This Week In A Very Special Edition Of The GTP…
As I reviewed the topics I wanted to cover in the Gaming Today Playbook this week, I struggled to find a theme for the newsletter. Just picking a random sports movie would not be appropriate. No, it needed to be something more unique.
Why? It's not because of the many sporting events happening now and in the near future (i.e., the NBA Playoffs, the NHL Playoffs, the PGA Championship, Preakness Stakes, etc.). Now, the USFL does make it to the halfway point of its season this week– which is kind of a big deal? For a spring football league, that's impressive.
But that’s not it.
I could go on, but this week is not special because of any sporting event. It's special because we get to celebrate the fourth anniversary of the repeal of PASPA. Four years ago on Saturday (May 14), the Supreme Court overturned the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992 (PASPA) and opened the door for legalized sports betting across the United States.
So, as my way of saying 'thanks' to the SCOTUS, this week's newsletter will be dedicated to some of my judges.
The NFL Schedule Is Here!
Or it will be soon.
The league has been teasing us over the last few days by announcing a few select games. Last week, the NFL announced the five international games for the 2022 NFL season and the first TNF game to be broadcast on Prime Video. Three will take place in London, another in Mexico City, and for the first time in the history of the NFL, there will be a regular-season game in Germany.
You can read more about the teams playing in those games and the early betting lines here.
This week, the NFL teased us once again by announcing that there would be a three-game slate on Christmas Day, but then only told us about one game, which you can read about here. Once the other two games get announced, I'll (or someone else) will update this post. But for now, you can read about the Broncos-Rams game.
We'll have more content about the NFL schedule posted to the website soon.
NBA Playoffs
With the top four seeds from each conference making the second round, fans had every reason to hope for some competitive games. Some have been blowouts, but each series has been somewhat competitive overall. That makes it harder to bet on the spread, moneyline, or even the total (in my humble opinion).
But luckily, those are not the only betting markets.
Sportsbooks like to post hundreds of prop bets for playoff games. Our team has been working hard to preview the player props for you ahead of each game, along with some same-game-parlay recommendations. To see the posts for upcoming games, go to our Live NBA Playoff Betting page.
You can also see the betting odds for the next scheduled games.
As for NBA Finals odds, Kris Johnson took a look at the odds for the eight remaining teams earlier this week. You can also get up-to-date odds on our NBA Finals page.
Pulver's Parlay: USFL Week 5
The USFL is not playing great football, but I enjoy watching the games. However, from a betting perspective, I do not believe in any of these teams enough to bet on them to win, straight up or against the spread. Since teams are starting to play better, it's harder to judge whether the combined scores will be more or less than the total.
So, rather than bet on any one game, I'm rolling with a parlay this week:
Tampa Bay -2, Generals +3, Stars +6, and Gamblers -5.5
As individual bets, each one is listed at -110 at DraftKings. But as a parlay, they combine for +1228 odds.
Michigan is playing better, but Jeff Fisher will find a way to hold his team back. Tampa Bay will win that one by at least three. I've liked the Generals since the preseason and have not seen anything to make me believe the Breakers are a better team.
As for the Stallions-Stars game, I think Birmingham is overrated. If the Stars had not lost their starting QB, I'd pick them to win outright. But since they have, I'm more comfortable taking the points.
Houston's defense is good enough to lead the Gamblers to a win over Pittsburgh. I will admit to being a little nervous about the offense playing well enough for the team to cover the spread. But if I pick them to win straight up, the odds drop to +891. So, I'll accept the risk and go for the higher payout.
Elsewhere in the Wide World Of Sports Betting…
In the interest of keeping this newsletter from becoming filibuster material for politicians everywhere, I'm going to touch on some of the many significant sporting events and betting opportunities taking place in the near future:
The second leg of horse racing's Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes, is next weekend. In this article, Kris Johnson examined the early odds posted at TVG.
