Author Archives: @bossportsextra

Patriots & Gronk Headed for Divorce

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There is a universal truth in professional sports; the player and the team always end up divorced. The rare exception holds when that athlete plays his entire career with one team, knows when the treads are completely off his tires, and voluntarily hangs us his cleats, sneakers, or skates with a heartfelt thank you to the fans at a designated tribute celebration the following season. Tom Brady will most likely end his career as one of the few who bow out gracefully and forever be ensconced in the Mount Olympus of New England sports along with Bobby Orr, Ted Williams, and Bill Russell. Yet, framing it as New England sports is deceiving because it implies the quartet had no peers amongst those who played most, if not all, of their careers in Boston when, in fact, their greatness in their respective sports knows no such geographical bounds.

However, this is not Tom Brady’s professional funeral pyre but rather the first shovel of dirt on the grave of Rob Gronkowski’s tenure as a New England Patriot and perhaps his football career. The end is nigh for Gronk, and for several reasons. First and foremost, his injuries continue to mount but unlike in years past, Gronk is no longer able to bounce back and perform at an elite level. He is slower this season and less explosive. When he is absent from the Patriots’ lineup the NFL odds boards take note and New England is affected by a half point or more at the betting windows. He is also knocking at the door of 30-years-old, an age where pro football players (quarterbacks excluded) witness their elite abilities waning while their recovery period lengthens.

In short, Gronkowski is due $12 million next season, the final year of his contract. Bill Belichick is about as sentimental as a goldfish and will undoubtedly view that as a mismanagement of financial resources in a sport where contracts are not guaranteed. Football players don’t get paid for what they’ve done, only what they are poised to do and right now Gronk appears more destined for the trainer’s table than the gridiron.

Yet, there is hope that this impending divorce will be amicable and not turn acrimonious. Gronkowski whispered the word retirement in the offseason and when a player says it aloud, you can be sure that the wheels are already in motion. Gronk has also stated he wants no one other than Tom Brady throwing him passes and if he’s true to his word, then the Rob Gronkowski Appreciation Day may be coming sooner than later.

 

Oddsmakers Still Bullish on Patriots

When the season began the NFL odds boards at the best online sportsbooks, featured all in one place at Sportsbook Review, revealed that the New England Patriots were once again favored to win the AFC. Despite a stunning 34-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans before their bye week, the Pats are still among the frontrunners to win the conference at +240, trailing only the Chiefs (+200), and are prohibitive favorites to win their 10th consecutive AFC East crown. One would never guess that those who make a book for a living and must calibrate public perception have a very different view than many Pats’ fans who believe the sky is falling, Brady is done, and New England’s decades of domination is now in the rearview mirror.

If we can look at this objectively, the Pats are 7-3 and will have had two weeks to prepare for an underwhelming Jets’ squad in Week 12. In addition to that game in New York, New England will have the luxury of games against the Dolphins, Bills, and another against the Jets in four of their last six games of the season. Although nothing is guaranteed, those four games are as good as wins unless the sky is indeed truly falling. The two true tests will be the Vikings at home and the Steelers on the road. Assuming New England wins one of those two then they will be sitting pretty at 12-4 and that record should get them the No. 2 seed in the AFC behind Kansas City.

All is not lost Patriots’ fans so let’s not deviate from “In Bill We Trust” as we look forward to another championship run in Title Town.

The Psychology of Sports: What’s in the mind of a top athlete?

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Image Credit: Pixabay

When watching a game, be it from the NFL, NBA or NHL, we can’t help but marvel at the physical specimens that are clashing before our eyes. The years spent in heavy training, fine-tuning every muscle of the body, building monumental endurance and strength protrude from every fiber of pro athletes’ bodies.

 

But in seeing these physical characteristics, it’s easy to forget that the real battle, the preparation, goes unnoticed because it happens “behind closed doors” — in one’s mind. And how about those who play mind sports like poker? Are there any commonalities between the two types of players? Let’s find out.

It’s All in the Mind

Image Credit: Pexels

Caption: Athletes face two battles: against themselves and against their opponents.

 

So, what is it that pro athletes need to overcome to take the coveted win? Sports psychologist Jim Taylor, Ph.D., who works with top endurance athletes, published an interview in Psychology Today where he identifies the mental response to physical breakdown as the decisive moment between reaching the goal line and dropping out. In other words, if athletes win their personal battle and keep pushing against physical exhaustion, then they’ll be competitive.

