Little Nate highlights NBA All-Star festivities

Basketball Betting Lines

02/16/2007 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York Knicks guard Nate Robinson will have another chance to defy gravity when he opens defense of his Slam Dunk title Saturday night during the NBA All-Star Game festivities.

Robinson will join Boston's Gerald Green, Orlando's Dwight Howard and Chicago's Tyrus Thomas on NBA All-Star Saturday Night at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on February 17. The 5-9 Robinson topped Philly's Andre Iguodala in a dunk-off last year with an attempt assisted by former champion Spud Webb on a bounce pass.

Even though Robinson needed a few tries to top Iguodala, he joined Webb as the only players six feet and under to capture a dunk title. Webb was crowned champion back in 1986.

Robinson will now try to become the first back-to-back dunk champion since Golden State's Jason Richardson turned the trick in 2002 and 2003. Robinson, Green, Howard and Thomas will be judged by former dunk champs and a few Hall of Famers in Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, Kobe Bryant, Vince Carter and Julius Erving.

Saturday night's festivities will also feature the Three-Point Shootout, Skills Challenge, Shooting Stars contest, Rookie Challenge and Celebrity Game.

Dallas Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki will try to defend his three-point title when he goes against Washington's Gilbert Arenas, Miami's Damon Jones and Jason Kapono, Memphis' Mike Miller and teammate Jason Terry. Nowitzki shot down Arenas and Seattle's Ray Allen in Houston last year.

Miami Heat guard Dwyane Wade shoots for his second straight Skills Challenge title on Saturday. Wade defeated Cleveland superstar LeBron James last year after completing the obstacle course in 26.1 seconds. James finished with a 33.7-second time. Bryant, James and Phoenix guard Steve Nash are the other competitors, but Nash will miss the contest due to a shoulder injury. Hornets guard Chris Paul will take Nash's place in the Skills Challenge.

In the Shooting Stars contest, San Antonio will defend its title after beating out Los Angeles, Phoenix and Houston last year. Each team is comprised of a current NBA player, a former NBA star and a current WNBA player from the city.

The Rookie Challenge will feature NBA rookies versus second-year players in Las Vegas. Raptors rookie Andrea Bargnani will head a list of first- year players, including Jordan Farmar from the Lakers, Minnesota's Randy Foye, teammate Jorge Garbajosa, Memphis' Rudy Gay, Utah's Paul Millsap, Charlotte's Adam Morrison, Portland's Brandon Roy and New Jersey's Marcus Williams.

The Sophomore squad will be comprised of the Lakers' Andrew Bynum, Golden State's Monta Ellis, Charlotte's Raymond Felton, Indiana's Danny Granger, Houston's Luther Head, New York's David Lee, the Hornets' Paul and Utah's Deron Williams.

Iguodala posted 30 points as the Sophomores topped the Rookies, 106-96, last year at the Toyota Center in Houston.

Also on Friday, the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game will take place in Las Vegas. The East team will have stars David Arquette, Taye Diggs, Carrot Top, Nelly and others, while the West squad will roll out the likes of Jamie Foxx, Jamie Kennedy, Reggie Bush and Tamika Catchings.

The NBA Developmental League will also have an All-Star Game early Saturday on Center Court at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino.

On Sunday, the 56th NBA All-Star Game will close out the weekend extravaganza.

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MySportsbook.com: New College Football Clock Rules Examined

Coaches and bettors alike are desperate to make sense of the new time-keeping rules on the NCAA gridiron. One of the big stories to come out of the Ohio State-Texas clash last weekend was Texas coach Mack Brown's criticism of the NCAA's new clock rules that are intended to shorten the duration of college football games, therefore affecting college football betting.

"They scored with six minutes left and the game was over before we had a chance to do anything," Brown told ESPN.com. "I really hope whoever made these changes will go back and look them over."

Sure, it might be sour grapes; the Buckeyes thoroughly trounced the defending national champion Longhorns 24-7. However, Brown isn't alone in giving the changes their due thought. Bettors are also wondering about them, albeit for a completely different reason. Most experts agree that the changes will result in games being shortened by anywhere from 10 to 20 plays. The obvious consequence is lower scores, with more time rolling off the clock during changes of possession. (The Ohio State-Texas game flew well under the total of 52.)

According to research at the online sportsbook MySportsbook.com, more than 18 plays a game disappeared last weekend into thin air. That's a 10-percent reduction. In 2005, a typical game had 168.58 plays. For 2007 already, it's down to 150.26.

As a result, teams combined to gain an average of about 100 fewer yards a game last weekend versus the 2005 openers. Scoring was also down by about 4.5 points (attention Las Vegas sports lines).

Of course, oddsmakers were able to adjust to the changes before the season started. Proof of that came as the over went a balanced 8-9 at My Sportsbook on Saturday.

Other angles to consider:A shorter game should theoretically result in shorter lines. Whereas Team A might have been a 14-point favorite in a 168-play game (last year), if there are 10 percent less snaps in 2007, the line should also be reduced by 10 percent (to 13 or 12.5). Of course, this is an over-simplification of the matter, but something to keep in mind.
Less possessions means a better chance the game will be decided by three or seven points. For example, what might have been a 20-10 final score in 2005 may end at

17-10 in 2007. Granted, a 24-17 game last year might end at 21-17 these days, but the former - a three- or seven-point advantage being preserved as opposed to created - is the most likely scenario.

*UPDATE* - Sept. 25, 2007

New Clock Rules Boon for online bookmakers

By adjusting the time-keeping rules to shorten the duration of college football games, the NCAA hoped to make its product more enjoyable for the fans. While the NCAA's success in this regard is still up for debate, bookmakers couldn't be happier with the results.

"We are seeing a massive jump in college football betting," noted the MySportsbook.com management team. "With all the early Saturday games (12 a.m. ET) ending before the second wave begins (3:30 p.m. ET) - something that didn't always happen before the changes - bettors are now able to re-invest their winnings from the morning session in the afternoon games."

While not all bettors will choose to roll over their winnings, it doesn't take much for an impact to be seen on the bottom line. "Not all of the millions of dollars in morning payouts get re-bet. In fact, it's probably only 10 to 20 percent," noted the sportsbook management team. "Still, the increased football betting lines window will create a ton of growth for us over the course of the season."

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