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07/01/2010 -
NEW YORK (AP) -Finally free to leave Cleveland, LeBron James is ready to hear reasons why he should.
The NBA's long-awaited free agency period opened early Thursday, with teams such as New York and Miami focusing their attention on California.
Now all eyes will be on Ohio.
James was set to welcome the New Jersey Nets and the Knicks to his home state, with additional teams awaiting a later audience with the King.
The Clippers have scored an invite, proving even longtime losers have a chance for a transformation in this highly anticipated shopping season.
Teams could begin making their pitches at 12:01 a.m. EDT, and some got started quickly. Chris Bosh heard from four of them, including presumed favorites Chicago and Miami.
Atlanta's Joe Johnson was expecting early visits in Los Angeles from the Hawks and New York Knicks, with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporting that the Hawks were prepared to offer the All-Star shooting guard a maximum salary contract.
James could get multiple offers Thursday as the head of perhaps the deepest class in history.
It includes other All-Stars such as Dwyane Wade, Bosh, Dirk Nowitzki, Amare Stoudemire and Carlos Boozer; veterans such as Shaquille O'Neal and Ray Allen; and young up-and-comers such as Rudy Gay and David Lee.
``We've never had anything like this in my time that I can remember,'' New Jersey Nets president Rod Thorn said. ``There have been big-time free agents before, but never this many teams that are trying to woo them. So it's unprecedented.''
Teams were headed around the country to speak with players, though the Mavs were saved a long trip when Nowitzki informed them he would meet with them Thursday in Dallas - with the message arriving while president Donnie Nelson was at the airport preparing for a flight to Germany.
Showing they planned to be active, the Knicks confirmed on Twitter they would also meet with Wizards swingman Mike Miller in Los Angeles. But they did so without team president Donnie Walsh, who went directly to Ohio in preparation for Thursday's meeting with James.
Pat Riley and a Heat contingent also began their free agency tour in California, where teams were hoping to meet with Stoudemire. Miami also planned to meet with Johnson.
It promised to be a wild first few days of July, with plans changing by the minute.
``You're not in control, as much as you would like to be,'' Timberwolves president David Kahn said. ``I don't think any team feels right now they're in control of the situation. There's too many teams with room. Too many fine players out there. I think in those types of situations, it's best to be really nimble and change course if need be.''
Kahn said early Thursday that Gay would visit Minnesota later in the day and Lee would arrive on Saturday. Gay is a restricted free agent, so Memphis can match any offer for him.
Lee was an All-Star this season in New York, but may not be back since the Knicks are hoping to land two bigger names.
So are the Clippers. General manager Neil Olshey announced in a statement the team had already contacted several players and confirmed it had been invited to meet with James.
``At that time, we intend to present the many reasons why his joining our organization is the best possible choice he could make,'' Olshey said.
The Cavaliers might have a new reason for James to stay home. They are in ``serious talks'' with former New Orleans coach Byron Scott, a person familiar with their search told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
James can earn perhaps $125 million over six years by staying in Cleveland; $96 million over five years if he goes. (The exact figures can't be determined until next season's salary cap is set in July). But leaving could put him in a better position to win a championship.
He'll first meet Thursday with the Nets' traveling party that includes new owner Mikhail Prokhorov, coach Avery Johnson, president Rod Thorn and hip-hop superstar Jay-Z, a part-owner and James' longtime friend.
Then the Knicks will drop in. They can afford to pay him and another classmate the maximum next season, which might be what they need to finally get going again after a franchise-record nine straight losing seasons.
``We've had to live through some tough times in order to get where you think you start rebuilding the franchise,'' Walsh said. ``We have that opportunity now. How well, how fast we can rebuild the team can be shortcut by getting great players.''
They'll have plenty of competition. The Heat, Nets, Bulls and Clippers also can afford to offer a player about $16.6 million next season, which is the maximum someone with James' amount of NBA experience can make. Chicago and New Jersey made trades in recent days to push them closer to joining the Knicks with enough to offer two max deals, and the Heat can keep Wade, give an additional max contract and have enough left over for another quality player.
