nba

Las Vegas - As the NBA returns to the hardwood, you gotta throw a few handicapping metrics out the FREAKIN' window. First, and obviously MOST important is, who is in and who is out. We have not had confirmation on how many players, yet. But a handful of players have already opted out, including a YUGE piece for the Spurs, LaMarcus Aldridge. Also, Trevor Ariza will not play for the Blazers, Avery Bradley ain't gonna be with the Lakers, Willie Cauley-Stein will not be on the Mavericks roster and David Bertens of the Wizards has opted out. Before throwing down, PLZ wait till the rosters are finalized, and see what other players might not be lacing up.

Next is home court advantage. All the games will be at Disney World in Orlando, Florida, meaning AWAY games for each team. The exception is the Magic, who will have a slight home city edge being in Orlando, and just 19 miles and change from their home arena, Amway Center. As we get closer to tipoff, we'll highlight all the road records. If you're wondering, Giannis and the Bucks are the BEST team in the East with a suitcase, posting a 25-9 record, while the Lakers sit on top of the West with a gorgeous 26-6 mark. On the UGLY side of the street in the East, the Wizards are the ugliest at 8-24, while out West, the Blazers were almost as lousy at 11-23.

Also gotta look at the remaining schedules, and wonder which teams the NBA wants to see in the playoffs. You think that Adam Silver wants ZION in??? Oh yea, oh yea and OH YEA! The Pelicans are the ONLY participating team whose opponents have a sub-.500 combined winning percentage. And the team they're chasing, the Grizz, are tied with the Lakers for the 4th hardest sked. Hmmmmmm. Anybody SMELL somethin'???

Totally get that everyone is geeked, and can't wait to throw down on the hoopsters, but we would recommend keeping the wallet closed until all the relevant information is on the table.

Switching over to the baseball diamond, it looks like the MLB opener is gonna be the Yankees at the Nationals. Looks like it's gonna be Gerrit Cole against Max Scherzer. WOW! Looks like the game will be close to a pick'em or the Yankees a very slight favorite. Looks like the over/under total will be 7 runs flat. Looks like I'm heading to the store to buy some PEANUTS & CRACKER JACKS!!! MASK ON of course!

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*NBA*

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*Favorite* *Points* *O/U* *Underdog*

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*July 30*

Pelicans * 1 * (220.5) * Jazz*

Lakers * PK * (219.5) * Clippers*

*July 31*

MAGIC * 2 * (214.5) * Nets*

Blazers * 1 * (223.5) * Grizzlies*

Suns * 3 * (229.5) * Wizards*

Bucks * 5.5 * (218.5) * Celtics*

Kings * 2.5 * (217.5) * Spurs*

Rockets * 1.5 * (226.5) * Mavericks*

*August 1*

Nuggets * PK * (215.5) * Heat*

Jazz * 1 * (214.5) * Thunder*

Clippers * 5 * (226.5) * Pelicans*

76ers * 4 * (213.5) * Pacers*

Lakers * 3.5 * (216.5) * Raptors*

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NOTE: O/U is the over/under total (combined points for both teams) for each game.

NOTE: All games will be played in Orlando, a neutral site for all teams with the exception of the Magic.
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