Southwest Division teams were a collective 66-93-5 as home favorites last season, a trend NBA betting fans will be monitoring carefully again this year. Teams are listed in predicted order of finish with straight up (SU), against the spread (ATS), and over/under (O/U) records for the 2009/10 season in parentheses:
DALLAS MAVERICKS (57-31 SU, 38-47-3 ATS, 44-44 O/U): The Mavericks have been to the playoffs 10 straight years but just once to the finals and, for the first time in a while may be more overlooked than over-hyped. The roster is deep this season with Tyson Chandler adding some much needed defense to the paint while Dirk Nowitzki, Jason Terry, Caron Butler, Shawn Marion and Jason Kidd take care of the offense. Future Book Odds Profile: NBA Championship, 20/1; Western Conference, 10/1; Southwest Division, 7/4; Over/Under Regular Season Wins 50 1/2.
By the Numbers (2009/10 Season)
Home Favorite: 11-29-2
Home Underdog:1-1
Away Favorite: 15-6
Away Underdog:11-11-1
Sportsbook Buster: The Mavericks were 11-29-2 ATS as home favorites last season.
Sports Betting Angle: Dallas was 2-7 ATS on three or more days rest last year.
Bets and Pieces: The Mavs are 12-7-1 ATS their last 20 games versus the Rockets.
SAN ANTONIO SPURS (54-38 SU, 46-43-3 ATS, 43-48-1 O/U): Not much changes in San Antonio which again will look to Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili to lead the way. Richard Jefferson, George Hill and second-year pro DeJuan Blair have the Spurs in the playoff picture again. Future Book Odds Profile: NBA Championship, 22/1; Western Conference, 12/1; Southwest Division, 7/4; Over/Under Regular Season Wins, 49 1/2.
By the Numbers (2009/10 Season)
Home Favorite: 25-17-2
Home Underdog:1-0
Away Favorite: 9-11
Away Underdog:10-13-1
Sportsbook Buster: The Spurs were 12-8-2 ATS versus teams within their own Southwest Division last season.
Sports Betting Angle: Last year, the "under" was 15-9-1 when San Antonio was an underdog.
Bets and Pieces: The Spurs have lost seven of their last eight pointspread decision versus the Mavericks.
HOUSTON ROCKETS (42-40 SU, 37-45 ATS, 42-40 O/U): Posting a winning record without 7-6 Yao Ming was quite an accomplishment last season so imagine how much better Houston will be when Yao returns to a lineup that also features Aaron Brooks, Kevin Martin and Luis Scola, as well as newcomers Courtney Lee and Brad Miller. The Rockets could go sky high. Future Book Odds Profile: NBA Championship, 40/1; Western Conference, 20/1; Southwest Division, 5/1; Over/Under Regular Season Wins, 47 1/2.
By the Numbers (2009/10 Season)
Home Favorite: 11-18
Home Underdog:7-4
Away Favorite: 6-5
Away Underdog: 13-17
Sportsbook Buster: The Rockets were 11-19 ATS versus teams from the Eastern Conference last season.
Sports Betting Angle: Houston was 16-26 ATS in games following a SU victory last year.
Bets and Pieces: The Rockets are 4-15 ATS the past 19 games with no rest.
NEW ORLEANS HORNETS (37-45 SU, 37-45 ATS, 41-40-1 O/U): A happy and healthy Chris Paul will be the key for a Hornets team that struggled defensively last season. David West and freshly minted Trevor Ariza add scoring punch but this is one tough division. Future Book Odds Profile: NBA Championship, 66/1; Western Conference, 33/1; Southwest Division, 6/1; Over/Under Regular Season Wins, 41 1/2.
By the Numbers (2009/10 Season)
Home Favorite: 8-14
Home Underdog:10-8
Away Favorite: 2-5
Away Underdog: 17-17
Sportsbook Buster: The Hornets were 10-19 as favorites last season.
Sports Betting Angle: The "over" was 13-5 when New Orleans played teams from the Northwest Division last year.
Bets and Pieces: The Hornets have lost seven of their last eight pointspread decisions to the Spurs.
MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES (40-42 SU, 39-42-1 ATS, 45-36-1 O/U): With Zach Randolph and Marc Gasol up front and the trio of Rudy Gay, O.J. Mayo and Mike Conley on the perimeter, the Grizzlies have a solid starting five. But the bench is weak so just getting to .500 would be a major achievement. Future Book Odds Profile: NBA Championship, 100/1; Western Conference, 50/1; Southwest Division, 10/1; Over/Under Regular Season Wins, 39 1/2.
By the Numbers (2009/10 Season)
Home Favorite:11-15-1
Home Underdog:7-6
Away Favorite:6-3
Away Underdog: 15-16
Sportsbook Buster: The Grizzlies were 16-25 ATS in games following a SU loss last season.
Sports Betting Angle: The "over" was 20-10-1 when Memphis was an away underdog last year.
Bets and Pieces: The Grizzlies are 12-4 their last 16 games as a favorite of 2 or less points.
This is the fourth of six NBA previews.
Next: The Western Conference's Northwest Division.
This article was written by Luken Karel for http://www.thegreek.com. The Greek Sportsbook & Casino is host to one of the top online sportsbooks offering college football betting and sports betting on NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL and all other major sports. The Greek is a must have sports betting and entertainment portal with one of the largest wagering menus available online. Article reproductions must include a link pointing to http://www.thegreek.com
