this Friday.

Ring Magazine, the acknowledged bible of boxing, reported in its June 2007 issue that 12 out of 20 boxing experts it interviewed have favored Mayweather to defeat De la Hoya, with only 8 favoring the latter.

But Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao said in a recent interview with The Freeman's Emmanuel Villaruel that De La Hoya will win by unanimous decision over Mayweather.

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your bet on boxing needs.


Online Sportsbook Football Betting

Why Sports Betting is so much fun?

Betting Sports

The most popular sports to bet on are NFL and college football along with NBA and NCAA basketball. There are multiple betting opportunities within those sports, beginning with the basic wager on a game’s outcome (also called betting the side). College Football Point spreads are used in both football and basketball in an attempt to even the attractiveness of each team in a match-up. ( See our article detailing how and why point spreads are made)

But you could also simply bet on the money line, or straight-up winner of the game. Oddsmakers use the money line so that more money must be risked on the favorite or expected winner and less money on the underdog to balance the action on both sides. While money line gambling is an attractive option for football and basketball bettors who only care about picking a winner, it is the primary option for those bettors who enjoy wagering on MLB baseball and individual sports like boxing, tennis, golf and racing events such as NASCAR. ( More details on playing the Money Line)

Points (or Runs) Scored

Another bet across all major team sports including football, basketball, baseball, and hockey involves wagering on the amount of scoring in a game, called an Over/Under total. For example, the Over/Under total on Super Bowl XXXIX was 48, which means a bettor could wager whether there would be more or less than 48 points scored by both teams combined in the game.

The final score of Super Bowl XXXIX was 24-21; the scoring of both teams added up to 45, which means the game went Under . So Under bettors won, and Over bettors lost.

Future Bets

Sports gambling doesn’t end there. Betting sides and totals are the most common wagers available everywhere, but many sportsbooks also offer future bets on big upcoming events like who will win next year’s Super Bowl and what movie will win Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

The main advantage of futures is that you can get appealing odds by betting far in advance. For example, with NFL futures you often can get much higher odds on a team by betting before the season even starts. A NFL future bet on a team to win the Super Bowl odds might be 20/1 in the preseason; but by midseason, their odds might decrease to 10/1 if they turn out to be legitimate championship contenders.

Proposition Bets (or Prop Bets)

Proposition bets , also known as prop bets, focus upon the more exotic aspects of a game and are generally reserved for events that are widely televised. Prop bets are extremely popular when it comes to wagering on the Super Bowl in Las Vegas. The Imperial Palace Casino’s sportsbook is well-known for the enormous number of prop bets offered. For example, you can bet on:
  • What team will win the coin toss
  • What player will score the game’s first touchdown
  • What will be the exact margin of victory

Types of Bets

Straight Bet

Involves one individual wager, whether it be on your team to cover the point spread, to win the game straight-up on the money line, or to go over/under the total.

Sports Betting Parlays

A parlay is a single bet that links together two or more individual wagers and is dependent on all of those wagers winning together. The benefit of the parlay bet is much better odds than placing each individual bet separately since the difficulty of hitting it is much higher.

Standard payoffs on a two-team parlay are 13/5; while a three-teamer pays 6/1; and a four-teamer 10/1.

Parlay cards are also fairly common in sportsbooks and popular with bettors, as they are released early in the week with set odds that do not change in return for a slightly lower payoff.

Round Robin Betting

Adventurous bettors who enjoy betting parlays sometimes put together a series of parlays called a Round Robin . A three-team Round Robin consists of one three-team parlay and three two-team parlays. For example, Joe likes teams A,B,C – with a Round Robin he has a three-teamer with ABC, and two-teamers with AB, AC, and BC.

Betting Teasers

Similar to a parlay, a teaser bet is a single bet that links together two or more individual wagers, but is different in that the point spread is adjusted to your advantage on each individual wager. In exchange for the points, you get less of a return on your bet compared to a parlay. For example, a 6-point teaser would move the line on a 7-point favorite from -7 to -1, meaning the team would have to cover 6 less points. Each of the individual wagers must win or the bet is a loss.

These are the main types of sports bets available today. But as sports betting continues to grow, sportsbooks will continue to develop new and creative ways to bet. We’ll continue to track these changes to the sports gambling landscape, so check back often and we’ll tell you all about it!

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs.