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Cavs say give Shaq timeBasketball Betting Lines04/23/2010 - CHICAGO (AP) -It's not easy to fade into the crowd when you're 7-foot-1, 325 pounds, and your name is Shaquille O'Neal. Yet, ``The Big Aristotle'' has been ``The Big Invisible'' the past two games for the Cleveland Cavaliers. After a solid playoff opener against the Chicago Bulls, O'Neal has just 14 points and 11 rebounds in limited minutes over the past two games. To that, the Cavaliers said, give the big man some time. After all, he missed the final 23 regular-season games because of a torn ligament in his right thumb. ``I'm not concerned,'' LeBron James said. ``I think we know we need him to pick up his play and he knows that also. No matter who you are - no matter if you're the best player in the world - if you have an eight-week layoff, it's definitely going to take a toll on you to start. But we're looking for him to try to be productive as much as he can with that layoff, be a force in the interior and help us win these games.'' The Cavaliers are bent on delivering Cleveland its first pro sports championship since 1964, and they're a good bet to do just that after going a league-best 61-21. If they're going to get by the Bulls, though, they'll have to work for it. With a chance to go up 3-0 in their first-round series, the Cavaliers fell behind by 21 in Game 3 on Thursday and lost 108-106 after pulling within one in the closing seconds. ``I think right now we should be really confident, really loose,'' Chicago's Joakim Noah said. ``I like our chances.'' The Cavaliers, meanwhile, vowed to put forth a better effort at the start in Game 4 on Sunday and do a better job on Derrick Rose, who's averaging 27.3 points after scoring 31 on Thursday. James even said some adversity could be a good thing, considering they swept their way to the Eastern Conference finals last year before losing to Orlando. Even so, they're in good position. James is averaging 34.3 points after scoring 40 and then 39 the past two games, although he was whistled for a charge and stripped late in Thursday's game. Mo Williams is averaging 17.3 and hit the late 3 that pulled the Cavaliers within one. And they're getting 16.0 points and 8.3 rebounds from Antawn Jamison in this series. As for O'Neal? Well, he's been quiet since the opener and did not make himself available for comment on Friday. ``I've got to get him more involved,'' coach Mike Brown said. At 38 and a 15-time All-Star, O'Neal may be past his prime, but he can still be a force. He played well during the regular season, averaging 12 points and 6.7 rebounds in 53 games and helped the Cavaliers go 4-1 against the Magic and Lakers - two big championship obstacles and two teams that have given them trouble in the past - with him in the lineup. Against the Bulls, O'Neal was solid in the opener with 12 points and five rebounds in about 25 minutes. In Game 2, he had eight points and seven boards in 15 minutes and delivered six and four while playing 20 minutes in Game 3, although Brown insisted he could have scored more. ``He had great looks last night, but it just popped out,'' Brown said. ``But those will go down as the series goes on. He's going to be a factor for us, a big factor for us. A big factor. So I've got to do a better job trying to find some minutes for him.'' Brown said there are no physical limitations, that the Cavaliers can push O'Neal ``as hard as we want to push him.'' ``Obviously, he hasn't played in a while,'' Brown said. ``We're not giving him consistent minutes right now so he may still have a little bit of rust on him, but right now, he's good to go for as long as we need him.'' The Cavaliers were eyeing a championship when they made the offseason trade with Phoenix, hoping O'Neal could help them get by Dwight Howard and the Magic and, ultimately, capture the title. At the moment, Brown is having a tough time working Shaq back into the rotation. ``If I feel like if there's a group out there that's playing well and he's not part of that group, I'll let that group run,'' Brown said. ``I'll let a group that's playing well run for as long as they can before making changes so I'm not going to get him out on the floor if I think it's going to hurt the team. But I need to try to figure out ways to get him some longer stretches on the court.'' NOTES: James reiterated that he should not have been called for a charge late in Thursday's game. ``I think I was in the right,'' he said. ``There's a lot of fines going on in the league right now. I like my money. My family likes my money, too, so I'll hold onto it.'' James charged into Luol Deng with 1:18 remaining, negating a basket. ... James also is amused when he hears opposing crowds chant ``MVP! MVP!'' for one of the home team's players, as Chicago fans did for Rose in Game 3. ``It's an all-league thing these days,'' he said. ``Everyone's an MVP when they get to the free throw line.'' ... Bulls backup G Acie Law was helped off the court after suffering an apparent ankle or Achilles tendon injury in a pickup game after practice. He has not played in the postseason. --- AP freelance writer Mark Perlman in Deerfield, Ill., contributed to this report.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
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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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