Tag: Sports Betting

The Gamblers Guide to Betting on the Celtics and the Atlantic Division This Year

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So we’re two weeks into the 2019-20 NBA season and the Celtics are a solid 4-1 with wins over the Knicks (twice), the Raptors, and an incredible comeback win over the Bucks. Their only loss came on opening night to the Sixers, made worse by the sight of Al Horford in a Philly jersey. The Celtics look like they’ll be a pretty good team made better possibly with addition by subtraction. Kemba Walker looks like a match made in heaven as a guy who can drop 30 a night, yet is more than happy to pass up a last shot to blossoming superstars like Jayson Tatum.

What made that Tatum game winner even better was that it was the exact same play that the Celtics ran in Orlando last year leading to Kyrie throwing a fit on the court for not getting the ball. Oh and Kyrie continues to be an absolute PILL in New Jersey, memorialized by Jackie MacMullan’s great piece last week. Enjoy the ride, Nets fans.

Now for the most important part: the gambling.  Its a little early to overreact one way or the other and the Celtics’ unlikely come from behind double digit win over the Bucks probably skews things a little bit. But pick your spots with this C’s team and you could make some decent cash as they continue to surprise people.

  • Philadelphia 76ers
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 57-27, 2nd in the East
    • Key Storylines: Addition of Al Horford, Finally Getting Over the Hump, Overcoming Lack of Depth
    • 5-0 Against the Spread

The Sixers took their biggest weakness last year, a lack of bench depth, and doubled down on it. They lost Jimmy Butler and JJ Reddick, but picked up big man Al Horford to pair with Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid. The Sixers have arguably the best starting 5 in the league, but the end of the bench is pretty barren yet again. With that being said they are 5-0 and the current No. 1 seed in the East so while they don’t have much margin for error, they are one of the most talented squads in the league.

  • Boston Celtics
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 48-34, 3rd in the East
    • Key Storylines: Loss of Kyrie Irving and Al Horford, Addition of Kemba Walker, Addition by Subtraction, Jayson Tatum the All-Star
    • 3-2 ATS

If the Celtics are going to go anywhere this year its going to largely be due to Jayson Tatum. Sure Kemba Walker is the latest max free agent in town and Jaylen Brown just got PAID, but this team needs Tatum to become an elite wing player this season if they want to do some damage. I’ve been predicting big things for Tatum despite a less than stellar second season. So far this season he looks excellent averaging 22 PPG while shooting 40% from the field, an impressive 48% from three and an abysmal 75% from the line. Along with Pascal Siakam, Tatum was voted by ESPN as the most likely player to make their first All-Star team in the East, both earning 68.2% of the votes. With Tatum and likely Kemba making the All-Star team, an improved Brown, a finally looking like a basketball player again Gordon Hayward, and All-World defense from Marcus Smart, this team could be in business. As we seem to say every year since KG and Perk left town, the Celtics will need someone to step up as a rim protector/rebounder/big man presence. Whether thats Enes Kanter, Daniel Theis or Robert Williams evolving into the role, the C’s will need someone to step up if they want to compete with the Sixers.

  • Brooklyn Nets
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 45-37, 5th in the East
    • Key Storylines: Addition of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant, Kyrie Still a Pill
    • 2-4 ATS

This will be a much safer bet next season when Kevin Durant returns to the court, assuming he’s healthy, but in the meantime they will be a fun team to watch. Despite all his bizarre antics and issues with the media, Kyrie Irving remains one of the most electric one on one players in the league. While thats not necessarily the best path to winning a title, it definitely will steal the Nets some games they have no business winning.

  • Toronto Raptors
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 45-37, 6th in the East
    • Key Storylines: Defending Champs, Loss of Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green, Growth of Pascal Siakam
    • 4-2 ATS

Man what a roller coaster ride 2019 has been for Drizzy Drake’s favorite squad. Sorry let me clarify, I meant Drake’s hometown team the Raptors not his other favorite squad the Golden State Warriors. Winning their first title behind a Herculean effort from Kawhi Leonard solidifying his spot as the best player in the NBA…to Kawhi walking away and now defending their title with Pascal Siakam and not much else. Siakam was voted by ESPN as the co-favorite to earn their first time All-Star bid in the East. Its hard to be mad as the defending champs, but they went from the favorites (especially with a rapidly imploding Warriors team) to a team that will be scrapping for a bottom half seed in the East this year.