 

Of course, waiving off the body signals that are yelling “Stop!” is not a simple feat, and it can be outright dangerous for amateur athletes who don’t have the physical foundations that allow them to push themselves to the limit. It’s the reason pro athletes are so revered — they go where “ordinary” people physically and mentally can’t. So, what can we do to achieve a pro-athlete cognition and physique?

 

Unsurprisingly, there’s no one answer, which is probably why many people prefer to stay in bad shape — they are looking for a magic formula that doesn’t exist. “Personality is rather amorphous quality. […] most of us naturally adopt […] strategies that fit our personality,” says Dr. Taylor. So, to make it through a taxing workout, you need to find what works best for you mind-wise — not what your favorite athlete is doing (though, the two might coincide).

 

Of course, a win is not guaranteed, and aside from team preferences, it’s quite fascinating to witness one team defeat another one that spent an equally exorbitant amount of effort and money on preparing for a win.

 

The Alpha Within

Image Credit: Pexels

Caption: Studies suggest that when celebrating a win, players show dominant body language.

 

Just because mental rigidity is a key component of athletic dominance, it doesn’t mean there’s nothing primal about sports. Another Psychology Today article discusses “The Body Language of Victory,” presenting findings of San Francisco State University’s (SFSU) research on post-win microexpressions.

 

The study looked at Olympic and Paralympic judo athletes and their physical reactions after winning a match. Protruding chests, clenched fists and heads held high were common among the researched group. These are all physical traits that say, “I’m the alpha.”

 

It might be logical that such reactions would manifest after a sports duel, but these signs of dominant behavior are also apparent in other, non-combatant sports, such as when a scoring soccer player celebrates with a high jump and fist thrown in the air. What’s more, aggressive postures disregard etiquette. Brief displays of such a stance were present even at golf and tennis competitions — events where athletes are expected to exercise composure even during turbulent times. These dominance-related traits were also apparent in congenitally blind athletes, who couldn’t have learned them by observation.

 

But David Matsumoto, a Professor of Psychology at SFSU, co-author of the judo study and former U.S. Olympic judo team coach, made another fascinating observation. He states that post-win dominance signs are more subdued in athletes who come from “more egalitarian cultures,” suggesting that primal behavior is not uncontrollable.

 

A Winner’s Mindset

 

But psychological triggers are not limited to games that measure physical prowess. They are also present when people put their minds against each other, as is the case with poker. “All great players exhibit something called mental toughness,” writes for pokernews.com Dr. Tricia Cardner, a “former psychology professor turned poker player.”

 

Dr. Cardner goes on to explain that the mental resilience that professional poker players exhibit in coping with “ups and downs” is something that’s also applicable to other areas of life. She notes that there’s increasing evidence that one’s poker performance and psychological state are interlinked. “Your goal as a player is to create a mentally tough mindset that helps you to perform more consistently no matter what challenges you face,” writes Cardner.

 

That is consistent with what Dr. Jim Taylor says about his “Power of Prime” training concept. “[…] prime performance, […] I see as very different from the popular goal of peak performance. I define prime performance as performing at a consistently high level under the most challenging conditions.” The two scientists reach the same conclusions albeit one of them speaking about endurance sports, the other about poker.

 

While it might sound discouraging to hear that to cope with everyday stressors we need to develop the mind of a top athlete or poker player, Dr. Cardner reassures that there are a set of psychological traits that if practiced can increase mental resilience.

Caption: These are the eight traits of mental toughness, according to Dr. Cardner.

 

Stacking Trophies

Image Credit: Pexels

Caption: Many top athletes practice the art of meditation.

 

The psychological traits that Dr. Cardner suggests cultivating mental toughness are ingrained in the end goal of a self-developing practice known for centuries, but recently, branded under the name “mindfulness.” WebMD says that “being mindful means paying close attention to what’s happening in the moment.”

 

Indeed, being aware of one’s environment, both physical and mental, without judgment is what meditation is. Mindfulness, adapted to modern days, is widely practiced as a tool for managing stress, performing under pressure and bringing balance to one’s mental state. There are no set rules about how to practice mindfulness. However, focusing on one’s breathing while noticing bodily and mental sensation seems the most common way.

