Portland signs G Diener

Basketball Betting Lines

03/03/2010 - Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Portland Trail Blazers signed guard Travis Diener on Wednesday, two days after he was waived by the Indiana Pacers.

Over five seasons in the NBA, which has included stints with Orlando and Indiana, he has averaged 4.9 points, 1.4 rebounds and 2.5 assists over 174 games.

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<< Sabres acquire F Torres from Columbus
Buffalo, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Sabres made a move before the trade deadline on Wednesday by acquiring left wing Raffi Torres from the Columbus Blue Jackets for defenseman Nathan Paetsch and a second-round draft pick. Torres h

<< Bulls C Noah out three weeks
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah is expected to be sidelined for the next three weeks due to plantar fasciitis in his left foot, the team announced on Wednesday. The injury has kept Noah in and out of

<< Ducks and Flames swap backup goaltenders
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks acquired goaltender Curtis McElhinney from the Calgary Flames for goaltender Vesa Toskala. McElhinney, 26, has served as Miikka Kiprusoff's backup over his three seasons in the league and

<< Ducks and Oilers swap backup goaltenders
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks acquired goaltender Curtis McElhinney from the Edmonton Oilers for goaltender Vesa Toskala. McElhinney, 26, has served as Miikka Kiprusoff's backup over his three seasons in the league and

<< U.S. wins Algarve Cup final over Germany
Faro, Portugal (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The United States women's national soccer team topped Germany 3-2 in the Algarve Cup final on Wednesday in Portugal. Lauren Cheney, who scored two goals in the American's previous Algarve Cup match v

Gotham Stakes attracts 10 three-year-olds >>
Ozone Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - A field of 10 Kentucky Derby hopefuls has been entered for Saturday's $250,000 Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct. The 1 1/16- mile Gotham is the final local prep before the $750,000 Wood Memorial on April 3

Ducks receive G MacDonald from Leafs >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Anaheim Ducks acquired goaltender Joey MacDonald from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for a 2011 seventh-round draft pick. MacDonald has spent most of the 2009-10 campaign with the Toronto Mar

Oilers, Ducks swap defensemen >>
Edmonton, AB (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Edmonton Oilers acquired defenseman Ryan Whitney from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for defenseman Lubomir Visnovsky on Wednesday. In his first full season with the Ducks, Whitney posted four goals

Caps re-acquire D Jurcina >>
Arlington, VA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Washington Capitals made another depth move on Wednesday, re-acquiring defenseman Milan Jurcina from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for a 2010 conditional draft pick. Jurcina, who was ship

Thrashers acquire F MacArthur from Sabres >>
Atlanta, GA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Atlanta Thrashers acquired forward Clarke MacArthur from the Buffalo Sabres for third and fourth-round picks in the 2010 draft on Wednesday. MacArthur, a third-round selection by Buffalo in th

Betting Football

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Is there such a thing as a trap game in the NFL?

I once asked that question to Pete Korner, who at the time was office manager and a senior linesmaker for Las Vegas Sports Consultants.

Korner almost ripped my head off. There is no such thing as a trap game, he loudly berated me. It’s a myth. The numbers are made using power ratings, he said.

There are trap games, though. They just might not be what you think. The perception is of a good team, say Philadelphia, laying a small number against New Orleans.

Using the highly-respected power ranking from The Gold Sheet, you’d find the Eagles with a power rating of 4 and the Saints at 8. When you factor the game being played in New Orleans, you could see why the line opened so short at less than a field goal.

For some, this makes it enticing to take the Eagles. That’s not a real trap game, though.

A real trap game, says professional gambler Dave Malinsky, is thinking you’re getting value betting a bad team, which brings us to the Oakland Raiders-Denver Broncos matchup.

The Raiders are +15 in this long-standing division rivalry. Denver is on a short week having dispatched Baltimore Monday. However, the Raiders haven’t covered the spread their last 10 games.

Many bettors don’t trust the Raiders to give a full effort. Few think much of Art Shell and his Oakland’s coaching staff.

So oddsmakers have to do something to make Oakland attractive if they hope to get equal action.

Now Malinsky is a value shopper. But he won’t touch the Raiders even getting more than two touchdowns.

“I try to eliminate the undisciplined, unfocused teams because they’re the ones most likely to suffer the bad beats,” he said.

Near the top of Malinsky’s list of stay-away teams is the Miami Dolphins, who have yet to cover a spread this season.

“Whatever you think of Nick Saban, you have to look at the penalties and turnovers,” Malinsky said.

It’s easy to point out the Dolphins failed to get the money this past week against New England because Olindo Mare missed a field goal and had another field goal blocked. But even though the Dolphins outgained the Patriots, 283-213, they committed eight penalties.

Bad teams not only cost themselves victories, but pointspread covers as well. The Arizona Cardinals and Green Bay Packers are two more examples.

The Cardinals couldn’t have been in a better position this past Sunday, up 14-0 at home against a mediocre Kansas City Chiefs squad. But they couldn’t hold it. The Packers got a push against St. Louis, but also could have won losing by three when Brett Favre fumbled at the St. Louis 11-yard line with 44 seconds left.

“The Packers were in a position to beat Philadelphia, too,” Malinsky said. “But they couldn’t even cover double digits.

“These teams just make mistakes and it costs you … they always will look good from a value standpoint. They really will. But that’s the trap.”

Houston and Tennessee rank among the six-worst teams. Malinsky wouldn’t be afraid to take either of these teams, however, if the price were high enough.

The Texans are bad, Malinsky said, but they have some discipline. The Titans showed they could not only come up with an outstanding game plan, but execute it as well, losing by one to the Colts on the road as an 18 ?-point underdog this past Sunday.

“Jeff Fisher is a worker,” Malinsky said of the Titans coach. “I’m not sure how hard Art Shell wants to work when he gets out of bed.”

Fisher, though, could be out as Tennessee coach after this season. Is he still worth backing in the right spot, with the right price, as a lame duck coach?

“It’s in his nature to keep working hard and not worry about any possible lame duck status,” Malinsky said. “He’s coaching for his resume.”

Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting lines.