It seemed as if the state of New Jersey was going to fight to get sports betting legalized a few months back.  Well, today Governor Chris Christie decided not to move the efforts forward.

“At this time, given the unprecedented economic crisis and other challenges facing the state, the governor has determined that the state’s limited resources would be better utilized by focusing on other, more immediate issues facing the citizens of New Jersey,” (Jeff) Chiesa wrote.

A Christie spokesman, Michael Drewniak, said “there were just too many steep legal hurdles to clear, and it would at best be a legal long shot.”

I’ll never understand politics anywhere, let alone New Jersey.  New Jersey is in dire need of income to keep balancing its budgets, so it seems strange that the state is turning away from a possible new income stream.

I expect this to be looked at by the state again in the near future.

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I was checking the 2010 NBA Draft Prop bets last night and found some interesting opportunities and figured I’d share them.  I love the NBA draft because it’s right after the end of the season and followed closely by free agency.  This is the time where the losing teams get ready to turn things around for next year.  I find building the team as much fun as playing the season.

Odds are from sportsbook,com.  click any prop to get to sportsbook.

2010 NBA Draft – Derrick Favors – He will play his first NBA Regular Season Game for
Nets -200
Any Other Team +150

2010 NBA Draft – Wesley Johnson – He will play his first NBA Regular Season Game for
Twolves -130
Any Other Team -110

2010 NBA Draft – John Wall – He will play his first NBA Regular Season Game for
Wizards -1000
Any Other Team +550

2010 NBA Draft – Evan Turner – He will play his first NBA Regular Season Game for
76ers -300
Any Other Team +200

Wesley Johnson – Over/Under Draft Position
Draft Position
Over 4.5 (+140)
Draft Position
Under 4.5 (-190)

DeMarcus Cousins – Over/Under Draft Position
Draft Position
Over 4.5 (-180)
Draft Position
Under 4.5 (+130)

Luke Harangody – Will He be a Draft Pick (1st or 2nd Round)
Yes (Picked 1st or 2nd Round) -150
No +110

Jon Scheyer – Will He be a Draft Pick (1st or 2nd Round)
Yes (Picked 1st or 2nd Round) -150
No +110

DaSean Butler – Will He be a Draft Pick (1st or 2nd Round)
Yes (Picked 1st or 2nd Round) -150
No +110

Sherron Collins – Will He be a Draft Pick (1st or 2nd Round)
Yes (Picked 1st or 2nd Round) -120
No -120

Scottie Reynolds – Will He be a Draft Pick (1st or 2nd Round)
Yes (Picked 1st or 2nd Round) +150
No -200

Samardo Samuels – Will He be a Draft Pick (1st or 2nd Round)
Yes (Picked 1st or 2nd Round) -110
No -130

2010 NBA Draft – Player to get Drafted First
DeMarcus Cousins -200
Greg Monroe +150

2010 NBA Draft – Player to get Drafted First
Al-Farouq Aminu -300
Gordon Hayward +200

2010 NBA Draft – Player to get Drafted First
Cole Aldrich even
Ed Davis -140

2010 NBA Draft – Player to get Drafted First
Patrick Patterson -300
Eric Bledsoe +200

2010 NBA Draft – Player to get Drafted First
Damion James -120
Solomon Alabi -120

2010 NBA Draft – Total ACC Players drafted in the 1st Round
ACC Players
Over 4.5 (-130)
1st Round
Under 4.5

2010 NBA Draft – Total BIG East Players drafted in the 1st Round
BIG East Players
Over 4.5 (+140)
Under 4.5 (-180)

2010 NBA Draft – Total Kentucky Players drafted in the Lottery (Picked 1st to 14th)
Kentucky Players
Over 2.5 (-150)
Under 2.5 (+110)

2010 NBA Draft – Total College Seniors drafted in the 1st Round
College Senior Players
Over 2.5 (even)
Under 2.5 (-140)

2010 NBA Draft – Total Duke Players drafted in the 1st and 2nd Round
Duke Players
Over 1.5 (even)
Under 1.5 (-140)

Gordon Hayward – Will He be a Lottery Pick (Picked 1st to 14th)
Yes (Picked 1st to 14th) -200
No (Picked 15th or Later) +150

