Will the Heat Win the 2011 NBA Finals?

Alright, Alright. So LeBron James didn't sign with the Knicks, instead opting to join forces with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami. But the question now is, will the Heat win it all in 2010-11, even with, basically, three players?



Well, if the odds tell us anything, they have a chance. More like, the best chance. Check out the top four teams according to their odds to take home the NBA crown next year:



Miami Heat... 7/4

LA Lakers... 11/4

Orlando Magic... 10/1

Boston Celtics... 12/1

Of these, the Heat just don't quite belong yet. They will be able to build around the big three eventually, but the Lakers are the clear cut favorites in our minds, to win the NBA Finals by way of a three-peat. So take this opportunity, with the public pounding the Heat due to the recent buzz, to pound the Lakers for yourself.



View the latest point spreads and get ahead by signing up for the NBA picks at BetFirms.com.

This Man Is Now An NBA Champion

With the Lakers beating the Magic in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, we would like to congratulate Adam Morrison on his first of many rings to come.

We Win... Kind Of

Just a few days after declaring that the Lakers would win the NBA Finals, we had a Free NBA Pick proclaming the Magic as the likely Game 5 winner.

The bad news for us is that the Lakers won it in five. The good news is that we can still claim that we were right about the final outcome!

Unfortunately, the Lakers beat the Magic 99-86, giving our Free NBA Picks their first loss in the post season. The Free NBA Picks finish the playoffs with a 5-1 record, and a 13-6 (68%) mark in 2009.

It was a good season for our Free NBA Picks, few and far between as they might have been down the stretch, but there was clearly a method to our madness.

Do you Believe in Our Free NBA Pick Magic?

We haven't been focusing on our free picks as much as we usually do, but we have one for you tonight.

Our Free NBA Picks are 5-0 in the 2009 NBA Playoffs and 13-5 (72%) overall in 2009.

We are very picky with our selections, but you can see that we've had some success by doing so.

That being said, here's the pick for tonight:

Magic -3 1/2 over the Lakers

We know we just predicted the Lakers to take the series, but Dwight Howard and the Magic won't go down easily. Howard will overpower Pau Gasol and the Lakers' big men one more time, before losing the series in LA.

As always, good luck!

Finals Week

For the most part, schools are out for the summer, but that doesn't mean that Finals week is over. With the NBA Finals and the NHL Stanley Cup in progress, we couldn't help but emerge from our hibernation to give you a couple of predictions. 

In the NHL, we like the Red Wings to take the deciding Game 7 over the Penguins, beating Pittsburgh for the Stanley Cup for the second straight year. 

In the NBA, although the Magic are fresh off a game three victory, we like the Lakers to take care of business in six games. The series is currently at 2-1 in favor of LA. 

While the NBA and NHL seasons come to a close, Stock Lemon will likely emerging out of its peel for the summer ahead. Our ventures on tap include a foray back into stocks (the original inspiration behind our name) as well as more sports and sports betting analysis. 

So don't worry, we will be back. Just make sure you're back as well. 

The NBA is Back!

Our Free NBA Picks went 40-20 last year, which is 67%, and we hope to continue that success this year. These picks are our bread and butter, and we're excited to have them back for the 2008-09 season.

It all starts tonight with an over/under.

Cleveland Cavaliers/Boston Celtics OVER 179 1/2

We like LeBron James and the Cavs to get in a shootout with the defending champs tonight. Though the Celtics won the NBA Finals last year with defense, it's opening day so we expect some sloppiness on that end, and our numbers agree.

Get it now before the line jumps up!

Good luck!

Top Two NBA Off-Season Moves

Last year our Free NBA Picks went 40-20, which is an impressive 67%. We must admit, that didn't happen by accident.

Our Free NBA Picks system is a complicated formula which ranks teams offensive and defensive performances and determines which spreads have the most value. But as much attention as we pay to the NBA regular season, we pay even more to the off-season. During this time, we get a real solid idea of which teams might surprise the league (and the bookies) in the upcoming season.

That said, here are our two biggest off-season moves that could turn teams around in the NBA.

1. Bucks steal Richard Jefferson from Nets

By getting rid of a bad contract (Bobby Simmons) and arguably a bad player (Yi Jianlian) and adding one of the top small forwards in the game, the Bucks have improved drastically and should be a force to reckon with in the weak Eastern Conference. Despite the addition, they are still likely to fly under the radar due to a horrible 2007-08 season, so there should be plenty of opportunities to win some bucks on the Bucks.