 

Science is yet to reach a definitive conclusion about the effectiveness of mindfulness, if possible, but the practice enjoys a fan base even among the major leagues. Kyle Shanahan, the 49ers’ head coach, is one among many of his colleagues who incorporated meditation in their players’ routine. So, too, have many players.

 

Is athletic greatness inherent or cultivated? Well, the word is still out on this one. What’s for sure is that mental preparedness plays a crucial role in physical training. But does that mean that any person can reach athletic heights by thinking positively? Some believe it’s possible while others say that great athletes are born capable and only polished afterward. In either case, it takes more than brawn to make it to the top of the sports charts.

 

Online Fantasy Sport Betting

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Online gaming has gained a lot of popularity due to its variation that emphasizes players from all around the world. Among the most played online gambling games are fantasy sports, which people of all age groups enjoy. The concept of fantasy sport betting is very simple and easily understandable.  It’s an online game where you make a teams of real players. The teams then compete with each other and the scores are distributed according to the player’s stats in real time. Each league has a commissioner who tallies points and oversees each team.

Fantasy sport betting is a great money-making opportunity for the players who are smart enough with game strategies. Even a new comer can try his hand in fantasy sport betting as the rules are very simple. Before the fantasy sport came into limelight as online gaming option, it was played in living rooms or sports bars among friends. But, with the advancement in technology, the fantasy sport game gained a lot of popularity as the players easily can participate online. Players can win anywhere between thousands and millions of dollars. For the new players, this is the best platform as all the details about the fantasy sport betting are readily available.

Fantasy Sports

Fantasy sports are the games where the player himself is the team leader and creates a team virtually of real players who have some specialization in their particular sports. The team then competes against another player’s team. The winner is one who has maximum points and scores depend on the real performance of the player in actual games.

Almost all the most popular sports are available in fantasy betting, but the most liked and played one are baseball, basketball, and football. Also, other sports include golf, Formula 1 racing, hockey, horse racing, tennis and mixed martial arts.

Fantasy sports betting

Here are few details that will help the player to get a clear idea about betting technique and how to initiate the game.

  • The first and the most important step is to make the best choice of the Fantasy Sport betting site, which must be well authenticated and well reputed. The player can get the best site by checking the reviews of all the top rated sites and then going for the best and right one.

  • After signing up and entering the world of Fantasy sports game, the player needs to pick a sport for which the player has to make a team by choosing best athletes of particular sports.

  • The NHL, NBA or NFL are the best sports to bet on since they have multiple players on each team to choose from.

  • The completion lasts for a day or a week which means the player will compete against the other fantasy sports gambler for a day or a week.

  • The winning team who has scored the maximum points wins the game and collects the cash. The game can vary from small number of players to thousand of players and this depends on the formats set for the games. The bets range from free to big or high stakes.

How to create a team

There are very simple steps so check it out here:

  • Choose the best site, register and then choose the sport.

  • Make the selection accurately that includes the type of sport, terms of stakes, number of opponents and duration of the whole game play.

  • Chose the best performing players to make a strong team. Keep a track of the whole game play and keep on checking how the selected players are performing as this will help the player to make more accurate selection the next time.

Conclusion

The whole concept of fantasy sport betting games is amazing and will undoubtedly bring out a lot of fun for the player, so one must try at least once. It is less about luck and more about skill.

What Have We Learned from the Patriots’ Preseason?

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The Pats are always expected to make it to the “Big Game”—and this year is no exception.

The Patriots’ training camp began on July 26. Everything we’ve learned since then, including the four summer matchups, has given us certain insights into what we can expect for the coming year. Here are a few of our observations and predictions.

Tom Brady remains the NFL’s living legend.

Brady is all good…

Even at the age of 41, the team’s MVP quarterback seems to be in good form, which is an absolute necessity if the Patriots want to maximize their chances of reaching the Super Bowl again this season. The Pats’ second preseason game was a rematch of last year’s championship face-off against the Philadelphia Eagles. Brady shepherded his team towards a definitive 37-20 win, and he looked great doing so. As Brady has gotten on in years, a primary concern has been the inevitable deterioration of his passing strength. But his preseason performances made it clear that he can still whip the pigskin like a rocket when he has to. Brady also had a decent performance in New England’s strange matchup against the Panthers.

