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07/19/2010 - Philadelphia, PA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - I spent a number of years hosting my own radio show and am lucky enough to do quite a few guest spots around the dial these days, so I realize how easy it can be to say something off the cuff that someone, somewhere is alienated by.
In a society that grows touchier by the day, that kind of thing is just part of the process, and generally I dismiss most of the Sally Sensitives out there as just that.
However, there are a few topics I have been deft enough to avoid at all costs. For instance, I'm proud to say I've never compared the New York Yankees' treatment of Joe Torre to the Nazis like Tim McCarver, and I've yet to break out September 11 in reference to a losing streak.
Dwyane Wade?
Not so much.
When asked Sunday how his new super team in South Beach would react to a losing streak in the upcoming season, Wade handled it like a rookie stepping up to the microphone for the first time.
"You [the reporters assembled] all are going to make it seem like the World Trade has just went down again," Wade said before his annual charity basketball game that he co-hosts with former Heat-teammate Alonzo Mourning.
Later in the day AOL, which first reported the quote, sent a different version of it along with an with an editor's note explaining a transcription error was made and the company "deeply regretted the error."
However, in the second corrected version, Wade still made the insensitive reference, albeit with a bit of a qualifier.
"We're going to be wearing a bull's-eye," Wade reportedly said. "But that's what you play for. We enjoy the bull's-eye. Plus, there's going to be times when we lose two, three games in a row and it seems like the world has crashed down. You all are going to make it seem like the World Trade is coming down again, but it's not going to be nothing but a couple of basketball games."
Since D-Wade isn't Don Rickles or Lisa Lampanelli working blue at the Comedy Shack, that's still about as tasteless as it gets these days.
It's not that I think Wade had any bad intentions or actually thinks he and LeBron losing three in a row will really compare to 3,000 innocents losing their lives. The All-Star clearly just stepped the wrong way in the politically correct minefield that is America today.
Wade quickly apologized on Monday but made a second mistake in the process, blaming the messenger.
"In an interview yesterday, I attempted to explain how some people may view the Miami Heat losing a few basketball games in a row during the upcoming season," Wade said in a statement. "It appears that my reference to the World Trade Center has been either inaccurately reported or taken completely out of context.
"I was simply trying to say that losing a few basketball games should not be compared to a real catastrophe. While it was certainly not my intention, I sincerely apologize to anyone who found my reference to the World Trade Center to be insensitive or offensive."
It's still July and we are over three months away from basketball games counting again, but it would have been nice to see Wade step up like a leader, accept full responsibility and learn something very valuable from his little faux pas.
The Heat, not the Lakers or Celtics, are now at the center of the basketball universe and everything he, James, Chris Bosh and their teammates do will now be put under a very powerful microscope.
Distractions like this during the season are exactly the types of things that could lead to the losing streaks Wade so inartfully described.
<< Le Toux named MLS Player of the Week for the second time
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Philadelphia Union forward Sebastien Le Toux
was voted Major League Soccer Player of the Week for Week 16 of the 2010 MLS
season on Monday.
Le Toux recorded an assist and scored the game-winning pen
<< Bills sign third round draft pick Carrington
Orchard Park, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Buffalo Bills signed rookie defensive
end Alex Carrington to a four-year contract on Monday.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Carrington was selected in the third round, 72nd overall,
<< Olaru among winners in Bad Gastein
Bad Gastein, Austria (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ioana Raluca Olaru of Romania was
among the first-round winners Monday at the Gastein Ladies tennis tournament.
Olaru rallied for a 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over Germany's Kathrin Woerle on the
red
<< Galarraga rejoins Tigers
Detroit, MI (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Detroit Tigers have recalled pitcher
Armando Galarraga from Triple-A Toledo.
The right-hander was sent to the minor leagues on July 7 following his start
the day before against Baltimore, when he
General Quarters suffers ankle injury >>
Arlington Heights, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Fan favorite General Quarters came
out of Saturday's Arlington Handicap with an injured ankle. The four-year-old
colt finished sixth as the 5-2 second choice in the 11 horse field in the
Arlingt
Sherritt, Reynolds among preseason Big Sky honorees >>
Ogden, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Eastern Washington's J.C. Sherritt, the 2009 Buck
Buchanan Award runner-up, has been named the 2010 Big Sky Conference preseason
defensive player of the year. Montana's Chase Reynolds has been named the
preseason o
Howard takes home NL weekly honors >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan
Howard has been named the National League Player of the Week for the
period ending July 18.
