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07/19/2010 - Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Phoenix Suns have called a news conference for Tuesday morning, when it is expected Lon Babby will be named president of basketball operations.
Phoenix indicated only that a "major announcement" would be made Tuesday, but multiple media outlets have reported it is to name Babby as the successor to Steve Kerr, whose contract was not renewed and has since re-joined TNT as a game analyst.
The Arizona Republic reported the organization is still likely to hire a new general manager. Kerr wore both hats during his tenure with the club, first joining the Suns as part-owner and consultant in 2004 before taking the reins as president and general manager in June 2007.
Babby would follow a seldom-followed path to the front office, having served as a player agent and practiced sports law for more than 30 years with Williams & Connolly LLP. Most notably, Babby represents Suns forward Grant Hill, the Spurs' Tim Duncan and Celtics guard Ray Allen.
Babby also represents numerous professional baseball players and has served as club counsel, then general counsel for the Washington Redskins (1977-1980) and Baltimore Orioles (1979-1994). In addition, he is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
<< Mets activate Castillo from DL
Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Mets second baseman Luis Castillo, who
has been out since June 2 due to a bruised right heel, was activated from the
15-day disabled list Monday.
Castillo is hitting .241 with 14 RBI in 44 games this
<< Kang leads U.S. Girls' Junior
Village of Pinehurst, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Danielle Kang shot a five-under 67
on Monday to take the first-round lead at the U.S. Girls' Junior Championship.
Kang, 17, collected seven birdies against two bogeys at the Country Club of
Nort
<< Twins' Morneau to see specialist
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota Twins first baseman Justin
Morneau will see a specialist Tuesday, as he continues to deal with symptoms
of a concussion he sustained before the All-Star break.
Morneau is on the disabled
<< Report: Childress visits Favre in Hattiesburg
Hattiesburg, MS (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Minnesota Vikings head coach Brad Childress
reportedly met with Brett Favre on Monday as he tries to gauge if the star
quarterback will return for a 20th season in the NFL.
WDAM-TV in Hattiesburg repo
Fish eases into second round in Atlanta >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sixth-seeded Mardy Fish advanced into the
second round of the Atlanta Tennis Championships with a straight-set win over
Britain's James Ward on Monday.
The American, who brings some momentum into the t
GM: Trade market quiet for White Sox >>
SEATTLE (AP) -General manager Kenny Williams says he doesn't see any deals on the horizon for the Chicago White Sox because the current market is limited.Williams spoke in the visiting dugout before Monday night's game at Seattle, 12 days before bas
Source: Babby to head Suns basketball operations >>
PHOENIX (AP) -A person with knowledge of the situation says the Phoenix Suns have hired agent Lon Babby to head the team's basketball operations.The person, who asked not to be identified because the official announcement has not been made, told The
Cardinals pound Kendrick, Phillies 8-4 >>
ST. LOUIS (AP) -Albert Pujols' two-run home run in the fifth inning began a barrage of four long balls in a span of six at-bats and Blake Hawksworth survived a rocky start in the St. Louis Cardinals' 8-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.Rookie
In terms of sports wagering, the NFL is "the most popular game in town." The explanation behind that is easy.
It is called the "pointspread."
Many years ago, NFL games, as well as the more popular college games, used straight odds as a vehicle for betting. For example, if the Bears were playing the Giants, and it shaped up as a competitive contest, the Bears might be, say, a 7/5 favorite. If they were playing an also-ran, it might be 10/1. Well, there is a point where a line becomes prohibitive, as far as betting the favorite. And who would waste money betting an underdog that has virtually no chance? Such a setup did not contribute to promoting betting action.
But in modern sports betting, a "pointspread" is used.
A NFL pointspreads are exactly that, a pre-established point difference between the two sides that will, for all intents and purposes, create a handicap that evens things out, and in doing so, produces comparable wagering activity on both sides of that proposition. So in lieu of a odds figure in which to bet the team to win outright, the Bears might be a three-point favorite over the New York Giants, and a 17-point favorite over the also-ran. Now that the team that is the underdog can "get" points, there can be equal action on both sides.
In sportsbooks, this is usually done with efficiency by charging the losing bettors 10% extra - in effect, bettors are laying 11/10 on those games. So they are actually betting $110 to win $100. If they lose, they pay the "vig." If they win, they simply collect.
The establishment of the pointspread as the corner stone around which team sports like football can be wagered upon was truly what brought gridiron betting into the stratosphere for online football betting .
Don't believe it? Just take a look at what happens around the Super Bowl.