2. Artest the missing piece in Houston

Houston, we have a problem-child. But we also have an extremely talented player. The Kings were nearly forced to part ways with Artest, and the Rockets made a great low-risk, high-reward investment. With the addition of Artest, the Rockets have a big three comparable to the NBA champion Boston Celtics. Artest and Tracy McGrady, along with a healthy Yao Ming, should compete for a spot in the NBA Finals.

One Last(?) NBA Finals Bet

After no plays yesterday, we have one tonight on what could be the last game of the NBA season tonight.

Lakers/Celtics UNDER 190.5

Good luck, and let's hope this isn't the last game we get to see for the year.

Check Please!

As you've probably noticed, we use Google ads on our site as part of Google's Adsense program. We do this for two main reasons. First, the links are always relevent in relation to our content, so oftentimes we get advertisements for other free sports or stocks insight that our readers might find helpful to them. Secondly, it brings a little bit of extra cash our way, just in case any of the Lakers' players fall asleep on the court in one of the biggest games of their lives, hypothetically of course.

Recently, though, we came across a photo of this check that an Adsense user received for just one month. We can assure you that our checks look nothing like that.

The photo, as the not-so-subtle watermark suggests, is from ShoeMoney.com, and yes, that says $132,994.97. For one month! Anyway, we just thought we'd share and dispel the notion that we are making anything even close to that amount, since we're sure many of you were curious.

MLB and NBA Picks Tonight

We have one pick with our new Free MLB Pick system, and one Free NBA Pick on the NBA Finals:

Oakland Athletics ML (+105) over the New York Yankees

Los Angeles Lakers -7 over the Boston Celtics

Good luck!

3-1 MLB Day!

As you may have noticed, we decided to do something we rarely ever do on major sporting events--not place a bet. We had no strong leans on Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the Celtics and Lakers, so we decided to sit back and enjoy some quality basketball.

Just because there wasn't a Free NBA Pick, though, doesn't mean that we didn't bet at all today. In fact, we focused on the MLB and played all four games from our new system. The results: a profitable 3-1 day.

The Rangers (+106) topped the Royals, the Rockies (-177) edged the Giants, and the Blue Jays (-180) took care of the Mariners, improving this new system to 7-4 after a couple of rough games yesterday.

Our regular Free MLB Pick system was uncharacteristically hovering around .500 to start the year, and while we plan on playing some of those games in the future, we are sticking with this new system geared toward home favorites and pitching match-ups.

This Week On The Lemmy Channel...

With no NBA Finals action and a small slate of MLB today, this Monday is the perfect time to tune into The Bucky Channel for the latest episode of The Lemmy Channel!

This week, Lemmy reiterates his position on the unders in Milwaukee Brewer games, which are hitting over 61% on the year, including 10-3 since Lemmy advised The Bucky Channel's readers to go under on their local team.

NBA Finals Continue Tonight

Game 2 of the NBA Finals is tonight, and our Free NBA Picks are ready to go.

Los Angeles Lakers -1 over the Boston Celtics

The Celtics have been tough at home, but they are beatable, and that will be the case tonight. Forget about Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, and Pau Gasol. Forget about Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce. The key match-up isn't between the players--it's between the coaches.

Phil Jackson has been in this situation before, and sooner rather than later, Doc Rivers will coach the Celtics right out of a ring. Paul Pierce will have to fake more than one injury in Game 2 if the C's plan on taking a two game advantage in the series. (UPDATE: We thought it was obvious that we were joking around about Paul Pierce's injury after Phil Jackson questioned its legitimacy. Most of our readers have thick enough skin not to get too up in arms about a small comment such as this, and we thank you for that, readers. Now let's put the drama aside and win some cash!)

The NBA Finals Are Here!

As excited as we are to see the NBA Finals begin tonight, it always makes us a little sad to know that a very profitable sport is coming to an end. Still, we plan on making this NBA season even more profitable with a successful run of Free NBA Picks in the Finals.

For starters, we feel like the Lakers have the edge over the Celtics. Kobe Bryant is finally the MVP and he'll further justify that award with a strong finals performance. Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, or Ray Allen won't be able to stop him.

We're aware that the Celtics beat the Lakers in both of their regular season meetings, but we're also aware that both games were pre-Pau Gasol. Since stealing Gasol from the Grizzlies, the Lakers have been a different team.

