The defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers are going to be favored in sports betting next season. Head coach Phil Jackson has decided to return to the team for his 11th season behind the bench and his return means the Lakers will start the 2010-2011 seasons as the Internet sports betting favorite.
Sports betting odds on the Lakers will list them as short-priced favorites to win their third straight title next season. The Lakers would not have been favored in Internet sports betting if Jackson had retired. He is the one coach in the NBA who makes a huge difference. The Hall of Fame coach has 11 championships between the Lakers and Chicago Bulls. Jackson will be returning to go for three in a row with the Lakers. The Bulls won three straight from 1991-93 and 1996-98 with Jackson as head coach.
The Lakers have won five titles in ten years with Jackson as head coach. Sports betting statistics indicate that he has led the team to the finals in seven of those ten seasons. Any questions of whether he is the best coach in NBA history should have been put to bed. Many of the players on the Lakers expected Jackson to return next season as did many sports betting gamblers. The only issue was his health and he got a favorable report from his doctors. There could still be the question of money with Jackson’s contract having expired but owner Jerry Buss is simply going to have to pay Jackson to return and go for three in a row.
Jackson has been the coach of 11 of the last 20 NBA Champions. In his 19-year career, he has a record of 1,098-460. That translates into a .705 winning percentage. That is the best percentage in NBA history. He should be able to win at a similar rate next season with the Lakers. Los Angeles returns virtually their entire championship team led by Kobe Bryant. The Lakers have Bryant, Pau Gasol and Ron Artest signed in addition to Lamar Odom. They just need to re-sign Derek Fisher and all signs point to that happening in the near future. Sports betting odds on the Lakers will be low again next season with Jackson as the head coach and their top players returning.