… and so is the offensive line

For the third season in a row, Joe Thuney, Shaq Mason, and David Andrews will start on the interior. Trent Brown will hold the left tackle position that he dominated during training camp. After missing out on most days of camp, right tackle Marcus Cannon has finally returned to practice. Because the team has lost first-round pick Isaiah Wynn for the entire season due to a torn Achilles, tackle depth has become the only open issue. However, LaAdrian Waddle is a suitable substitute, in case Cannon is required to sit out a few games.

The Patriots’ top picks will fail to deliver

Ever since 2014 and Dominique Easley, New England has failed to receive the benefit of its bargain from its top-pick players, and it seems that this will once again be the case this season. Adding insult to injury (pun intended) to the loss of Wynn, first-rounder Sony Michel participated in only three padded practices in August, and second-round cornerback Duke Dawson is likely to start the season on the injured reserve list. Furthermore, at the time of writing, Cyrus Jones—the second-round pick in 2016—is expected to be cut imminently.

Who will return punts for the Pats?

Let’s face it, New England needs a punt returner. Danny Amendola left to join Miami’s squad. And, regardless of how good he is at returning kickoffs, Cordarelle Patterson has never fielded punts at the pro level. As such, no one from the current roster seems to stand out as the “go-to” punt returner.

Julian Edelman is one possibility, but remember that he’s not only been suspended for the first four games, but will also be returning in the fifth week as a 32-year-old player who has just had major knee surgery. The end result is that New England is forced to keep certain players solely for the purpose of having a punt returner—for example, cornerback Cyrus Jones and receiver Riley McCarron, who shared this duty over the summer.

The team’s 15-year UDFA streak will continue with J.C. Jackson

Rookie cornerback J.C. Jackson is the team’s only hope for adding an undrafted rookie to the roster for the 15th straight year. Jackson finished the preseason game against the Giants with two interceptions of deep passes from Kyle Lauletta, which earned him a congratulatory handshake from Coach Belichick. It’s fair to say that Jackson was the most productive playmaker in the secondary throughout the preseason.

The Pats will start the season employing “running-back-by-committee”

Because of both outside need and injuries, New England will begin the season with a slate of players to fill the running back position, and they might have to do so for the entire year. To compensate for their lack of depth in wide receivers, the Pats will use more two-back sets, but their top candidate to play all three downs (Sony Michel) is a rookie who just missed most of training camp.

Furthermore, Sony Michel and Rex Burkhead are in bad shape, and Brandon Bolden is mainly a special teams player. They can put James White to work, but not on every down. Mike Gillislee and Jeremy Hill could also possibly make it into the rotation.

Seventy-Five Years Ago This Week, Ted Williams Hit His Stride in Navy Baseball

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As viewers tune into the PBS Masters documentary, Ted Williams: “The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived,” the Splendid Splinter was roughing it 75 years ago this week in the most difficult and dangerous aviation training school in the world. During that 90-day training camp, Williams played the majority of his military baseball for a Navy Pre-Flight team known as the “Cloudbuster Nine.”

After hernia surgery, Williams shipped into Pre-Flight training at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in May 1943. As a member of the 25th Battalion he found himself back on the ballfield, missing dinner and precious rest time for extra batting practice with the baseball coach and fellow Red Sox cadet, Johnny Pesky. As Williams regained his perfect, barber-pole swing, he exceled in classroom courses such as physics and the Theory of Flight, which later influenced his book The Science of Hitting. He also became a standout boxer and thrived in Outdoor Survival Training, where cadets were dropped alone in the woods, 30 miles away from base with little more than a compass and a canteen. Like a bird dog Williams always made his way back home.

Though the film touches on Williams’s resentment about forfeiting his prime playing years to serve in the military, a surviving 98-year-old Cloudbusters pitcher claims that Williams never once complained about his military service. In fact, Ivan Fleser, who shipped into Chapel Hill from Michigan with Gerald Ford, an instructor at the Pre-Flight school, says that Williams was a swell guy who “blended into baseball practice like a Regular Joe, never expecting any special treatment.”

