O'Neal ready to "Win a ring for The King"
Basketball Betting Lines
07/02/2009 -
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Shaquille O'Neal met the media Thursday in
Cleveland, a week after he was traded to the Cavaliers from the Phoenix Suns,
and unveiled a new motto in his attempt to capture another NBA title.
"Win a ring for The King," O'Neal said in reference to his new pairing with
reigning MVP LeBron James.
O'Neal has captured four NBA titles -- three with the Los Angeles Lakers and
Kobe Bryant and one with the Miami Heat and Dwyane Wade. He appeared intent on
winning another with a different NBA superstar by his side.
"They say things happen in threes," O'Neal remarked. "I won with Kobe and with
the great Dwyane Wade."
O'Neal, however, couldn't get it done with Steve Nash and the Suns, who sent
the 15-time All-Star to Cleveland in exchange for center Ben Wallace, guard
Sasha Pavlovic, Cleveland's second-round pick in the 2010 NBA Draft and cash
considerations.
In the last year of his contract, O'Neal is not the dominant force he once was
from earlier in his career, when he won the MVP Award in 2000 and was the NBA
Finals MVP in each of his three title runs with the Lakers from 2000-02.
However, the 37-year-old showed signs of rejuvenation last year, putting up
17.8 points and 8.4 rebounds in 75 games for the Suns, who just missed out on
the postseason.
The Cavaliers, meanwhile, were unable to reach the NBA Finals after posting
the best record in the regular season at 66-16. They were eliminated by the
Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference finals.
"I'm not going to do it by myself, LeBron's not going to do it by himself,"
O'Neal stated. "It takes a team, an organization.
"I'm just here to do my part and help a damn good team get over the hump. It's
LeBron's team. I'm here. He's the captain. I'm here to protect The King."
Over his illustrious 17-year career with Orlando, LA, Miami and Phoenix,
O'Neal has logged 24.7 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game, to go
along with accolades such as: the 1992-93 NBA Rookie of the Year and two
scoring titles.
<< Materazzi signs three-year extension with Inter
Milan, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Defender Marco Materazzi has signed a three-
year contract extension with Inter Milan.
Materazzi, 35, had 12 months remaining on his existing deal but is now under
contract at the San Siro until 2012.
<< Altidore among seven added to U.S. Gold Cup team
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Jozy Altidore was among seven players added to
the United States' Gold Cup roster, a change allowed by CONCACAF for any team
also playing in the FIFA Confederations Cup.
Forward Conor Casey, midfielders
<< Rockies deal Baker to Cubs
Denver, CO (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies traded infielder Jeff Baker
to the Chicago Cubs Thursday in exchange for minor league pitcher Alberto
Alburquerque.
The Rockies had placed Baker on the 15-day disabled list with a
<< Sister Act 4: Serena, Venus to meet in fourth Wimbledon final
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Second-seeded Serena Williams and third-
seeded Venus Williams will square off in Saturday's ladies' final at
Wimbledon, where Venus topped Serena in last year's third all-Williams finale
at the All England
<< Hossa's Cup quest leads him to Chicago
Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - It's every NHL player's dream to win a
Stanley Cup title, and Marian Hossa is certainly no exception.
Over the past few years, Hossa's travels have taken him from Atlanta to
Pittsburgh to Detroit, and desp
Coyotes ink D Aucoin >>
Glendale, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Coyotes brought in veteran
defenseman Adrian Aucoin on a one-year contract Thursday.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed per team policy.
Aucoin, whose departure from Calgary was ea
Kaymer off to record-tying start in France >>
Paris, France (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Martin Kaymer got off to a flying start
Thursday as he fired a nine-under 62 to take a three-stroke lead after the
first round of the Open de France.
Kaymer matched the course record at Le Golf Na
Longwood gives hoop's coach Gillian multi-year extension >>
Farmville, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Longwood University has extended the
contract of men's basketball head coach Mike Gillian. Financial terms were
not released but the extension covers multiple years.
The Lancers were 17-14 la
Gudjohnsen expects to leave Barca >>
Barcelona, Spain (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Barcelona forward Eidur Gudjohnsen is
content to wait on a decision over where he will be playing his football next
season.
The 30-year-old is expected to exit the Camp Nou this summer, but his age
Twins demote Henn, to recall Duensing >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Minnesota Twins have assigned pitcher
Sean Henn outright to Triple-A Rochester and plan to recall left-hander Brian
Duensing prior to Friday's game with the Detroit Tigers.
Henn, who signed as a mi
Academy Award Betting Odds for Best Picture Offer Great Value
If there is any category that is not an obvious win for any one nominee in this year's Academy Awards, it would be for Best Picture. Sure the Departed is a 5/7 favorite, but that's hardly anything when we look at Helen Mirren and her "out-of-reach" 1 to 40 odds (which means you would win a whopping $1 for every $40 bet).
For value, take a look at MySportsbook.com Oscars betting odds on my personal favorite, The Queen - a remarkable 12 to 1 long shot. The film hasn't won any pre-awards for Best Picture (compared to The Departed and Little Miss Sunshine), but there is a tremendous following and it is a strong enough film to warrant a surprise win.
TV Guide advises Oscar watchers should be cautioned not to discount the drama "Babel" with its strong social themes about overcoming communication gaps among people of different cultures.
"While 'Babel' lost several guild awards to 'Sunshine' and 'Departed,' it still enjoys loyal support, and historically Oscar voters favor dramas with social messages over comedies like 'Sunshine' and violent crime movies like 'Departed'."
"It hasn't done well in the guilds, which means there isn't much industry support," said Tom O'Neil of awards site TheEnvelope.com, "But several critics are expecting it to win, and that gets my attention." Babel had 7 to 2 odds at press time.
Who is to say independently produced Little Miss Sunshine won't be this year's Crash. Last year, Crash won for Best Motion Picture, shocking those who bet on gay cowboy flick, Brokeback Mountain, as the favorite to win.
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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.
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