Cleveland is finally playing like the sportsbook favorites we allkknew they were, and they played very well in a 111-104 win over Miami on the road, their third straight win away from home. But that’s neither here nor there. I’m wonder if the kids still hang up posters on their wall, because THIS is the epitome of a posterization:

AND THEN…..he goes back to walk over him, Allen Iverson-Tyronn Lue style:

This has no bearing on either team’s online betting odds, but you may look back on this later in the season, and I’m willing to bet you won’t see a better posterization than that. Then, Anderson Varejao (Sideshow Bob) had the nerve to try and talk smack to D-Wade after the play was done. He got a technical foul for his efforts. You know, he’s a talented player, but someone needs to tell Bob to shut up sometimes. Actin’ like you’re worth $10-12 mil a season,  you know what that gets:

My pick for Saturday’s Pacquiao Cotto odds: Miguel will give him a run, but he doesn’t have the patience to hang with Manny, who will frustrate him into making a mistake.

-And that’s why Orlando isn’t favored by NBA Finals odds to win the championship. Their play late in the fourth quarter and overtime of Game 4’s 99-91 loss is remarkable. I know the Lakers did it the game before, but the Magic have done it a number of times in these playoffs (giving up big leads, etc). It was bound to happen.

-Derek Fisher probably extended his career another year with those two treys he made. It’s like he’s Robert Horry 2009.

-Dwight Howard….poor, poor Superman. NBA Finals odds players everywhere cursed your inability to make foul shots. One foul shot would have sealed it, but noooooooooooooo…..

-Pietrus with the big double-ax handle to Gasol. Ric Flair would have been proud. Speaking of Ric Flair:

WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

NBA Finals odds for Game 5 have the Magic as a 3-point favorite, and they should be able to pull out the win, due to desperation. No one wants to see the other team celebrate on their home court (as the Lakers know all too well), and that should be enough to get them back to L.A……where they’ll be destroyed.

Don’t forget to do some UFC betting and boxing betting this weekend. Just don’t fight anyone.

-Looking at those boxing odds? Pac-Man will knock out Hatton by the fifth round on Saturday night.

-This Chicago-Boston series has been the best thing for the NBA since…..shoot, I don’t even know. I thought about the Warriors-Mavericks series of ‘06, but that was more for the upset factor. Six games, five decided by three points or less, four overtimes games, including Game 6’s triple-OT classic. Game 7 goes Saturday night in Boston, and the Celtics’ experience, homecourt advantage and the clutch shooting of Ray Allen will end the Bulls’ season. (basketball betting pick: Boston outright, not to cover the 6.5-point spread)

-Thanks Philly, for making me look stupid last night. No Dwight Howard, no Courtney Lee, on homecourt, and you lose by 25? You deserved to get booed.

-Dallas and Denver open up their series on Sunday afternoon in Denver, and the Mavericks won’t have anything for the Nuggets on the road. It won’t be a blowout, but…..(basketball betting pick: Denver to cover the 5.5-point spread)

-Tonight should mark the end of the Heat’s season. Dwayne Wade is obviously hurting with a back injury, and without him at less than 100%, Miami doesn’t stand a chance. (basketball betting pick: Atlanta as a 5-point underdog)

Those checking this Saturday’s boxing odds can watch a different type of slugfest, as Chicago is giving the defending champions from Boston all they can handle in a series that is tied at two, with three of the four games being decided by three or fewer points, and one double-overtime classic that has been the game of the playoffs so far. Much has been made of the Derrick Rose-Rajon Rondo matchup, and both young point guards have been fantastic, but the real battle comes from a pair of UConn snipers, Boston’s Ray Allen and Chicago’s Ben Gordon. This clash of snipers will be the deciding factor in these basketball betting odds.

In Game 1, Allen was only 1-of-12, and Gordon dropped 20 in an overtime win for the Bulls. In Game 2, Gordon lit up the Celtics for 42, but it was Allen’s last-second three to cap a 30-point performance to lift Boston to a win. Both had quiet games in Boston’s Game 3 romp, but they were up to their old tricks in Game 4, trading last-second shots in a double-overtime win for the Bulls. Allen had 28 to Gordon’s 22, but Gordon’s three at the end of the first overtime kept the Bulls’ basketball betting chances alive.

These two must be familiar with each other, as Allen starred at UConn between 1993 and 1996, while Gordon also spent three years at UConn between 2001 and 2004, helping the Huskies win a national title. It’s been fun to watch them go at each other, and it’s no surprise that either will be getting the game-winning shot in upcoming games in this series, so basketball betting odds and totals will depend heavily on how these two gunners play.