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Malone, Pippen and Dream Team inducted into Hall of FameBasketball Betting Lines08/13/2010 - Springfield, MA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Karl Malone and Scottie Pippen highlighted the 2010 class inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame Friday night. Malone and Pippen were both members of the original "Dream Team," the 1992 U.S. Olympic squad that easily won a gold medal in Barcelona. That entire team, along with the 1960 U.S. men's Olympic squad, were also inducted. Lakers owner Jerry Buss, former NBA players Dennis Johnson and Gus Johnson; former WNBA star Cynthia Cooper, famed high school coach Bob Hurley Sr., and Brazilian legend Maciel Ubiratan Pereira were other ones inducted Friday. Malone was a two-time NBA MVP, 14-time NBA All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist. In addition to the 1992 team, he also played on the 1996 team that won gold in Atlanta. Last year, his long-time Utah Jazz teammate, John Stockton, was inducted into the Hall of Fame. An All-NBA First-Team forward from 1989-99, Malone was named one of the league's 50 greatest players in 1996 and ranks second on the NBA's all-time scoring list with 36,928 points. He finished his career with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2003-04. "I want to thank the NBA this little snotty-nosed kid from Louisiana got an opportunity to play the game," Malone said. "I hope I did it the way my peers did it before me. I didn't do anything but try to play hard. I didn't have a motive. It wasn't about me, never was about me. It's not about me tonight. It's about a lot of other people." Pippen, who was the first one inducted, had Hall of Famer and former Bulls teammate Michael Jordan standing nearby on stage as his presenter Friday night. Pippen was a seven-time NBA All-Star and a member of six championship teams with the Chicago Bulls. He also played in the 1996 Olympics, was a three-time All-NBA First-Team member and was voted to the NBA All-Defensive First Team from 1992-99. After leaving the Bulls, Pippen played for Houston in 1998-99 and Portland from 1999-2003. "For me, idolizing guys like Larry Bird and what he did in the game, has given me the opportunity to be here today," Pippen said. The 1992 Olympic team dominated the Barcelona Games, winning all eight of its games by an average of 43.8 points. Coached by the late Hall of Famer Chuck Daly, the "Dream Team" was the first team made up primarily of NBA players who were eligible to compete in international basketball because of the change of FIBA rules in 1989. Eight players from the team -- Charles Barkley, Bird, Clyde Drexler, Patrick Ewing, Magic Johnson, Jordan, David Robinson and Stockton -- have already been enshrined into the Hall of Fame. Malone and Pippen made it 10. "We want to say thank you to coach because he was the architect that put it all together," Johnson said of Daly, who passed away in May 2009. "He made sure we checked our ego at the door. He made sure we were just about playing with one another and playing for one common goal and that was to bring home the gold medal." Before the "Dream Team," there was the 1960 Olympic squad that ran through the Rome Olympics with an 8-0 record on the way to a gold medal. That squad, with six members -- including Walt Bellamy, Jerry Lucas, Oscar Robertson and Jerry West -- enshrined in the Hall, won their games by an average of 42.4 points. Buss has owned the Lakers since 1979 and the team has captured 10 NBA titles under his stewardship. During his ownership, the Lakers have also won 17 Western Conference titles and have recorded the most wins and the highest overall winning percentage in the NBA. Dennis Johnson, who died in 2007, earned nine straight NBA All-Defensive Team honors during his 14-year career with Seattle, Phoenix and Boston. He led the Sonics to the 1979 NBA title, earning Finals MVP honors, and helped the Celtics to NBA crowns 1984 and '86. Gus Johnson, who died in 1987, was a five-time NBA All-Star in the late 1960s and early '70s, and won an ABA championship with Indiana in 1973. He led the Baltimore Bullets to five playoff appearances in nine seasons, including the 1971 NBA Finals. In 10 NBA seasons, he averaged 17.1 points and 12.7 rebounds. Cooper won a pair of NCAA women's titles at Southern California and captured four WNBA crowns with the Houston Comets, earning the Finals MVP honor each time. She was twice the league's MVP and won an Olympic gold medal in 1988. Hurley is a New Jersey high school coaching legend, having compiled more than 900 wins as head coach at St. Anthony's in Jersey City since 1972. He has led the school to 25 state parochial titles, and became only the third person elected exclusively for their service to high school basketball, joining Morgan Wootten and Bertha Teague. Pereira, who died in 2002, is widely considered one of the greatest players in South American basketball history. A member of three Brazilian Olympic teams, Ubiratan led his countrymen to the bronze medal at the 1964 Olympic Games.