  • New York Knicks
    • ESPN Projected Finish: 26-56, 13th in the East
    • Key Storylines: ….lottery picks and 2020 Free Agency?
    • 1-6 ATS

If you bet real, actual, American dollars on the New York Knicks then you are on your own. Sure Marcus Morris is great to watch when he’s on, but you are banking on the latest iteration of James Dolan’s madness here. Maybe if you get them in a parlay, but other than that I cannot advise gambling on this dumpster fire.

So to wrap it up, who has the best shot at winning the division? Lets not get ahead of ourselves and ask who’s going to take down LeBron and the Lakers or Kawhi and the Clippers in the Finals quite yet. As of late October, the Sixers had become -200 favorites to win the Atlantic, improving from -160 on opening night. The Celtics remained the second-favorite, but were well back at +420, only a shade ahead of the new-look Raptors at +490 with all odds via Sports Betting Dime. Expect those odds to be a little closer together when they’re updated next. Boston’s impressive 116-105 win over the 60-win Bucks made a statement that Brad Stevens’ team is going to be a tough out this year.

I LOVE the Celtics at +420 to win the division. Sure that means catching the Sixers and winning 50+ games, who ESPN has them finishing 9 games behind, but those are odds to bet on. The Sixers at -160 is almost even money and forget it if Embiid misses time with the annual injury or load management concerns. The Raptors feel pretty unlikely to leapfrog both Boston and Philly so I’m not sold on them, and I think this season is a holding pattern for Brooklyn and yet another rebuilding year for the Knicks. So slap down some cash on the Celtics and enjoy the ride.

The 300s 2019 NFL Bracket Challenge

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Back before the MLB season started, I introduced a new way of gambling on professional sports: the bracket challenge. Modeled after March Madness, each entry requires that you pick each playoff team and their seed, as well as the winners of each playoff game every step of the way. I asked The 300s team to submit their picks before Week 1 started. Let’s check out how the guys think this season will shake down:

Mattes:

(AFC): Yeah, I know; I look like a real homer by picking the Pats as the No. 1 seed (and eventual Super Bowl-winner). But that defense looks LOADED, and we still got that Tom Brady guy. And yes, the Chiefs seem like an easy pick for the No. 2 seed after last year’s epic run. I’d like to have chosen someone else, but again, let’s call a spade a spade. The Jags coming in as the three seed might surprise some, but I think the vast majority of the NFL world is sleeping hard on them this year. Their defense is still elite (and only got better this offseason), and they finally have a good quarterback for the first time since Nam. The AFC North is going to be a battle all season long, and honestly the toughest decision I made was keeping Baltimore out! Though the Texans may look like they loaded up in recent weeks, I think Houston fans are in for quite the disappointment this year.

(NFC): This year will be Aaron Rodgers’s redemption. After a string of injury-plagued seasons and questions surrounding his psyche and character, the 35-year-old future H.O.F. will be determined to shut all the doubters up. He’s got some great weapons on offense, and the Packers should also feature the best defense they’ve had in years. I will be shocked if the Packers are not, at the very least, a top-two seed in the conference this year. The Saints will continue to roll as the No. 2 seed, although they’ll feel a lot of pressure from a solid Carolina squad, which comes in as my first wild-card team. The Eagles will give New Orleans a run for their money for a bye behind an MVP season from Carson Wentz.

In the end, we finally get the dream Super Bowl matchup that we as NFL fans have been deprived of for FAR too long: Tom Brady vs. Aaron Rodgers. And ultimately, Brady and the boys will win No. 7 after the best cherry on top the NFL has ever given us. 

Big Z:

The Patriots will make the playoffs and get a first-round bye again because they always do, but their unprecedented run of success has to take a year off at some point (not come to an end). I’ve got the Patriots bowing out in the Divisional Round. I’m not buying the Browns, so I’ve got the Steelers and the Chiefs in the AFC CG with Mahomes getting to the Big Game in his second year as a starter. In the NFC I’m going with the Boys. With Zeke on board they should be locked and loaded. In the Super Bowl, I’ve got Mahomes and Reid hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.

Joey Ballgame:

(NFC): My first impression as I filled this out is that The NFC is muchhhh tougher, at least internally. The South in particular where you have the Saints, Falcons and Panthers and the North where all four teams will compete. That’s just a motherfucker. At the same time, those teams will have a tougher time building solid records when the teams they play twice a year are that much better than the teams in other divisions, so they’ll kind of cannibalize themselves in terms of the playoffs. 