Boston Ties to the Cloudbusters

During WWII 90 percent of America’s professional baseball players served in the war. Because so many players aspired to become fighter pilots—one of the most dangerous paths in the military—the Cloudbusters inherited two dozen big-leaguers and future Hall of Famers, such as Detroit’s Charlie Gehringer, who served as a Navy Pre-Flight coach. In addition to Williams and Pesky, other teammates with Boston ties included cadets Johnny Sain and Buddy Gremp, and coaches Ed Moriarty, Andy Pilney, and Robert “Ace” Williams, who played for the Boston Braves and Bees. Red Sox teammates included Pete Appleton, Dusty Cooke, Charles Gelbert, Joe Gonzales, Al Niemiec, and Ray Scarborough.    

As fans watch rare color footage of Williams’s last home run on the PBS special, 75 years ago, he was rumbling up and down the highway on a cramped tin-can bus, battling arch-rival Navy teams out of Norfolk, Virginia. Pictures from those games, where the Cloudbusters reunited with former Red Sox such as “Dom” DiMaggio and ex-Yankee Phil Rizzuto hit the news wires, and for a moment, fans and members of the service, relived the days when peacetime baseball prevailed.

The fabled pilots never felt too important to play against the local factory teams. On July 24, 1943, the Cloudbusters were exhausted, and battered and bruised from nonstop training yet they rallied in the last two innings to defeat Burlington Mills Weavers, 9-4, before 3,000 fans. At those factory games Williams and Pesky were known to spend most of their time in the stands signing balls for kids, to offer comfort as the world raged with war.  

When the Cloudbusters committed to a war-relief game at Yankee Stadium, Williams found himself in the middle of a tug-of-war battle between the public, who desperately wanted to see him play again, and the Navy, which kept him close to base.  

On July 25th, the Cloudbusters played another game against Norfolk’s Naval Training Station, losing 6-5.  At this juncture in his training, Williams’s passion for flying equaled his passion for baseball. He pushed his body to the limits and would later claim that he was in the best shape of his life in the Navy, where he trained his heart out.  

The “Big Man” himself, Babe Ruth, was recruited to manage a blended roster of Yankees and Indians called the “Yanklands” for the July 28th benefit. That week the nation followed Williams in the headlines, hoping he would be cleared to make the trip to New York. When the Navy confirmed that he would stay put in Chapel Hill, ticket sales took a hit.  

Williams name was not listed on the scorecard that day but when two of the greatest hitters who ever lived raced out of the concrete chute, applause shook Yankee Stadium, and war-time baseball history was made.  

Of the roughly 500 major-league players who suspended their careers to serve in the Second World War, fewer than 45 remain with us today. No one will ever know what Williams could have achieved, had he not suspended his baseball career for the service but Teddy Ballgame loved his country more, and for that reason, baseball is alive and well today.

Johnny Pesky, Ted Williams and Dom DiMaggio reunite at a Navy game in Chapel Hill at the old Emerson ball field. Credit:  The United States Navy Pre-Flight School Photographic Collection #P0027, North Carolina Collection Photographic Archives, The Wilson Library, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.    

Image of a Pre-Fight game from old Hillcrest field in Burlington, North Carolina. Image donated by Don Bolden.

Anne R. Keene is the author of the recently released, The Cloudbuster Nine, The Untold Story of Ted Williams and the Baseball Team That Helped Win WWII. She is now interviewing the surviving major-league veterans from WWII to capture this disappearing war-time narrative. Details on the Cloudbuster Nine are featured on www.annerkeene.com.

Boston Red Sox Must Seize July Schedule to Edge New York Yankees

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This MLB season is proving to be one of the least competitive in recent times. However, it is creating some incredible stories at the top of the divisions. The biggest now is that of the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees.

The arch rivals have been neck and neck atop the American League East for much of the season. As we pass the halfway point, there’s very little between them. Boston sits pretty at the top of the division having played more games, but they can legitimize their lead over the coming month.

Coming up in this league of disparity is a schedule that the Red Sox should be licking their lips at. Meanwhile, their rivals may find themselves fall off of the pace a bit. Over the month of July, Boston could pull away just in time for their next series with the Yankees at the start of August.

A Telling Month of Baseball

Source: Geo Sports, via Twitter

To say that a team has an easy running can sometimes be unfair to their opponents. However, given the mighty play of the Red Sox to date and the records of their opponents, July should be a very positive month for Boston.

