While online MLB betting players are strolling through the first part of the baseball season, basketball fans were just treated to a wild NCAA Tournament, and now the NBA playoffs are about to tip off as the regular season ends on Wednesday. A lot of people were planning on another Finals series featuring the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics, who have combined to win the last three NBA championships. If you look at their play down the stretch, you may not see either team make it to the final round. The two-time defending champions from Los Angeles are like a Kentucky Derby betting favorite that is stumbling towards the finish line, and while everyone, including the Lakers, is saying that the champions are just pacing themselves. However, a five-game losing skid is never good in April, and the Lakers are struggling to get it going at both ends of the court. Their offense averaged 87 points over the first four games of the losing streak, but they go on track by scoring 106 points against Oklahoma City on Sunday night. The problem is, they allowed 120 points at the Staples Center for their first five-game skid in five years, and they allowed the Thunder to shoot 55.6% from the field. If the Lakers are going to win the West, they could have to face Oklahoma City and now the Thunder are empowered by a big win in Los Angeles. Tuesday’s showdown with San Antonio at home is now a huge game for the Lakers. It’s even worse in Boston, where the Celtics have been sleepwalking since the trade that sent Kendrick Perkins to Oklahoma City. General manager Danny Ainge took a big risk in thinking that Shaquille and Jermaine O’Neal could replace Perkins, but Shaquille has played a grand total of 21 minutes since February 1st, and Jermaine is always a threat to go on the sidelines. Even when he’s healthy,you don’t need a price per head bookie to tell you that Jermaine has been awful this year anyway. Rajon Rondo has been in and out of focus since his best friend was traded, and the Big Three of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen are starting to look a little old. The Celtics have lost to the likes of Memphis and Charlotte at home, and they’ve been blasted in their last two big road games at Chicago and Miami, who have both leapfrogged Boston in the East pecking order. Their frontcourt is small and Garnett can’t do it all anymore, and the Celtics are inconsistent on the perimeter. We’re still giving the Lakers a chance to come out of the West; we wouldn’t touch Boston’s odds with a ten-foot pole when we’re betting online.