Stay with us here as we take you through the best in NFL action on a consistent basis, with advice columns as well as handicapping selections. If you're looking for college football betting, that's in our NCAA section, which you can reach by clicking here. And if you're looking for a different kind of football, such as the Canadian Football League, which we'll deal with occasionally, or the Arena Football League, which we really like, you can find it in our Miscellaneous section by clicking
Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds .
To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook betting credit cards
Recently I had an email debate with an angry reader who said I did not understand "the science of oddsmaking", as he called it.
He said I was wrong for suggesting oddsmakers care about who wins or loses games.
"Oddsmakers only care about splitting the betting public 50/50 on both sides of the line and keeping the commission (a.k.a. juice)," he wrote.
He might have been right about not understanding "the science of oddsmaking". After all, I'm not an oddsmaker. That said, I stick to my assertion that oddsmakers (a.k.a. sportbooks) often do care about who wins games.
Granted, as a general rule, sportsbooks try to balance their action so that they're not exposed to big losses. However, there are times when this is difficult to pull off, regardless of how much a line has moved. There are also times when that general rule is ignored and a book pursues risk.
Generally speaking, it's safe to say the books in Vegas are risk-adverse. Unlike in the past when the wise guys ruled the town, Vegas is now corporate and the goal of most casinos is to make as much money as possible with as little risk as possible.
Thus, Vegas sportsbooks try everything in their power to balance the action. They're satisfied simply collecting the juice. But these profits are small, especially compared to the take from other casino games, namely slot machines.
Because the profits at Vegas sportsbooks are so small, you could argue that many casinos operate sportsbooks simply as a novelty to keep the tourists happy.
With a growing aversion to risk, it should come as no surprise that Vegas bookmakers have been panicking this NFL season.
Despite huge pointspreads, a disproportionate percentage of bettors are still laying their money on favorites like the Eagles, Colts, Pats and Vikings rather than the dogs (a common trend for the largely recreational bettors that visit Vegas).
And much to the dismay of the books, those favorites are finding ways to cover the thick chalk. In fact, prior to Week 7, the four teams listed above are a combined 16-2-2 (88 percent) against the spread. (The tables turned dramatically in Week 7, but more on that later.)
The result has been an early-season beating for the books, and a bonanza for bettors.
While Vegas increasingly hates risk, it's no longer a major player in the sports betting world. Most of the betting action now takes place offshore where sportsbooks are not as obsessed about balance. In fact, some books encourage exposure to risk because the rewards can be so much bigger.
Consider MySportsbook.com. On its website, the book has odds pages which actually display the amount of action it's getting on games. In other words, you can see how much action the book is taking on both sides of a pointspread, moneyline or over/under.
One look at these numbers and it's obvious MySportsbook.com does not balance every game. In fact, far from it.
Take last weekend's matchup between St. Louis and Miami. By game time on Sunday, 83 percent of the betting action at MySportsbook.com was on the Rams; only 17 percent was on Miami.
What's interesting is that MySportsbook.com opened the pointspread with Miami at +6 1/2. By game time, the spread had lowered to +5.
That goes contrary to the balancing theory. If MySportsbook.com had wanted to balance the action, it would have given Miami more points; instead, it took away 1 1/2. World Series odds are now up as well.
MySportsbook.com exposed itself to even more to risk, and rolled the dice on the underdog Dolphins. Why? I contacted a representative with the book to find out. His answer was simple.
"The line moved early based on 'smart money' from sharp players," said Jeff Gilroy, a spokesperson for the book. "We also knew from early in the week that we would need Miami, therefore (we dropped) the spread to encourage Rams money.
"At the end of the day, we liked the home team."
So the conclusion is this: MySportsbook.com respected the sharp action, and gambled that the sharp bettors had a better take on the game than the recreational bettors, who were hammering the visiting Rams.
In the end, the gamble paid off. Miami, desperate for a win in front of its home fans, pounded the overrated Rams, who are terrible on the road and even worse on grass. Final score: 31-14 Fish.
MySportsbook.com was also heavily exposed on numerous favorites in Week 7, including Philadelphia, Seattle and Denver. All three failed to cover.
The fact that sportsbooks are exposed to risk on certain games is really nothing new. The fact, that Sportsbook.com is willing to show the public where it's exposed is intriguing.
Armed with this type of information, bettors can make more educated wagers. They can get an idea where the sharp money is going and conversely where the public money is headed.
MySportsbook.com is opening up its cashbox, letting bettors look inside and challenging them to take their best shot at grabbing the cash.
To visit this online football betting got to MySportsbook.com for all your football betting odds needs. Mysportsbook.com online sportsbook accepts Visa and Mastercard credit cards.
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