Though we like the Lakers to win the series, we're also laying off the spread tonight. The excitement of Game 1 in Boston could give the Celtics an edge that the Lakers can't overcome in their first meeting. Fortunately, there's an even better play on the board

Los Angeles Lakers/Boston Celitcs OVER 191 1/2

We haven't actually taken this yet as the line keeps dropping and are trying to get the lowest possible total for the over, but we will snatch it up shortly.

Make sure to check back here throughout the NBA Finals for more free winners.

Take the Day Off

We're still in the process of tweaking our old system, and our new Free MLB Pick system which relies heavily on good pitchers (and has started 2-0) has nothing for us today, so go ahead and enjoy your hump day.

We'll be back tomorrow with a Free NBA Pick on the Celtics and Lakers Game 1 of the NBA Finals that you won't want to miss. See you then!

We Still Like the Pistons

Call us crazy, but even down 3-2 in the series to the Boston Celtics, we like the Detroit Pistons to come out on top not only in Game 6, but in the series to advance to the NBA Finals

Detroit Pistons -5 over the Boston Celtics

Rip Hamilton will be splitting Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett for easy buckets yet again tonight, as he will suck it up and play as the Pistons try to avoid elimination.

Good luck!

Let's Try This Again

Two days ago, we bet the Lakers and Spurs to go over 192 points in the game, and we fell just short.

Well, we're trying again today, although this time the over is at 193. We also have a smaller play on the Lakers to advance to the NBA Finals.

Los Angeles Lakers/San Antonio Spurs OVER 193

Lakers -8 over the Spurs

Pau Gasol and the Lakers are back in L.A. and should blow by Tim Duncan and the defending champs, although spotting the Spurs eight points isn't always the best idea. Either way, these teams should put up the points tonight.

Good luck!

Lakers Win... Big!

Our Free NBA Picks indicated that the Lakers should beat the Spurs by at least six points last night, and as always, we put our faith in our system. We just didn't think it would be that easy.

The Lake Show beat up on the defending champs 101-71 in a blowout last night, and are now up 2-0 in the series and just two more wins away from a return to the NBA Finals.

Lamar Odom (seen above dunking on an exasperated Tim Duncan) had a huge night, as Pau Gasol (also looking sort of exasperated in the above photo) and Kobe Bryant were content to let Odom take the reigns, although Kobe still got his points.

The Lakers cover gives our Free NBA Picks a record of 8-1 in the last nine, and 11-3 in the last 14. Overall they are just 14-12 in the playoffs, but clearly have caught fire in the last week or two, as they always seem to. We put those records in yellow, since the color of lemons as well as those Laker jerseys also happens to be the color of money. Well, not really, but figuratively at least.

Remember to keep checking back throughout the weekend and beyond for more absolutely free picks.

MLB Tonight, NBA Futures

Despite the deciding game seven of the Hornets and Spurs being played tonight, we do not have a play on this game that fits our system. We do, however, have one MLB play for tonight.

Chicago Cubs -1 1/2 (+125) over the Houston Astros

Lance Berkman and the Astros are hot, but Alfonso Soriano and the Cubs are hotter. Our Free MLB Picks went 3-0 on Saturday, and we expect to add another win to our record.

In addition to the MLB play tonight, we have some NBA Future Bets on the Pistons/Celtics Eastern Conference Finals. These are not Free NBA Picks, but are plays we are making nonetheless. They are:

Pistons to win the Series (+115 at Bodog)

Will the Celtics Win a Road Game in this Series? NO (+165 at Bodog)

So there you have them. We like the Pistons to advance the NBA Finals and the Celtics road woes to continue.

For tonight, though, just the Cubs to beat up on the Stros. Good luck!

UPDATE: We took the Pistons in the series at +115 odds.

Sticking With the Home Team

In a similar situation to last night, we're going with a team that was in the NBA Finals last year and is facing elimination at home. With the home teams compiling an insane record of 20-1 in the second round, and with the Celtics a grand total of 0-5 on the road in the playoffs, our gut matches our Free NBA Pick numbers.

Cleveland Cavaliers -3 over the Boston Celtics

Anyone remember the dunk LeBron James had on Kevin Garnett the last time these two met up in Cleveland? Expect more of that tonight, as LeBron and his mom take down the Boston Three Party. Our Free NBA Picks have won seven of nine, so get them while they're hot!

Good luck!