With the top seeds having flexed their muscle in the opening
round of the NBA playoffs, it's on to Round Two where a series upset or two is
always in the realm of possibility.
Here are four solid moneymaking angles from my powerful
database that have withstood the test of time throughout 2nd round
playoff action, along with a few tempting team trends. All results are
ATS and since 1991, unless noted otherwise. Enjoy.
Thou Shall Not Lay Points Into A No. 1 Seed
One golden rule in this round applies to top seeds, namely:
do not lay points against No.1 seeds.
That's because inferior teams are just 20-33-1 ATS when
playing points into No. 1 seeds since 1996.
Worse, if the inferior teams are laying less the 5 points
they are just 9-25 ATS, including 3-20 ATS when they own a win percentage of
.575 or more.
Cleveland and Utah, you've been warned.
Tripped Out Favorites
Teams that take it on the chin three times in a row do not
fare well when laying points in Round Two.
While it's often times a rare occasion, it's confirmed by
the fact that teams laying points off three consecutive losses that are 3-14
ATS in these games since 1993.
Worse, if the tripped-out chalk dropped their last game
straight up as a favorite these teams generally fall off the map - and out of
the playoffs - going 3-7 SU and 0-10 ATS.
Role Reversals
You may not be comfortable changing roles in a relationship,
but NBA teams in this round of the playoffs certainly are.
Round Two dogs (or picks) off a straight-up loss as a
favorite are a 60% ATS proposition, going 37-25 ATS.
For more of Marc Lawrence click here.