A king's ransom might not be enough to keep James

Basketball Betting Lines

05/19/2010 -

Ask not what LeBron can do for your team.

Ask what your team can do for LeBron.

Neither James nor his agents have gone public with any outrageous demands so far, but it's early and you know what they're thinking. Small wonder. Every discussion in the NBA these days eventually winds its way back to you-know-who and where he will deign to play next season. It's gotten so bad that the King should consider wearing a headband full time, if only to limit the swelling.

Shortly before Tuesday night's draft lottery, even commissioner David Stern weighed in on whether and-or where James' throne might end up.

``To be perfectly honest, it doesn't matter to me,'' he said. ``Our job is to promote him and our league wherever he goes. I think it's terrific that he has the choice to make, and we'll be behind him whatever he does.''

Stern did find time to congratulate his league for a compelling postseason so far, and predicted interest would only grow with a ``great finals'' in the next few weeks, followed by ``a really interesting draft'' on June 24. But the commissioner left no doubt about what he considered the most important event on the NBA calendar this year.

``Katie bar the door in July'' is the way Stern referred to the beginning of free agency on July 1. And if the actual wheeling and dealing turns out to be half as entertaining as the build up has been - ``Songs, banners, balloons, blimps, armies, I don't even know what,'' he marveled - Stern would be advised to take his own advice.

``I'm just going to hide in the office,'' he said, ``and let it all roll out.''

Unfortunately, not everyone will have that option.

``I'm 'LeBroned out.''' Charles Barkley told ESPN radio earlier in the day. ``OK?

``I am so sick of ... you know I love ESPN. but they're really starting to annoy me. I'm going to have to turn it off for the 40 days. They've already got the 'LeBron free-agent clock' on. I am seriously sick of talking about LeBron James - every little whim, dissecting everything he says.

``I'm really just sick,'' the former and still-round mound of rebound repeated one more time, ``of the whole LeBron thing to be honest.''

Nobody wants to see another traveling circus similar to the one Brett Favre rolled out of Green Bay first to New York and then into Minneapolis. It happens much more frequently in big-time club soccer, but there's only a handful of athletes in the four major North American pro sports leagues whose relocation could cause anywhere near this kind of tumult.

Alex Rodriguez's move from Texas to New York didn't, but if Derek Jeter ever decided to leave, he probably could. Tom Brady and Peyton Manning in the NFL, certainly; Sidney Crosby and maybe Alex Ovechkin in the NHL, almost. Among James' NBA brethren, only a renewed threat by Kobe Bryant to depart Los Angeles would come close.

Because of league rules, staying put with the Cavaliers would allow him to pocket an extra $30 million or so more than any other team can pay. There's also the city's unquestioned loyalty, something that was demonstrated in a half-goofy, half-sad video made by a group calling itself ``Clevelanders for LeBron James.''

In it, a string of low-level government officials, local TV personalities and entertainers on up to U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown and Gov. Ted Strickland pledge their willingness to do almost anything to keep James, all of it set to the tune of ``We Are the World.'' Similar efforts are already under way in a half-dozen other towns, all of them extolling the benefits of relocating there.

There is a lesson writ large in this episode, but you have to wonder whether James is interested in learning it.

Cleveland might be a small-market team, but so is Indianapolis and it hasn't hampered Manning's endorsement value one bit. James already exerts influence over virtually every move the franchise makes, from signing other free agents to deciding who the next coach would be. The only thing the Cavaliers can't guarantee him is a title, but neither can anyone else.

Then there's the little matter of what James owes a franchise that has already paid him a king's ransom in salary and enabled him to make several times that much money on the side. You won't hear that discussed too often, but anytime you need a reminder, find a photograph of the sign that covers nearly an entire side of the arena in Cleveland.

It was put there by James' handlers from Nike, and shows him with arms outspread. It reads: ``One for all.''

But maybe not for much longer.

---

Jim Litke is a national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke(at)ap.orgCopyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Big Ten Conference odds

Teams that should be in: Michigan State, Indiana
Work left to do: Illinois, Purdue, Michigan, Iowa

Behind the big two, the pecking order might be in a bit of flux. Has Michigan State passed Indiana after handling the Hoosiers in East Lansing? Where is Illinois in that mix? What looked like a four-big league last week could be morphing into five -- and even six is not unthinkable at this point if everything breaks right.

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.

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SPORTS BETTING

NFL Football Betting Online

In terms of sports wagering, the NFL is "the most popular game in town." The explanation behind that is easy.

It is called the "pointspread."

Many years ago, NFL games, as well as the more popular college games, used straight odds as a vehicle for betting. For example, if the Bears were playing the Giants, and it shaped up as a competitive contest, the Bears might be, say, a 7/5 favorite. If they were playing an also-ran, it might be 10/1. Well, there is a point where a line becomes prohibitive, as far as betting the favorite. And who would waste money betting an underdog that has virtually no chance? Such a setup did not contribute to promoting betting action.

But in modern sports betting, a "pointspread" is used.

A NFL pointspreads are exactly that, a pre-established point difference between the two sides that will, for all intents and purposes, create a handicap that evens things out, and in doing so, produces comparable wagering activity on both sides of that proposition. So in lieu of a odds figure in which to bet the team to win outright, the Bears might be a three-point favorite over the New York Giants, and a 17-point favorite over the also-ran. Now that the team that is the underdog can "get" points, there can be equal action on both sides.

In sportsbooks, this is usually done with efficiency by charging the losing bettors 10% extra - in effect, bettors are laying 11/10 on those games. So they are actually betting $110 to win $100. If they lose, they pay the "vig." If they win, they simply collect.

The establishment of the pointspread as the corner stone around which team sports like football can be wagered upon was truly what brought gridiron betting into the stratosphere for online football betting .

Don't believe it? Just take a look at what happens around the Super Bowl.

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