At the start of July, Boston faced the Washington Nationals who marginally had a .500 record at the time. Then comes a slew of under .500 teams in the Kansas City Royals, Texas Rangers – both of which foot their respective divisions – Toronto Blue Jays, Detroit Tigers, bottom dwellers of the AL East Baltimore Orioles, and the Minnesota Twins. After those, however, Boston faces the high-flying Philadelphia Phillies for all of two games before facing the Yankees in a four-game series.

If Boston stays true to its performances so far this season, hitting a .663 percentage, then they can expect to win 17 games from the 25 in July. However, their play of late – bar the showing in two games against the Yankees – has been strong and they could feasibly aim for 19 or even 20 wins.

The season may only be just past the halfway point, but the Red Sox should attack this schedule to create more space between themselves and the Yankees. Despite being in first in the AL East, Boston is at +150 to win the division in the MLB odds on bet365. The Yankees are a very dangerous team and could sneak up on Boston if the Red Sox don’t seize the opportunity.

Source: Boston Informer, via Twitter

 

The Boston Red Sox aim to greatly bolster their wins column, as the New York Yankees will certainly continue to push.

Front Runners to Taste World Cup Success

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The ultimate goal for every team participating in the upcoming World Cup is to win it all. While teams might state they are complacent with a 16 qualification or a quarter-final appearance, everyone deep down wants to raise the cup. Making it past the first round of play demonstrates signs of improvement, but there is no doubt that every player dreams of winning for their homeland. Small footballing countries such as Saudi Arabia or powerhouses such as Brazil all share the same common goal.

With everyone’s eyes set on the greatest prize, let’s explore who stands a better chance of tasting World Cup success. You can also have your say on which team you think is going to win the World Cup by visiting netbet.co.uk and placing your bet.

Brazil

The hot favorite going into the tournament is Brazil. There are a number of factors that add to this fanfare. First, Brazil has experience of lifting the World Cup trophy, having won it on five different occasions. Second, Brazil is entering this tournament on in good form after winning their last five matches on the bounce. To cap it all, Brazil has one of the best squads in the tournament. In goal, they have two of the best in Ederson of Manchester City and Allison of Roma. On defense, they have PSG’s Thiago Silva and Marquinhos. At defensive midfield, they have workaholics in Fernandinho and Casemiro, while in attacking midfield they have Philippe Coutinho and Willian. Up front, Brazil can call upon Neymar, Gabriel Jesus, or Roberto Firmino.

Germany

Just like Brazil, Germany has experience with succeeding in World Cup play. Germany won the most recent tournament in 2014, and they look to become the third squad to ever record a repeat win. Germany will have the same technical staff, including manager Joachim Low, who orchestrated the team’s success at the last World Cup. While Germany is known for its ability to play as a collective unit, they have standout players of their own, including Toni Kroos, Thomas Mueller, Leroy Sane, and Mario Gomez.

Spain

After what seemed like a period of decline soon after Spain’s last UEFA Euro success, the team is now starting to perform at the highest level once again. The current Spanish team is a blend of both experienced players like Andres Iniesta, Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique. The team also has some emerging talent in the form of David de Gea, who has been in outstanding form for Manchester United. Other young guns include Real Madrid’s trio of Isco, Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez. If Spain can get into their rhythm early in the tournament, then they will be a dangerous team.

Can the Celtics regain their form?

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The All-Star break could not have come at a better time for Boston. Going into it, the team were on a three-game losing streak and had won just five of the previous ten, giving up over 120 points twice in consecutive games. Of all the teams in the top eight in the East, only the Heat were in poorer form, so the days off were an opportunity for coach Stevens to resolve their problems and gear up for the season’s finishing stretch.

Now that the business end of the season is upon us, the team need to pick up the pace. Celtics fans who study the schedule will know that the team is running out of games to get back into form ahead of the playoffs, and though sports bettors who like to wager a bet on Stakers.com will find the Celtics toward the top of the betting markets for the Eastern Conference, those who watched the team going into the break know that there is some work to do.