Top players rarely leave via free agency because NBA rules allow their teams to offer them more money in the long run. The difference comes not in the first year of a new contract, but in the raises.
A player signing with his own team is eligible for annual increases of 10.5 percent, while a new team can offer only 8 percent bumps. The home team can also offer six-year deals, whereas players joining new teams can get only five-year contracts.
Still, teams have been slashing payroll for years in hopes players would move this summer.
``It is an 'all-in' strategy, in that even when it works, you're going to have to operate with a very low payroll,'' Houston general manager Daryl Morey said. ``If it doesn't work, it can be catastrophic in terms of if you strike out, it's going to be very difficult to be competitive.''
Morey used his Twitter feed to announce he'd met with Bosh in the opening hours of free agency.
``He is about winning so I focused on how (with) Houston he can win a championship,'' Morey wrote.
Bosh also took to Twitter to inform followers he'd also received presentations from Chicago, Miami and Toronto.
The Raptors expect to lose Bosh. If the All-Star forward joins James or Wade, or both, that team figures to become an immediate championship contender. Boston won the title the year after assembling its Big Three - which could now be broken up with Paul Pierce and Ray Allen on the market - and the Lakers have reached the finals every year since acquiring Pau Gasol to complement Kobe Bryant.
Numerous teams are now dreaming of similar pairings once deals can be signed on July 8.
``You look at the teams that have an awful lot of cap space, there could be a lot of power shifting in this league,'' Minnesota coach Kurt Rambis said.
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AP Sports Writers Tom Withers in Cleveland, Chris Duncan in Houston and Jon Krawczynski in Minneapolis 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.
<< Guerrero burns former team as Rangers top Angels
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Vladimir Guerrero continued to torment his old
team, going 4-for-4 with two homers and five RBI, as the Texas Rangers evened
this three-game set with a 6-4 win over the rival Angels.
Guerrero, who spent the
<< Rockets make pitch to free agent Bosh
HOUSTON (AP) -Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey sure knows how to make a first impression.Morey met with coveted free agent Chris Bosh just after midnight Thursday, making a pitch to an available player at the exact moment free agency open
<< Cavs close to hiring Scott as head coach
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Cavaliers are reportedly close
to hiring Byron Scott as their next head coach.
Several media sources report the Cavs were in negotiations with Scott, who
started last season as head coac
<< Mets take advantage of Marlins mistakes to avoid sweep
San Juan, PR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Pinch-hitter Josh Thole singled in the go-
ahead run in the sixth inning, and the New York Mets downed the mistake-prone
Florida Marlins, 6-5, to avert a three-game sweep at Hiram Bithorn Stadium.
David W
Report: Bucks reach deal with Gooden >>
Sunnyvale, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Milwaukee Bucks have reportedly reached
an agreement on a multi-year contract with forward Drew Gooden, just hours
after the NBA free agency period began.
According to Yahoo! Sports, Gooden has
Ex-NHLer Hinote joins Blue Jackets staff >>
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -Former NHL veteran Dan Hinote (HIGH'-note) has been hired as an assistant coach by the Columbus Blue Jackets.The club announced the hiring on Thursday. Hinote helped the Colorado Avalanche win the 2001 Stanley Cup.Hinote will be
Zvonareva reaches Wimbledon final >>
Wimbledon, England (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Russian Vera Zvonareva landed in her
first career Grand Slam final on Thursday by overcoming upstart Bulgarian
Tsvetana Pironkova in semifinal action at Wimbledon 2010.
The 21st-seeded Zvonareva's oppon
Jays, Marcum hope to avoid brooms in Cleveland >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Blue Jays were left without an ace when they traded Roy
Halladay this past offseason, but Shaun Marcum has wasted little time claiming
ownership of the title.