(AFC): As for the AFC, I see the Pats, Browns, and Chiefs sleepwalking their way to the Division crown. The Jags might get some fight out of the Texans, and honestly who even knows what Nick Foles is so they could shit the bed entirely. After that I kind of rolled the dice. I like the Bengals offense and the Texans, despite Bill O’Brien’s best efforts, still have a good team. Add that to the fact that the Titans and Capt Luck’s former team are looking rough and I wouldn’t be shocked to see the South have two playoff teams. 

I had all division champs in the divisional round save the Vikings, who I think could cause some trouble. After that though I think Baker runs out of magic against the Pats and Drew Brees and Co. are a little too much for the Birds. We know what happens next.

Dom:

(AFC): I’m in agreement with the rest of the boys in that I think the Pats should roll through the conference this year. This is as excited as I’ve been for a Pats team in a long time, and that’s saying something. The Chiefs took a step backward this year, the Jaguars are marginally better and their competition in the South got worse, and I will never be afraid of Philip Rivers. I think this is the year the Browns finally make the playoffs, but that run can only last so long.

(NFC): This conference is a total crap shoot. I don’t think there is a clear winner in any division save the West, which the Rams should win easily. Beyond that, I don’t believe Cam Newton has what it takes to win the South, which allows Brees another division title, Wentz and Co. should handle the Cowboys to take the East, and both Aaron Rodgers and the Vikings bounce back this year to come out of the North.

I see the Championship round games being basically the same as last year. I do think Goff will disappoint and Gurley will wear down again, allowing the Vikings to ride a balanced team performance into the NFC final. Brees and co. will get their revenge for last years PI call while Brady tops Mahomes again. In the end I see Brady prevailing over Brees in a QB matchup for the ages.

Red:

(AFC): I think the Patriots are still the cream of the crop in the AFC. Is that blind fanaticism for my favorite team? ….no. They’re just still the best team in the conference. The Chiefs are still electric, but are without their dynamite running back (unless everyone’s sleeper Damien Williams takes off). I think the Texans take a step forward this year after beefing up their OL with Laremy Tunsil and Deshaun Watson another year removed from his knee injury, althrough trading Jadaveon Clowney won’t necessarily help. The Steelers are going to be good again, but are now without their two best players from the last few years. The Chargers and the Ravens do just well enough to make the playoffs, but don’t make it very far. Despite what Skynet/ESPN tells you, the Patriots will not lose to the Texans, especially not because of Brady’s age. In fact they will topple ole Billy O’Brien once again and make the Super Bowl. Again.

(NFC): The Saints have some unfinished business and arguably the most electric player in the league in Alvin Kamara for Drew Brees to feed so I’m picking them to also advance to the SB as a No. 1 seed. The Rams don’t get the benefit of shitty refs this time and I honestly think that team takes a step back with the suddenly breaking down Todd Gurley. This is why you don’t give running backs record setting contracts. The Vikings rebound from a down year, the Cowboys clinch a Wild Card spot as do the Seahawks who pull an upset in the opening round, as the Eagles make it to the NFC Championship with a finally healthy Carson Wentz but can’t get over the hump. 

Super Bowl LIV: Pats 21 – Saints 17

Super Bowls are never as high scoring as people think they will be. You don’t even have to look back all that far (February) for a prime example of this. So I’m taking the Pats to grind out their 7th Super Bowl. 

This may be a Boston blog, but you gotta be crazy to bet against the Patriots this year. Pats are the odds on favorite to win it all here at The 300s, and most of us agree it’ll be the Saints out of the NFC. Big Z is the only one with a mind of his own…good for him. Go Pats, hello Antonio.

A New Way to Gamble On Sports

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March Madness is here, which means even people who don’t follow college hoops, like at all, have filled out their brackets and are watching the scores roll in. Based on the excitement and relative ease of filling out one of these brackets, I’ve developed a whole new way to gamble on professional sports. Essentially, brackets for the MLB, NFL, NBA and NHL and the field is the entire league.

