PERRY?S PERSPECTIVE, Dec. 28
from the line's dept of
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HORNETS OK IN OKC
If only the New Orleans Saints played this well in their temporary home.
The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets must have some of that old-timey barnstorming in them. Despite being displaced from the New Orleans Arena by Hurricane Katrina, they?ve more than held their own at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, going 6-4 both straight up and against the spread.
Unfortunately for Hornets supporters, their club is just 5-10 on the road, although NOK has been scrappy enough to go 7-8 ATS along the way. A huge spate of away games ? 12 of the last 17 ? has helped to take some of the wind out of the Hornets? sails. The team also lost its first of six ?home? games at Baton Rouge, falling to the Suns in ugly fashion on Dec. 16.
Still they fight on. The defending champion Spurs got a taste of NOK on Dec. 18, losing 89-76 as 6-point road favorites. Point guard Chris Paul nearly registered a triple-double against the champs: 17 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists, not to mention five steals. How Paul managed to slip to fourth place in the NBA draft will be one of the league?s great mysteries in the years to come, like Michael Jordan slipping to No. 3 back in 1984.
The Hornets are back in Oklahoma Wednesday night to do a number on the Houston Rockets. If you can get this one on your TV (FOX Southwest for Houston fans or COX for the Hornets), give it a look. The Rockets had to call the ?toe truck? for Yao Ming, and he looks like he?ll be out for an extended period of time. Houston hasn?t done very well minus its big man. Losses to Toronto and Denver preceded the holiday break, and the Rockets also had to host Utah Tuesday night before saddling up for OKC.
One of the reasons Houston fans have been calling for coach Jeff Van Gundy?s head is the Rockets? poor play at home: 3-7 SU and ATS heading into Christmas. On the road, however, Houston is 7-8 SU and an amazing 11-4 ATS. It?ll be interesting to see if that holds up on zero days of rest and without Yao patrolling the paint. Guards Rafer Alston, Jon Barry, Bob Sura and Derek Anderson were also on the shelf for the loss to the Nuggets, as was backup center Dikembe Mutombo. At least Mutombo is expected back in time for the Hornets matchup, which would spare power forward Stromile Swift and his gimpy groin from having to start at center.
Speaking of gimpy, the Seattle SuperSonics are starting to get worried about their backcourt situation. Starting point guard Luke Ridnour left Monday?s win over the Boston Celtics because of nausea. A lot of C?s fans felt the same way watching at home on TV, although Ridnour?s illness is due to a bruised chest suffered last Friday against the Mavericks. Back-up guard Ronald ?Flip? Murray filled in and scored a season-high 29 points, but he?s also on the mend after dislocating two fingers on his right hand.
Seattle is not well-equipped to deal with losing both players, not after letting Antonio Daniels go to Washington. Former Michigan State stalwart Mateen Cleaves is next in line to man the point, with Damien Wilkins likely to see plenty of minutes Wednesday when the Sonics visit the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves are losers of six of their last seven outings, and as soft as Seattle?s reputation is at the center position, it can?t hold a candle to Minnesota. If the Wolves could somehow combine Michael Olowokandi?s size with Mark Madsen?s work ethic, they?d have a viable player at the five-spot. Don?t even ask me about Nikoloz Tskitishvili.
We?re still waiting for the overnight line to come down here at Perry Central ? it should be up by the time you read this, but expect the Wolves to be favored by about seven points. We?re also looking at the Hornets as slim home favorites.
from the line's dept of
BetWWTS.com
HORNETS OK IN OKC
If only the New Orleans Saints played this well in their temporary home.
The New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets must have some of that old-timey barnstorming in them. Despite being displaced from the New Orleans Arena by Hurricane Katrina, they?ve more than held their own at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, going 6-4 both straight up and against the spread.
Unfortunately for Hornets supporters, their club is just 5-10 on the road, although NOK has been scrappy enough to go 7-8 ATS along the way. A huge spate of away games ? 12 of the last 17 ? has helped to take some of the wind out of the Hornets? sails. The team also lost its first of six ?home? games at Baton Rouge, falling to the Suns in ugly fashion on Dec. 16.
Still they fight on. The defending champion Spurs got a taste of NOK on Dec. 18, losing 89-76 as 6-point road favorites. Point guard Chris Paul nearly registered a triple-double against the champs: 17 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists, not to mention five steals. How Paul managed to slip to fourth place in the NBA draft will be one of the league?s great mysteries in the years to come, like Michael Jordan slipping to No. 3 back in 1984.
The Hornets are back in Oklahoma Wednesday night to do a number on the Houston Rockets. If you can get this one on your TV (FOX Southwest for Houston fans or COX for the Hornets), give it a look. The Rockets had to call the ?toe truck? for Yao Ming, and he looks like he?ll be out for an extended period of time. Houston hasn?t done very well minus its big man. Losses to Toronto and Denver preceded the holiday break, and the Rockets also had to host Utah Tuesday night before saddling up for OKC.
One of the reasons Houston fans have been calling for coach Jeff Van Gundy?s head is the Rockets? poor play at home: 3-7 SU and ATS heading into Christmas. On the road, however, Houston is 7-8 SU and an amazing 11-4 ATS. It?ll be interesting to see if that holds up on zero days of rest and without Yao patrolling the paint. Guards Rafer Alston, Jon Barry, Bob Sura and Derek Anderson were also on the shelf for the loss to the Nuggets, as was backup center Dikembe Mutombo. At least Mutombo is expected back in time for the Hornets matchup, which would spare power forward Stromile Swift and his gimpy groin from having to start at center.
Speaking of gimpy, the Seattle SuperSonics are starting to get worried about their backcourt situation. Starting point guard Luke Ridnour left Monday?s win over the Boston Celtics because of nausea. A lot of C?s fans felt the same way watching at home on TV, although Ridnour?s illness is due to a bruised chest suffered last Friday against the Mavericks. Back-up guard Ronald ?Flip? Murray filled in and scored a season-high 29 points, but he?s also on the mend after dislocating two fingers on his right hand.
Seattle is not well-equipped to deal with losing both players, not after letting Antonio Daniels go to Washington. Former Michigan State stalwart Mateen Cleaves is next in line to man the point, with Damien Wilkins likely to see plenty of minutes Wednesday when the Sonics visit the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves are losers of six of their last seven outings, and as soft as Seattle?s reputation is at the center position, it can?t hold a candle to Minnesota. If the Wolves could somehow combine Michael Olowokandi?s size with Mark Madsen?s work ethic, they?d have a viable player at the five-spot. Don?t even ask me about Nikoloz Tskitishvili.
We?re still waiting for the overnight line to come down here at Perry Central ? it should be up by the time you read this, but expect the Wolves to be favored by about seven points. We?re also looking at the Hornets as slim home favorites.