The recent slump in the Celtics’ fortunes was in sharp contrast to the way that they started the season. A 16-game winning streak that included victories over San Antonio, Golden State, and Miami took them to the top of the Conference, and with Cleveland struggling, there was a great opportunity to dominate the East. However, it didn’t quite happen. They had a shaky patch in December and then seemed to hit a wall in the middle of January, losing nine out of 15 and slipping to second in the standings behind Toronto.

What went wrong? Well, for a start, Marcus Smart punched a picture frame in his hotel room. Fortunately, the glass embedded in his hand didn’t hit a tendon, but Smart was out for three weeks and the defense suffered. The Celtics gave up 121 points to Cleveland and 129 to the Clippers, and suddenly opponents were finding it too easy in the paint. As they scrambled to correct the problem, the defensive foul count began to creep up, which also cost them.

The other main problem was more complicated and trickier to resolve. During their bad run, Boston’s bench players didn’t step up enough, leading to an inconsistent run of results. Too many times they threw in unforced errors or didn’t bring the required level of intensity to the court. To an extent, this was not their fault. Earlier in the season, while the likes of Kyrie Irving and Marcus Morris were absent, the likes of Abdel Nader and Semi Ojeleye enjoyed plenty of game time, but the return of the big guns meant that they’ve been required to spend more time on the bench and that has made it harder for them to maintain form and confidence.

The final problem that underlay the Celtics’ bad run was a tendency to rely too heavily on Irving. The team’s main source of points, he regularly puts his body on the line for the Celtics, but in his absence, they were dramatically poorer at both creating and scoring. Clearly, he needs front-line support, which helps to explain the Celtics’ apparent interest in Tyreke Evans ahead of the trade deadline earlier this month, and is almost certainly something that Danny Ainge will be aiming to address in the offseason.

Can the Celtics regain their form? The early signs are encouraging. With Smart back in the team, Boston kept things tighter to beat Detroit, and followed that up with a win at the Knicks to leave them just half a game back behind Toronto and with a 6.5 game lead over a revamped Cleveland side pushing hard to return to the top in the East.

While the tendency to rely too heavily on Irving could ultimately cost them against the likes of Cleveland and the Warriors, the Celtics will feel confident of beating anyone else they come up against and have every chance of overhauling the Raptors to head into the first round of the playoffs on top of the Conference, for the second time since 2008.

There are some vital games coming up, particularly the early run of fixtures in March. The Celtics will take on the West’s leading side, Houston, and the playoff-bound Timberwolves, followed by two of their closest pursuers, Washington and Indiana, and the month ends with the first of two crucial games against the Raptors, which could determine who tops the Conference. However, with Smart back in the team and momentum returning, the Celtics look in good shape to correct their January slump and head into the playoffs at the top of their form.

Insane Prop Bets for Super Bowl LII

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The Pats pulled off another stunning comeback to beat Jacksonville in the AFC Championship and set up a Super Bowl meeting with the Eagles. Tom Brady and co are the heaviest favorites in nine years to beat Philadelphia, as most sportsbooks have given them a -5.5 point handicap. But the real fun lies in analyzing the wide array of weird and wonderful prop bets, which will entertain sports fans over the next two weeks. Here are some of the most exotic and fun bets to look out for:

How Long Will the National Anthem Last?

Pop star Pink has been chosen to sing this year’s national anthem and the line has been set at 2 minutes. Under 2 minutes is +100 and over is the -140 favorite in the Super Bowl prop bets. Throughout history the average time is 2 minutes and 18.6 seconds. It has ranged from Billy Joel’s 1 minute 30 seconds rendition to Alicia Keys’ 2 minutes 35 seconds. The last three performers – Luke Bryan, Lady Gaga and Idina Menzel – all went past the 2 minute mark, at 2:04, 2:09 and 2:04 respectively. So going for over 2 minutes at -140 looks like a good idea.

Gatorade, Trump and Wardrobe Malfunctions

The color of the Gatorade to be poured on the winning coach is always a source of great speculation. It resulted in a scratch last year. The President will also make his presence felt due to his long-running standoff with the NFL, and you can bet on how many times Donald Trump will be mentioned. Justin Timberlake is down for the half-time show and the last time that happened, the wardrobe malfunction happened. Janet Jackson’s nipple made a famous appearance back in 2004, when her costume slipped during a duet with Timberlake. That has sent sportsbooks rushing to make up lines about malfunctioning wardrobes this time around.