Image result for mlb playoff bracket

I tested this out on a small scale with some friends last year, and with a little tinkering on the MLB bracket, I think I’ve found a pretty fun and unique thing here. One of the reasons that fantasy baseball and basketball aren’t as popular as football is because there are just too many games to pay attention to. With the individual sport bracket, you place your picks at the beginning of the year, and that’s it. Just like March Madness, you have a field of teams to choose from (in this case, the whole league), and you pick winners at each step of the way. Here’s a more detailed description of how baseball works:

There are 6 total rounds, with the first two rounds checkpoints in the regular season and the last four being each round of the playoffs. The first checkpoint will be May 15th (around the 1/4 season mark). The second is the All Star Break. You get 10 points per pick in the regular season rounds (1 and 2), 10 points for picking correct playoff teams and a bonus 10 points for getting seeds right (round 3). This way, if you guess a team that makes the playoffs but you don’t get the seed right, you still get awarded something. Round 4 includes the wild card game (30 points per correct WC winner) and the teams that make the LCS (40 points). I’ve scored it this way because you have a very slim chance of guessing the team that wins the actual Wild Card game, but ultimately an LCS berth is more important. Correct LCS winners get 100 points, and correct champion picks get 200 each. First tiebreaker is correct game count, second is total runs in the series clinching game.

Football works much the same way, but with no regular season checkpoints and more of an emphasis on division winners and seeding. The scoring is slightly different just because baseball playoffs aren’t as straightforward as the other leagues. Basketball and hockey start with the All-Star Break, and also assign bonus points for seeding and division winners. All brackets in any league get submitted before the season starts, again, just like with March Madness.

The 300s Podcast: Celtics Rise Like a Phoenix on the West Coast, Red Sox Opening Day Nears, and Patriots Attack the Offseason

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The 300s boys are back in the podcast studio discussing everything from the manic Celtics to the Red Sox inching closer to Opening Day, some good old fashioned Vegas gambling stories, and the Pats are jumping right into the offseason. Lets goo!

– Celtics Rise Like a Phoenix from the Ashes on the West Coast

– What is up with Kyrie? Miserable malcontent one day and then all happy go lucky after the Lakers game.

– Red Sox inching closer to Opening Day

– Best sporting events to bet on? March madness? Just betting 10 football games every Sunday?

– Red Sox Going With a Closer by Committee?

– Steven Wright suspension

– WEEI 8 man radio rotation

– Patriots Offseason/Free Agency

– Michael Bennett in, Trey Flowers out?

– Danny Amendola Reunion?

Washington Wizards to Offer Sports Gambling Broadcasts. Will My Attention Span Allow It?

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ESPN – The future of sports-betting-infused game broadcasts will be on display Friday, when the Washington Wizards host the Milwaukee Bucks. NBC Sports Washington Plus will produce an alternate broadcast for the Bucks-Wizards game that will feature a free-to-play predictive contest with a $500 prize, along with real-time sports-betting data and statistics that will be displayed on-screen throughout the broadcast. 

The predictive contest, “Predict the Game,” will ask approximately 30 questions throughout the game, such as: “Will Wizards forward Trevor Ariza score 10 or more points in the first half?” In addition, odds, point spreads and over/unders will be shown on broadcast graphics.

Inject this into my veins.

The only problem I can see with this is I already spend 75% of my time watching a game looking at Twitter. I can literally be looking up stats about the game, chirping opposing fans, or just tweeting out videos like the one of the Bears mascot literally dying on the field.

But that speaks to a larger issue with people as a whole; massive fragmentation of attention. This is the one area where Millennials really *are* the worst, albeit with good intentions.

We all try and do as many things as possible at once. We are masters of multitasking. We grew up with video games that required you to sneak past 20 armed guards, snipe a moving target’s face off from half a mile away, then escape an enemy base, all while collecting the necessary pieces of intel and disabling communications for enemy reinforcements. So anytime someone’s mom tries to tell me that video games are bad for kids I tell them to KICK ROCKS. Video games are the REASON I am able to focus on so many different objectives and deliverables all at once.

However, the downside of that is with my attention being pulled in so many directions I simply cannot sit down and do just one thing anymore. I can’t even tell you the last time I sat down and watched an entire game without picking up my phone or laptop. I guess high school? But even then you were IM-ing your buddies. It’s honestly like I graduated to better drugs because while in hindsight AIM wasn’t that great, I *still* get a rush of dopamine to the brain when I see this:

So am I excited for a gambling focused broadcast? Hell yes, in fact I’ve said for years that NFL games need to have alternative broadcasts featuring just a couple of guys f-bombing the coaches for bad decisions in between play-by-play. It would be like watching a game with your buddies, provide a little levity to sporting events that are already too serious at times, and ratchet up the entertainment value all at the same time. Would you rather watch that or Dan Fouts trying to remember where he left his keys?