Howard batted .400 and blasted four home runs over an abbre
Rangers' Molina earns AL weekly honor >>
New York, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Texas Rangers catcher Bengie Molina has been
named the American League Player of the Week for the period ending July 18.
Molina, who will turn 36 on Tuesday, joined the Rangers in a July 1 trade from
the Sa
Underdog bettors love the Super Bowl and, history suggests, the underdogs love them back. And the big dogs bite harder.
Even so, there is a warning in store for Super Bowl gamblers who must love dogs: The Arizona Cardinals Super Bowl betting lines might not be enough of a Cinderella to make it worth your while.
Although the Cardinals were widely panned as one of the worst division winners and least playoff-worthy teams in recent memory, their trip to Super Bowl XLIII Jan. 31 in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl betting lines comes with a little more respect from the oddsmakers than you might imagine. They are a 7-point underdog at most sports books.
If you count yourself among those who covet the big dog in the big game, this isn’t exactly great news. You should have been hoping for more points. This is because the facts show that the bigger the dog, the better the bet in the Super Bowl.
Case in point: Over the past 13 seasons, double-figure underdogs in the Super Bowl are 4-0-1 ATS and have won the past three outright. In fact, the last double-digit chalk to do the deed for bettors was the 1995 San Francisco 49ers, who managed to beat the astounding 19-point spot afforded backers of the San Diego Chargers in the 49-26 romp in Super Bowl XXIX.
By contrast, 7-point favorites are 2-1-1 ATS in the same span, the last such contest resulting a cover grinded out by the Colts in their 29-17 win over the Bears two seasons ago in Super Bowl XLI.
In 2004, the Patriots failed to cover the number in their 32-29 triumph over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl props while the Rams and Titans gave everyone a refund in 2000 after the Rams posted a 23-16 win as a seven-point favorite.
So while Arizona’s run has included impressive upsets as a 10-point road underdog to the Carolina Panthers and Sunday’s 32-25 win in the NFC championship game to the 4-point favored Philadelphia Eagles, their long-shot story lacks a bit of the David vs. Goliath storyline of past Super Bowl underdogs.
While the seven-point spread represents a significant gap in the perception of strength between the two teams, it is far from monumental. For example, last season the Giants were the wild-card afterthought turned road-warrior buzzsaw, with stunning wins over the Buccaneers, Cowboys and Packers to earn their place in the Super Bowl.
There, they played spoiler to New England’s bid to become the first 19-0 team in NFL history and cemented their place in sports betting lore with a 17-14 win as a 12.5-point underdog.
In other words, the Cardinals appear to have their work cut out for them as a mid-range underdog. But in homage to the spread beaters who have come before them, here is a brief look back at recent colossal upsets in the Super Bowl:
SB XLII -- 2008 -- New York Giants 17, New England Patriots 14 (Giants +12.5) – Eli Manning’s 13-yard touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress in the final minute clinched the historic upset for the Giants, who used a masterful defensive plan to slow down Tom Brady and the previously undefeated New England Patriots.
XXXVI -- 2002 -- Patriots 20, Rams 17 (Patriots +14) – This was the coming out party for the aforementioned Brady, who went from obscure sixth-round draft pick to Super Bowl hero in one fell swoop. He led the game-winning drive in the final minute – eschewing analyst John Madden’s advice to take a knee and play for overtime – leading to Adam Vinatieri’s memorable 48-yard field goal that split the uprights as time expired.
XXXII 1998 Broncos 31, Packers 24 (Denver +12) – The first of John Elway’s two consecutive Super Bowl titles to put an end to his Hall of Fame career was an upset for the ages. The Broncos used the determination of Elway and a 157-yard, three-touchdown performance from Terrell Davis to turn back Brett Favre and the heavily favored Packers.
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