Marcum will try to prevent his Toronto squad from getting s
Now, it's okay to call the league hypocritical when it releases injury reports, which players have told me only helps bettors. And it's okay to mutter something obscene when the league pretends gambling doesn't help drive TV ratings and fan interest and put money in owners' pockets. But when it supports other forms of gaming? Big Deal. The Bears should put an orange "C" on every deck of cards dealt at Harrah's in Joliet; the Eagles should slap their logo on roulette wheels at the Borgata in Atlantic City; the Dolphins should hold training camp at the El San Juan in Puerto Rico.
Seriously.
The NFL's problem, when it comes to the gambling world, isn't hypocrisy, it's worse: The bosses lack vision. That's why the league is picking unwinnable fights in Delaware and taking pot shots from critics after making smart sponsorship deals. Roger Goodell and his gang are acting and thinking locally rather than globally, which is rare for them, especially compared to their professional (and amateur) counterparts.
The NBA held its All Star game in Las Vegas and David Stern's kingdom didn't crumble (although the town did bring plenty of players to their knees.) I'd say it's 6 to 5 and pick 'em that Lebron will make a road swing through Sin City before his career is over.
Even the NCAA College Football Betting is more progressive on this issue than the NFL. Several years ago Rachel Newman Baker, college sports' gambling czar, opened a dialogue with Vegas bookmakers to learn about how they do business. She's visited Nevada sports books, studied their operations and listened to how they regulate action. Now she knows she can expect a call from bookmakers, who lose money when sports are fixed, if they think something sketchy is going on in NCAA games. She's not in favor of sports betting, but, as she once told me, "I know it's not going away, either."
The NFL can't seem to accept that. And until it can find peace with the idea, it'll get flack, even when it's right.
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It’s time to see how the biggest NFL free agent signings will perform for their news teams. Some will work out and could be the difference that makes a difference in the win column.
We look at the best off-season signings and if they should influence your NFL betting this season. Julius Peppers – Peppers was the biggest prize available on the 2010 NFL free agent market and the Chicago Bears opened the bank to bring his talents to the south side.
Peppers is explosive, he can get around blockers and cause quarterbacks to lose their minds. We all remember the classic Peppers game last year against the Vikings where he hounded Brett Favre into his worst game of the season. Peppers joining the Bears could be the reason Favre retired for good Tuesday morning. In addition to Peppers, the Bears added Chester Taylor to back up Matt Forte, Forte didn’t have the same intensity in 2009 compared to 2008 and bringing in Taylor will challenge Forte to bring it every game or he’ll risk losing carries to Taylor.
Betting on the Bears is a good option this season because of Julius Peppers and to a lesser extent Taylor. Antonio Bryant and Terrell Owens – The Cincinnati Bengals signed two former number one wide receivers to line up with Chad Ocho Cinco. Antonio Bryant had a huge season in 2008 catching 83 passes for over 1200 yards but regressed last season. Playing for the Tampa Bay Bucs last season was a large part of the regression, everyone was bad in TB last season.
Bryant should have a bounce back season if he can win the number two spot from Terrell Owens. If Bryant wins the number 2 WR spot, it will open up a completely new set of problems for the Bengals. If Owens is forced to the bench in favor of Bryant, his attitude will create trouble for Carson Palmer and head coach Marv Lewis. If Owens is the number two receiver, it means Bryant can’t live up to his past numbers and the Bengals are still limited in the passing game. NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. 2010 football betting lines for this can be found at this top online sportsbook. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense.
NFL bettors should be wary of laying their money down on what could potentially be the biggest gong show in the league in 2010. Karlos Danby – The Miami Dolphins have a great running back tandem in Ricky Williams and Ronnie Brown, a good young QB in Chad Henne and now the Bill Parcells regime is building a solid defense. They signed away the Arizona Cardinals top linebacker Karlos Danby. In the past two seasons, Danby has totaled 228 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 interceptions and 3 forced fumbles. The Dolphins are the forgotten team of the AFC East with the second longest odds to win the division but with the addition of Karlos Danby and a trade for WR Brandon Marshall makes the Miami Dolphins legitimate contenders in the AFC East and in the NFL’s Eastern Conference.
The Dolphins will make NFL wagering fans a lot of money this season, get in early and enjoy the cash.
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