Glen Davis says that he doesn’t want to be called Big Baby anymore. Instead, in honor to both his jersey and a certain Cincinnati wide receiver, he wants to be known as Uno Uno. I think he is missing out on one part in the whole issue – that he is a big baby. Davis was a beast in college, and promising at times in the pros, but he really doesn’t seem to have the mental makeup or brain power to stay calm and out of trouble these days.
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Author: T.O. Whentam
Five questions I have been asking myself about each of today’s games:
Jets (+7.5) at Colts
1. Will Sanchez’ weak play be a liability? I think that underwhelming play from Sanchez is a given – he hasn’t been particularly good in a long, long time. So far in the playoffs the coaching staff has been able to plan around is deficiencies. Can they keep that up?
I’m watching figure skating right now. My wife is a big fan, so I have to watch far more than my share of the sport each winter. It only barely interests me, but as I watch today I can’t help but think about the betting opportunities that the Olympics bring up. Figure skating is not usually one of the sports you can bet on because it’s judged, but there are plenty of things that we can bet on, and lots of odds that are posted already. Here’s a look at three of the interesting betting storylines at this point leading up to the start of the Olympics on February 12:
Lindsey Vonn – If you don’t spend a lot of time following skiing, let me make this simple for you – Lindsey Vonn is the Tiger Woods of skiing without all the mistresses. There have been five World Cup downhills for women so far this year. Vonn has won all five of them. She is so much better than the rest of the field right now that it is almost ridiculous. Pinnacle has Vonn at -125 to win the gold medal in the downhill, and the rest of the field at +107. She also has three wins in Super G this year, and is heavily favored to win that one as well, though not by as much – she is +156 and no one else is better than +666. The trick in handicapping the women’s skiing, then, comes down to just one decision – are you with her or against her?
Hockey – I’m a Canadian. For the last year (or more) all you can hear about in the sports media up here is the Olympic hockey tournament – who will be on the team, who will be captain, can we erase the embarrassment of finishing 7th last time out? It’s endless and monotonous, but I couldn’t possibly overstate the importance to Canada of winning the gold on home soil. They are heavily favored to do so +130 at Pinnacle. The book basically has it as a two team tourney – Russia is at +260, and Sweden is way back at +698. That’s how it should turn out as well. Canada has ridiculous depth – with the possible exception of a goalie, the country could field a second team that would be a very legitimate medal threat. Goaltending is a bit of a concern in my eyes, though. So is the fact that it all just comes down to one game, and Russia has three of the four most talented offensive players in the tournament – Ovechkin, Malkin, and Kovalchuk (Crosby is the fourth). If he gold medal were a best of seven affair the Canada would win it most of the time. In a single game anything can happen.
Curling – After hockey the medal that means most to the host Canadians is the men’s curling. Canada is the world’s curling power, and we take pride in that. This tournament is, like the hockey, shaping up to be a two team tourney if things stay close to form. Kevin Martin is the skip of Canada’s team and probably the world’s best curler right now. He is at -140 at 5Dimes to win the gold. The second choice at +375 is perhaps the hottest curler in the world right now – Great Britain’s David Murdoch. Murdoch spends a lot of his time curling and training in Canada, and he recently became the first non-Canadian to win the prestigious TSN Skins Game. Martin and Murdoch have an intense rivalry – the Canadian beat the Scot in the finals of the 2008 World Championships, and the Scot turned the tables in 2009. It’s a tight contest every time they play, and either team could win, so while my heart will be with Martin, my head says that Murdoch represents far better value.
I’m not sure that I have seen a player as desperate to get rid of a decent player as the Angels were with Gary Matthews Jr. today. Matthews had two years and $23 million left on his deal. He hasn’t lit the world on fire at the plate in the last three years with the Angels, but he is a very solid defensive player and he is sound at the plate. In other words, though he’s no all-star he’s not exactly a handicap either. Despite that, the Angels not only sent hm to the Mets for a journeyman middle reliever, but they also agreed to pay $21.5 million of the remaining contract. So, the Mets get a very solid platoon outfielder – especially since they aren’t going to have Carlos Beltran for at least a month – and it cost them practically nothing. On the other hand, the Angels are saving a lousy $1.5 million, and they lose outfield depth for it. Terrible deal, but that’s fitting for the offseason that the Angels have had. Wow, this has not been their winter.
Chris Bosh scored 44 points and 12 rebounds in Milwaukee last night. No other starter had more than 13 points, and the Raptors lost to the Bucks by six. Note to the Raptors – hanging your best player out to dry like that is not a very good way to get said best player to stick around once he becomes a free agent.
The Buffalo Bills are a team I really want to like. I’ve been to a game at Ralph Wilson, and I thoroughly enjoyed it – it’s a pleasant stadium with good sight lines and very good tailgating in my experience. They’ve had their share of iconic players over the years, and they often seem to be on the verge of big things. They’re the poor little cousin of the NFL, so as a guy who always likes the underdog I have an obvious soft spot. With their latest move, though, I’m afraid that they may have finally lost their minds. If you missed it, Chan Gailey has been named coach of the team. Yes, that Chan Gailey. Brutal.
1. Have you seen the lineup for the slam dunk contest this year? It may finally be time to take this horse out behind the barn and shoot it. When the biggest name in the contest is Nate Robinson – a guy who can’t even get consistent playing time for a terrible team – you know you have problems. He’s joined by a few more players no one will care about any more than him – Gerald Wallace, Shannon Brown, and the winner of a Friday contest between Eric Gordon and DeMar DeRozan. Painful. Really, really painful.
The Cowboys are the first team to make a mistake today – they have decided to keep Wade Phillips on board for at least another year. I really don’t see that going well and think that they should have made a change, but what’s done is done. The Chargers really need to not make the same mistake – they must fire Norv Turner right away. Here are six good reasons why:
1. My beloved Wolverines beat UConn today, and looked good doing it. The tournament dreams are still on life-support, but this certainly helps keep them alive. The next three games – all conference contests against good, ranked squads – will be crucial.
Five Thoughts about each of Sunday’s games:
Dallas (+2.5) at Minnesota
1. Is the Dallas defense for real? They have allowed just two touchdowns in the last 12 quarters, and have looked almost unbeatable, but that has come in two games against the obviously deeply flawed Eagles and a game at the terrible Redskins. This is a big step up in competition for them.
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