Kobe gets fourth ring, Jackson gets 10th

The Lakers put the finishing touches on their 15th NBA title with a 99-86 win over Orlando in Game 5 on Sunday. What's next for Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson and the rest of the Purple & Gold?

It was just like the betting odds said it would be.



The Los Angeles Lakers opened the 2008-09 NBA season as 3-1 favorites to win the championship after getting embarrassed by the Boston Celtics in the 2008 Finals. And that?s exactly how it went down. The Lakers pulled away from the Orlando...

Capping speed and defense in the big leagues

Lies, damned lies and statistics are purported to be the three types of untruths in the world, and in the world of baseball there are plenty of statistics to misrepresent the truth. To fully appreciate what Ichiro's speed and defense means to the Seattle Mariners, you have to watch him day in and day out. In the end a handicapper is still left to exploit the difference between real and perceived value.


Lollygaggers!



One of the great misinterpretations of baseball?s Moneyball age is that it?s all...

New York, New York: Mets, Yankees meet in Bronx

It hasn't been a good start to the week for either team with the Mets dropping two of three at home to the Phillies while the Yankees were swept in Boston by the Red Sox. But none of that matters this weekend as the two Big Apple rivals get it on in a three-game set at the new playground in the Bronx. The Yanks are -220 favorites to win the series against a banged-up, injury-riddled Metropolitans bunch.

The great thing about handicapping interleague play is it...

Lakers stun Magic, now one win from title

Maybe Dwight Howard should have spent more time recently practicing his free throws instead of those half-court underhand shots. Orlando's Superman looked anything but super near the end of regulation with two missed charity shots that could've sealed a Magic win. Instead, Derek Fisher's three-pointer forced overtime where another one of his bombs helped the Lakers take a 3-1 lead in the Finals.

While I?m sure there?s been a series in the annals of the NBA playoffs more peculiar than the current edition of the Finals,...

Miami Dolphins in for letdown in 2009

They were the Cinderella story last season after the Dolphins posted an 11-5 mark to earn a postseason berth just a year removed from a 1-15 record. Head coach Tony Sparano, now entering his second season on the sidelines, knows it will be much tougher in the coming campaign, and with Miami being dealt the toughest schedule for 2009, there's a good chance they may not even reach eight wins.


On the other side of the NFL offseason betting odds fence from division, conference, and Super Bowl...

Can Howard and Magic tie series in Game 4?

Maybe this is going to be a battle after all. Down two-love in the NBA Finals, the Magic shot lights out on Tuesday to top the Lakers 108-104 in Orlando. Still, one has to wonder how a team can shoot a playoff record 63% from the field and fail to cover a 4½-point spread. The two teams get right back at it on Thursday in Game 4 from the Amway Arena with ABC's broadcast set to air at 9:00 p.m. (ET).

Handicapping the Los Angeles...

Penguins force Game 7 with Detroit Red Wings

It's just as Lord Stanley would want it. Pittsburgh's 2-1 win over the Red Wings in Tuesday's Game 6 means the NHL season will come down to one final skate in Detroit on Friday. If the Wings can hold Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin in check again, Detroit should land their second straight and 12th Stanley Cup overall. And if Marc-Andre Fleury has a repeat of Game 6, it's No. 3 for the Pens.

You know the classic sports cliché ?in order to win in the playoffs, your best players need to be your...

Papelbon, Red Sox lead MLB's bullpen ratings

As bullpens become more and more specialized and starting pitchers work fewer and fewer innings, capping the opposing relief corps for a single game is as important as analyzing the starters. Jonathan Papelbon and the Red Sox lead the way up to now in Bullpen ERA, though that single column of stats does not always translate into money at the window. Just ask the Mets, White Sox and Mariners backers.

Getting a handle on starting pitching isn?t the gift horse it was back in the day. Gone...

Lakers escape LA with 2-0 lead in NBA Finals

The Orlando Magic were oh, so close to knotting the NBA Finals at a game apiece, but Courtney Lee's layup at the end of regulation wouldn't drain through the cylinder, sending the game into overtime with the Lakers eventually taking a 101-96 win. Now the series shifts from the West Coast to sunny Florida with Game 3 on Tuesday night from the Amway Arena where the Magic are 7-2 during the postseason.


Baseball is supposed to be the game of inches, but after Game 2...

Kobe and Lakers favored to take 2-0 lead

Down two points to the Magic after the first quarter in Game 1 on Thursday, Kobe Bryant came alive to fuel the Lakers on their way to a 100-75 rout over Orlando. Kobe scored 40, dished out eight assists and grabbed eight boards to lead the stat sheet while the Magic shot less than 30% on the evening. Game 2 on Sunday finds LA listed as 6½-point chalk with the public heavy on the Lakers already.


It didn?t take bettors long to weigh in on what...