Patrick Patterson – Will He be a Lottery Pick (Picked 1st to 14th)
Yes (Picked 1st to 14th) -170
No (Picked 15th or Later) +130

James Anderson – Will He be a Lottery Pick (Picked 1st to 14th)
Yes (Picked 1st to 14th) even
No (Picked 15th or Later) -140

Damion James – Will He be a Lottery Pick (Picked 1st to 14th)
Yes (Picked 1st to 14th) +150
No (Picked 15th or Later) -200

Eric Bledsoe – Will He be a Lottery Pick (Picked 1st to 14th)
Yes (Picked 1st to 14th) +200
No (Picked 15th or Later) -300

Avery Bradley – Will He be a Lottery Pick (Picked 1st to 14th)
Yes (Picked 1st to 14th) -135
No (Picked 15th or Later) -105

I follow college basketball pretty loosely and I pay most attention to the Big East (go figure).  The one prop that sticks out to me is that Scottie Reynolds is -200 NOT to be drafted.  He started off the season looking like a lottery pick and proceeded to get worse as the season went on.  I went from loving the way Reynolds played to hating watching him.  I can see him not getting drafted and that’s disappointing.

I don’t see any obvious plus bets at this point.  That may change with all of the rumors over the next 24 hours.

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I present you with odds to win the FIFA World Cup that begins this week.  I know less about national teams than I do about the specific leagues, which isn’t much.  Because of my lack of knowledge here I would stick with the favorites, but that’s no fun.

The USA at 80-1 could be fun, but no team from this side of the world has ever won the World Cup so I don’t see that as a reality.  Here are the odds from sportsbook.com all based on a moneyline of 100.  For example Argentina is 6.5-1.

Algeria +75000
Argentina +650
Australia +17500
Brazil +450
Cameroon +12500
Chile +8000
Denmark +12500
England +700
France +2000
Germany +1200
Ghana +12500
Greece +25000
Holland +900
Honduras +100000
Italy +1600
Ivory Coast +5000
Japan +60000
Mexico +8000
New Zealand +250000
Nigeria +15000
North Korea +200000
Paraguay +10000
Portugal +2800
Serbia +5000
Slovakia +40000
Slovenia +50000
South Africa +15000
South Korea +30000
Spain +375
Switzerland +30000
USA +8000
Uruguay +12500

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Yesterday, Disney announced that they would be closing most of the ESPN Zone restaurants across the country.

It’s unclear what has prompted Disney to close the establishments, although the bars may well be a casualty of the recession. A poll released in March by AlixPartners found that 30% of consumers planned to eat out less frequently, and spend less per meal than they did the year before.

I understand why people would shy away from a bar/restaurant that charges a bit more for average bar food and drinks.  I happen to like the ESPN Zone’s that I’ve been to and there’s always something inside me that wants to install a TV in my bathroom after every visit.

Specifically, I’ve had a great time at the Las Vegas location inside of NYNY.  The NYNY sportsbook is almost non-existent, so I have to imagine that MGM will find another name to slap on the ESPN Zone and re-brand it as something similar to Legasse Stadium at the Palazzo.  I’m thinking that MGM’s relationship with the Light Group will come into play here, but I’m not sure how just yet.

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If you’re in Las Vegas and looking to place a bet on the NBA Finals that start tonight don’t go to any Harrah’s property. Stiffs and Georges reminds us why.

…you can forget about betting on Celtics games if you’re in a Harrah’s property because the company forfeited that sports book action so that CEO Gary Loveman could own a piece of the team.

I forgot about this, but it reminded me that I ran into this problem staying a the Rio a few years ago.  A friend and I wanted to bet on the Celtics but the game was off the board.  We ended up running to the Gold Coast to place our bets, but it was a bit inconvenient.

This isn’t the only casino with this problem.  The Maloof’s on the Sacramento Kings so you can’t bet on the Kings at the Palms.  At least you can still watch the Lakers beat the Celtics in any casino.

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