Odds and Bets: NBA MVP Joel Embiid “not myself” vs. Celtics
Sports Betting Picks: Bet Against 76ers and MVP Embiid
After Boston evened the series with a 121-87 blowout on Wednesday, oddsmakers opened the Celtics as 1-point road favourites for tonight’s game and that line is already at -2. There’s a real possibility that line continues to grow as more than 80 per cent of our bettors are already on the Celtics, too. Part of that may have to do with Joel Embiid’s knee injury.
The Sixers say the MVP’s is “good” after putting up 15 points, five blocks, and three rebounds in his return over 27 minutes of work but he’s still officially questionable tonight. Plus, he wasn’t exactly thrilled with being a minus-23 while wearing a huge knee brace.
“I wasn’t as aggressive,” Embiid said after the game, per John Clark of NBC Sports Philadelphia. “Not myself. We got this out of the way. This is a step to getting back to being myself.”
“Step” is key in that last bit – as in one singular step in a process that’s going to take many steps. The reality is it’s going to take some time before he and the team get comfy again on the court, which may not be a luxury they have against the Celtics. Expect a pushback from Philadelphia here at home, but give us the Celtics as short favourites all day to take control of the series, while holding Embiid to a less-than-MVP stat line.
NBA best bet: Joel Embiid UNDER 25.5 points (-125)
PGA Wells Fargo odds: Mexico Championship winner Tony Finau to go low
It’s always a grind for a winner to turn the page quickly for the next event on tour and that probably had a hand in Tony Finau shooting even par in Thursday’s Round 1 after his victory in Mexico. If you’re into three-ball golf betting (picking the player who will finish with the best score for a single round among the three-player group) you could certainly make an argument for backing Canadian Corey Conners at +161 after he shot -1 yesterday.
Still, Finau is more likely to charge up the leaderboard after he worked out the kinks in Round 1. He was 24-under last weekend to win his second tournament of the year and he’s finished among the top 25 in 10 of 13 starts. You can get him to post the best score of the group today at +112.
PGA best bet: TONY FINAU to win three-ball group +112
UFC 288: Aljamain Sterling an underdog in Henry Cejudo’s return? Huh?
If you took three years off your everyday job as a carpenter, chances are you might smack your thumb with a hammer a few times on your first day back. If you happen to be a professional cage fighter who’s coming back from a three-year hiatus like former champion Henry Cejudo is for Saturday’s main event, you have to think he’s probably going to take more than his fair share of shots to the schnoz.
Yes, Cejudo won Olympic gold and once held two UFC titles, but – again – he’s been out of the game for THREE YEARS. Fighters who take extended breaks from action like this tend to age as well as a 1996 rust bucket Corolla in Bathurst, New Brunswick.
Is Cejudo ready for a five-round bantamweight battle against current champ Aljamain Sterling? Maybe, but when you can bet on a champ who is on an eight-fight winning streak and hasn’t lost since 2017 in this situation at plus money, well, that’s just what you do. Get this number today in case oddsmakers come to their senses before tomorrow evening.
UFC 288 best bet: ALJAMAIN STERLING +105