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Football BettingNFL Football Betting OnlineThe San Francisco 49ers (5-11 SU, 5-10-1 ATS in 2007; 1-1 SU & ATS in pre-season) found some offensive life last week, and they will try to build some momentum on Thursday night as they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bears (7-9 SU & ATS in 2007; 0-2 SU, 0-1-1 ATS in pre-season) in an NFL matchup that is set to get underway at 8 PM ET at Soldier Field (natural turf) in Chicago. Thursday, August 21 NFL betting odds: CHICAGO -3 (-120), Total 37 NOTABLE STAT: San Francisco was last in points, last in total offense in 2007 In the BetUS NFL pre-season football betting odds, the Bears are listed as a three-point favorite (laying -120), with the total posted at 37 points. Here are some NFL football betting trends as they relate to this matchup (reflecting numbers going into the 2008 season): * SF has lost 11 of its last 14 games SU Well, I guess we should congratulate the Bears on making their quarterback choice for the season's opening game, as they have designated Kyle Orton the starter against Indianapolis. The Bears obviously have lost patience with Rex Grossman, and what they do with him at this point is anybody's guess. But suffice it to say that there isn't a quarterback competition anymore, at least in training camp. Meanwhile, the quarterback competition may also be settled in San Francisco, where the Niners bounced back from a lackluster 18-6 loss to the Raiders, in which they turned the ball over four times, to execute a 34-6 rout of the Packers last Saturday. However, coach Mike Nolan has stopped short of saying that, insisting that the job is still open. But J.T. O'Sullivan, the longshot of the trio of Niner signal-callers who opened camp, will start his third straight pre-season game here. Against Green Bay, O'Sullivan was only 8-for-17, and was intercepted, but he also threw for 9.1 yards an attempt, which included a 59-yard TD pass to Josh Morgan. The others struggled. Some offensive cohesion is badly needed, in light of the Niners' dismal 2007 campaign, in which they were dead last in the NFL in scoring, with just 13.7 points a game. And O'Sullivan is the guy who is most familiar with offensive coordinator Mike Martz's exacting system, because he learned it last year in Detroit. O'Sullivan will go at least the entire first half and may even last longer. He'll be relieved by Alex Smith, with Shawn Hill doing the mop-up work. Three receivers who were out last week - Bryant Johnson, Ashley Lelie and Arnaz Battle - will miss this game too. That may hurt a little here, especially since the Bears will be using a lot of their defensive starters. And it's the defense that has been keeping the Bears in games thus far. In fact, the defense and special teams were responsible for the first 19 points Chicago scored against Seattle last time out, as the offense really struggled with Grossman at the controls. But maybe the first-team offense has a chance to settle a little bit as it works more with Orton at the helm. Certainly we have concerns about the Bears' offensive line, but we like the scenario for them here, especially if O'Sullivan doesn't make some bis plays. The Niners may have nowhere else to turn right now, and they have lost seven straight road games in the pre-season. Let's take Chicago, the three-point favorite in the NFL football betting odds. CHICAGO -3 (-120) ** The 2008 NFL betting lines season is almost upon us! If you like to bet on the NFL, you are in the best possible place for online betting. The sportsbook has NFL odds up on a ton of futures, and you will also find NFL lines up for early games as well. Join sportbook today and we'll help guide you right through to Super Bowl XLIII and beyond! Note: Monday night game will be picked Monday. Lines used are from football betting odds . |
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