Hockey fans can keep up with the odds for the latest Stanley Cup playoff games on our NHL Betting Odds page.
UFC 275 does not take place in Singapore until June 11. Cyrus Eshagoff looks at some of the available markets in this post.
In my humble opinion, the best time to bet on an NFL award winner is now when the odds for several good candidates are nice and long (meaning our payouts will be higher). I took a look at the Coach of the Year candidates (go Steelers) and Comeback Player of the Year this week.
It looks like a good time for MLB fans to bet on the Yankees and Angels. The Bronx Bombers have won 15 of their last 17 games. While the Angels have not been as hot as the Yankees, they have won six of their last eight and are in first place in the AL West.
The FA Cup final between Liverpool and Chelsea is this Saturday. I'm not a soccer guy, so I can't say much about the game. But I hear both of these clubs are pretty good.
The PGA Championship is next week. We'll have coverage of several betting markets early in the week; it looks like the odds are pretty long for Phil Mickelson to repeat (+8000 at DraftKings).
This Week On The Sports Betting Legal Landscape…
While it looked like there might be hope for sports betting in California, things have changed. The state will present voters with two questions concerning sports betting on the next ballot, one focused on retail sports betting and the other on online/mobile.
However, a third group has now entered the picture, but it is looking to 2024 (so, they are assuming the current measures will fail). It's an interesting little drama that Mary M. Shaffrey covered well in her article, California Sports Betting Update: Third Initiative Complicates 2022 Vote.
In other legal developments…
It's not looking good for Vermont to legalize sports betting this year, but there is still hope for the Green Mountain State before the end of the legislative session. Check out Rebecca Hanchett's article for details.
Things are looking up for sports betting in the Buckeye State. According to state Senator Kirk Schuring, it is looking like the state may be ready to launch sometime in mid-to-late fall.
This may not qualify as “legal” news, but one of the more prominent names in sports betting, Circa, is coming to Illinois.
Sportsbook Promotions: May 12, 2022
These are not necessarily new promotions, but some that could come in handy over the next week:
DraftKings: NBA Playoffs. Bet $5+ on any NBA moneyline and Win $150 in free bets if your team wins!
BetMGM: Overtime Insurance. Bet on an NBA or NHL team to win and if they lose in overtime, get your stake back up to $25.
BetRivers: NBA Game 7 Profit Boost. Get a 25 percent profit boost for any Game 7.
Caesars: SGP Bet & Get. Place at least $25 on an NBA Same Game Parlay and receive a $10 free bet.
Beginner's Beat: Parlays
Parlays can be fun, but I would caution new bettors from getting too enamored with them. Yes, the idea of winning big money from a 16-leg parlay and only risking a dollar is fantastic. But the likelihood of that happening is minimal, at best.
Now—what's a parlay, you ask? A parlay takes a series of bets (referred to as legs) and combines them into one bet. The more legs you have in your parlay, the more you stand to win. If you win each bet, you win your parlay. But if you miss on just one leg, you lose the parlay.
So, there is a lot of risk involved. But with greater risk comes greater reward. For example, let's break down the USFL parlay above. If you were to take each leg and make four individual bets of $25 on each and win all four, you'd win $22.73 on each game for a total of $89.92 (total payout of $189.92).
However, if you combine those bets into a four-leg parlay, bet $25, and hit on all four legs (+1228), you win $307 for a total payout of $332.
That does it for this edition of the Gaming Today Playbook. As always, I hope you enjoyed reading it and found it informative. If you have any questions or want to request a topic to get covered in a future newsletter, you can reach me via email at travis.pulver@catenamedia.com or via Twitter at @FatManWriting.
This week, I'd like to leave you with some 'wise' words from possibly the greatest opening argument ever made by a lawyer in a movie:
"Uh. Everything that guy just said is bull****. Thank you." – Vinny Gambini.
Sometimes less is more, sports fans.
Until Next Week,
Travis Pulver, Sports Betting Writer