There are too many weird and wonderful bets on offer to list them all. You can look out for bets on Pink’s outfit, her hair color, and whether she forgets a word during the anthem. It’s also possible to place a bet on who President Trump will pick as the winner.

Coin Toss

One of the most popular Super Bowl prop bets is on the simple coin toss at the start of the game. Both heads and tails are just short of evens, meaning the house should take a slight profit if the betting is split evenly. As with all these prop bets, it is impossible to stake a large sum on the coin toss. However it can be a bit of fun to keep things interesting before the action begins.

Sensible Props

Aside from the quirky props, there are hundreds of more sensible markets regarding what happens on the actual the field of play. The most obvious ones concern the first touchdown scorer, total passing yards, total rushing yards, total points, and so on. But you can break it down to the nth degree:

  • Third quarter handicap betting
  • First second half touchdown scorer
  • First half field goals
  • Race to 5 points, 10 points, 15, 20, 25, and 30 points
  • Whether there will be a field goal in the second quarter
  • When the first scoring play will be
  • Whether both teams will score 20+ points
  • Whether there will be a safety or not
  • Who will score the last touchdown
  • Whether the first half total points will be odd or even

You could write these bets off as gimmicky, but if you really drill down into the stats and analysis you could find some great value.

Who Will Be Named MVP?

Most of the candidates to win the MVP award are Patriots players, and QB Tom Brady is understandably the favorite at +113 after his heroics last year.

Who Will Win the 2019 Super Bowl in Atlanta?

The oddsmakers have already released lines on who will win next season’s Super Bowl and the Patriots lead the betting as the +450 favorite. The Eagles are next +850.

Celtics Stun Pacers with 112-111 Win in Indiana

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When it comes to the 2017-2018 NBA season – at least so far – games don’t get much more exciting than the nail-biter between the Boston Celtics and the Indiana Pacers.

Terry Rozier’s steal against the Pacers in Indiana will long be remembered as one of the most clutch plays ever. It gave Boston the unpredictable and heart-stopping win, leaving the Pacers with nothing to do but look dejected and think ahead to revenge.
After leading by as many as 19 points earlier in the game, Boston surprisingly found itself trailing by one point with less than 10 seconds left to play. Indiana was in possession of the ball out of bounds in the hands of Bojan Bogdanovic. Hindsight is always 50-50, but given the circumstances Bogdanovic would’ve been well advised to hold onto the ball in the hope that Boston would foul him. Instead, he inexplicably opted to pass, letting Rozier pick it off, run for the basket and sink the game-winning 2-pointer.

Final score: 112-111 Celtics.

Ecstasy for Boston fans and sheet misery for every Pacer fan in Indiana.
Despite the drama at the end, and the tight score, the Celtics looked strong throughout. The Pacers showed heart and guts – regardless of that moment of catastrophic judgment at the end. But Boston, particularly in the form of Kyrie Irving, gave another stellar performance to come away with the win. Irving scored 30 points on 12-of-23 shooting, including two 3-pointers that he hit in the closing minutes. Those two triples brought Boston within one point and gave Rozier the opportunity to steal, and then to score the unforgettable winning basket.

The Celtics Need Strong D

It’s easy to forget when watching a close call like the Celtics had on Tuesday night that the team just recently ended their epic 16-game winning streak. A run in which was in large part due to their mighty defense. To regain momentum and to display the same brilliance as during the streak, Boston clearly must revive its lagging defense. It’s a challenge on two levels. The first is trying to settle the young players’ lack of experience of working as one unit. The second is Kyrie Irving, who while showing great defense during the winning streak, is not a classic “D” player. With the streak ended, pundits are blaming the lack of defense – particularly on Kyrie’s part. For Boston’s struggle to re-find the magic, and it remains to be seen how Coach Brad Stevens plans to reignite his team.

Boston Celtics Are In for the Long Haul

With so much time remaining in this NBA season, the Eastern Conference title is still up for grabs. Most of the focus lies on the Boston Celtics and their exciting young team. Add to the drama and suspense by placing a wager on NBA games. Check out the Eastern Conference Winner betting odds at William Hill, for the easiest and most convenient way to bet on the Boston Celtics… or whatever team you expect to win.