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Lady Luck strikes Wizards, SixersBasketball Betting Lines05/19/2010 - Secaucus, NJ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Legend has it that the phrase "Lady Luck" refers to Fortuna, the Greek goddess of fortune and personification. Fortuna evidently wasn't a big fan of NBA teams along the I-95 corridor last year. From the nation's capital all the way up to Madison Square Garden, a wretched brand of basketball was being played. In fact the Washington Wizards, Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets and New York Knicks combined for 94 wins and an astounding 234 losses. The worm may have turned for at least two of those teams on Tuesday, when the Wizards and Sixers jumped up in the NBA's annual Draft Lottery. Armed with a minuscule 10.3 percent chance of leaping from No. 5 to the top spot coming in, the Wizards, represented by Irene Pollin, the wife of late owner Abe Pollin, did exactly that, climbing into a position to select Kentucky freshman sensation John Wall in the draft on June 24. The jump-up into the prime position may have been thanks to a lucky charm, as Irene wore the 1978 Bullets championship ring of her late husband, who passed in November, during the lottery. "This is wonderful. My husband never took this ring off his finger," said Irene Pollin. Washington (26-55), of course, was plagued by poor play on the court along with off-court indiscretions headlined by the suspension of former All-Star Gilbert Arenas for bringing guns into the Verizon Center locker room. "We deserved a break and I just had a good vibe," incoming Wizards owner Ted Leonsis said. "I just said if ever a franchise deserved some good luck, it's this [one], because last year was an incredibly tough year for the city, the fans and the Pollin family." The Sixers made an even more unlikely leap when they garnered the second selection, up from No. 6. The likelihood of Philadelphia making that jump was 6.03 percent and gives the moribund franchise a chance to take the National Player of the Year, Ohio State star Evan Turner. The Sixers brought up their own lucky charm, a used hockey stick from the Philadelphia Flyers' stunning rally from three games down to topple the Boston Bruins in the NHL's Eastern Conference semifinals. "We hope our fans are as excited by the outcome of [Tuesday's] draft lottery as we are," said Sixers president and general manager Ed Stefanski. "We are fortunate that the ping-pong balls bounced our way tonight." Of course, if you believe in luck, you understand it can be good or bad. The Nets, who entered the lottery with a 1-in-4 chance to land the top selection, dropped to third despite finishing an NBA-worst 12-70. New Jersey and its new owner, Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov, were banking on the top pick, along with building blocks Brook Lopez and Devin Harris, to entice soon-to-be free agent LeBron James away from Cleveland. Now, the Nets will have to settle for one of three solid prospects in forwards Derrick Favors of Georgia Tech and Wesley Johnson of Syracuse, along with Kentucky Center DeMarcus Cousins. "Sometimes luck makes all the difference, but it never comes down to one player," Prokhorov said. "We are going to get a great player." The team with the worst record hasn't won the lottery since 2004, when the Orlando Magic selected All-Star center Dwight Howard, a fact that NBA commissioner David Stern thinks breeds competition and excitement for the annual event. "I think the results of the Lottery, if anything, are causing teams with the worst record to feel as though a paucity of wins is not being adequately recognized and compensated," Stern said before the event kicked off. "So for us, it works well. It's taking care of the main reason for which it was enacted."
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Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana Should be in: Michigan State [21-8 (8-6), RPI: 20, SOS: 15] The Spartans made it four-for-four on the homestand, a gigantic accomplishment that leaves them in extremely good shape. MSU is only 1-6 on the road and is at Michigan and at Wisconsin to close things out, meaning the date with the Wolverines on Tuesday looms very, very large. Beating Texas early will hold up well, as will the rout of Bradley and the win over BYU, but will 8-8 be enough? It very well could be, as the computer numbers are good, but why chance it? Indiana [18-9 (8-6), RPI: 24, SOS: 32] Hmm ... good thing the last two are at Northwestern and home to Penn State, because IU might want to get both to feel completely safe after dropping its third in the last four, fading after halftime at Michigan State. Who knew the best nonconference win would be over Southern Illinois, which is a gift that keeps on giving for the Hoosiers. The win over Wisconsin also looks good on the mantel. Work left to do: Illinois [21-9 (9-6), RPI: 31, SOS: 25] A good performance at Penn State leaves the Illini in pretty good shape. Can they go to Iowa and take care of business to really look on their way? That's a huge game, as there is a possible cluster of teams that will end at 9-7. Illinois beat Bradley, but has lost to Xavier. A 9-7 mark and a semifinals trip in Chicago could be enough with the computer profile hanging in there, but it would be better not to mess around, clinching at least a tie for third. Purdue [18-10 (7-7), RPI: 47, SOS: 28] Couldn't get it done at Iowa, but did win at Northwestern to put 9-7 squarely in sight. Where does that leave the Boilermakers, though? Even if they beat Minnesota and Northwestern at home, that won't help the computer numbers. Nonconference wins over Virginia, DePaul and Oklahoma are solid, but not spectacular. The Boilers very well might need an upset in the B10 quarters to have a legit claim. Michigan [19-10 (7-7), RPI: 55, SOS: 53] Well, Michigan did what it needed to do, winning at Minnesota to take control of its fate. The Wolverines have Michigan State and an already-wrapped-up-the-league Ohio State at home to close, so the chances are there. Win both and we can talk. There is no marquee win yet in the profile, and the Wolverines were splattered in several games against name opponents. A mediocre computer profile fueled by a lack of road wins isn't helping, either. Iowa [16-12 (8-6), RPI: 80, SOS: 64] For the sake of being complete, we'll add Iowa, this season's Stanford. It's plausible that the Hawkeyes could get to 10-6 (at Penn State, vs. Illinois left), but where does that leave them after a gruesome nonconference performance where the best win was over ... Toledo? Iowa State? Cornell?? If they get to 10-6, we can start to look at what they need to do in the B10 tourney, although my gut sense is that they would need to make the final and have knocked off Ohio State or Wisconsin on the way to have any real claim. For more College Basketball betting lines go to MySportsbook.com Additional sports lines can be found at: www.Sportsbooks.com To bet on March Madness games this online sportsbook accepts credit cards.
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