NBA Online Wager Action: Eastern Conference Action Is Heating Up. Two weeks ago the most notable thing about the NBA’s Eastern Conference was the noticeable lack of competition and the unappealing online wager opportunities in the conference.
But what a difference a few weeks makes as the East, while hardly the model of parity, has become much more interesting since the beginning of the year.
The Miami Heat (30-13) had been the toast of the not just the East but the entire NBA after rattling off 14 straight road wins and compiling a record of 21-1 over the past two months. This team had finally begun to play the type of basketball that online wagering experts had expected from this star-studded lineup and it looked like they would run away with the Eastern Conference title.
But the team has dropped 4 straight games and now finds itself in a 5-team competition at the top of the standings. Miami’s most recent online wager loss came at the hands of the surging (8-2 over the past 10 games) Atlanta Hawks (28-15) who came into South Beach and no doubt celebrated the team’s 93-89 OT victory over the hometown team afterwards on South Beach.
With the win the Hawks pulled to win 2.5 games of the Heat for the Southeast Division lead and to within 4.5 games of the Eastern Conference lead. The Boston Celtics (31-9), with a roster older than dirt, have been in a constant battle against injuries all season but have won 7 of their last 10 and now have a 2.0 lead over the Heat for the best record in the conference.
Chicago has also been quietly moving its way up the standings and with a 28-14 record have the 3rd best record in the East and is just 4.0 games behind the Celts.
The other team in play in the hunt for the Eastern Conference title is the Orlando Magic, which after rearranging its entire roster has reaped the rewards of this bold move. The Magic are 7-3 over their past 10 online wager matchups and have ran their record to 26-15. Orlando is just 5.5 games out of first with several months left to play.
And while this may not be the cutthroat competition some pundits had expected out of this much improved conference, the action is much more competitive than it was just a few weeks ago and will only get better as the season wears on.