(Preakness Odds pick - Rachel Alexandra is a massive favorite, and you’ll find out why on Saturday)

Okay, so Thursday’s NBA picks didn’t go as planned. Apparently both teams were waiting to get back home. Here is who is going to win on Sunday.

Rockets vs Lakers odds - Sunday, May 17, 3:30 PM ET

NBA odds have the Lakers as a 12.5-point favorite after a terrible performance in a 95-80 loss in Houston, and outside of Kobe Bryant, no one on the Lakers showed any emotion. The Rockets did well to even take this series to seven, but they’ll be in trouble in Los Angeles, where they were blown out by 40 in Game 5. (Basketball betting pick: Los Angeles to cover)

Magic vs Celtics odds - Sunday, May 17, 8:00 PM ET

The Magic are a 2.5-point underdog on the road after a heroic performance from Dwight Howard carried them to an 83-75 win in Game 6, as D-12 racked up 23 points and 22 boards after asking for more touches. The Celtics looked exhausted by the end of Game 6, and Ray Allen needs to snap out of his shooting slumber, but as usual, Paul Pierce will be the one hitting the clutch shots.  (Basketball betting pick: Boston to cover)

Preakness odds are out for this weekend’s big race, and a couple of proven thoroughbreds will advance to the conference finals in the NBA tonight. NBA odds has one Finalist from last year as an underdog on the road, while the other is favored away from home.

Celtics vs Magic odds (Magic -7) : 7:00 PM ET

After blowing a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter….IN BOSTON, no less….the Magic are done. This series should realistically be over by now, but the Magic don’t know how to put teams away yet, and Dwight Howard was right when he said that Orlando’s offense did the wrong thing and went away from him. They could get away with that against Philadelphia, but against the defending champions? Nope. Let’s see how Stan Van Gundy messes this up tonight. (Basketball betting pick: Boston)

Lakers vs Rockets odds (Lakers -9) : 9:30 PM ET

Now that’s the Lakers we know so well. After losing to a Yao-less Houston team in Game 4, you knew the Lakers would be fired up on their homecourt, and it turned into a Game 5 nightmare for the Rockets as they lost (putting it mildly) by 40 points. This game won’t be a rout, but if Andrew Bynum plays the way he did in Game 5, it’s a wrap for the Rockets. (Basketball betting pick: Lakers to win straight up, but not cover)

First off, two things: the NBA needs to step their security game up. Kenyon Martin’s mom was gettin’ heckled in Dallas, and I ask you, what kinda person goes at a dude’s mom? Mark Cuban is a punk. Second, fans SHOULD NOT have better seats than players. If they didn’t, “Big Baby” wouldn’t have knocked over the stupid kid. And if he was an Orlando player who made a game-winning shot, his father wouldn’t have said a word.

Now, on to some NBA odds:

Orlando at Boston (8:00 PM ET)
The Celtics should have won Game 4 by more, but their bench was terrible. It’s a good thing the Orlando guards were just as bad, as Rafer Alston and J.J. Redick combined to shoot 1-of-14, including 1-of-11 from three-point land. The Celtics are gaining steam, and unless Dwight Howard puts up 40 and 20, the Magic will be staring down the barrel of a 3-2 deficit. NBA odds favor Boston by two points. (Basketball betting pick: Boston)

Houston vs Los Angeles (10:30 PM ET)
The Lakers WILL NOT come out flat like they did in Game 4’s loss, especially Kobe Bryant, who will go into “Black Mamba” mode. The Rockets pulled out a great win in Houston without Yao Ming, but can Aaron Brooks have another 34-point game at the Staples Center? We don’t think so. NBA odds favor the Lakers by a whopping 12 points. (Basketball betting pick: Los Angeles)

I know you remember this scene from mid-December. Kevin Garnett lashes into Glen “Big Baby” Davis late in a win over Portland, and then Davis promptly proceeds to cry on the Boston bench. Now, a championship team with great NBA odds shouldn’t have any criers on the team, should they?

Fast forward to Sunday’s Game 4 in Orlando, and everyone in the arena expected the ball to go to Paul Pierce, Ray Allen or Rajon Rondo, but those looking over their NBA odds would have never expected Davis to hit the game-winning shot. But there he was, hitting an 18-foot jumper to give the Celtics a 95-94 win to even the series up at two games apiece. Davis has elevated his game in the postseason in Garnett’s absence, putting up 16.4 points and 6.0 boards, and if he keeps this up, the Celtics’ NBA odds won’t take a big drop without their defensive leader on the court.  That shot may have broken the Magic completely, so it wouldn’t be a bad choice to take the Celtics tomorrow night in your US-friendly sportsbook.

The second of the NBA playoffs just got underway yesterday with Denver’s romp over Dallas. Here’s a quick run-through of who you should go with in your US-friendly sportsbook.

Nuggets vs Mavericks - I was already going to pick the Nuggets, who blasted the Mavericks at home and will do so again tomorrow night. Denver is now 5-0 against Dallas at home, and the Mavericks will squeeze out a couple of wins at home. However, they have three players who can guard Dirk Nowitzki, and more importantly, Game 1 showed the Mavs can’t stop Denver in the paint. (basketball betting pick: Denver in six)

Rockets vs Lakers - I’m setting the over/under of Kobe Bryant/Ron Artest staredowns at five. Artest and Shane Battier will share defensive duties on Bryant, while the Andrew Bynum/Yao Ming and Luis Scola/Pau Gasol matchups are also intriguing. The X-factor is Lamar Odom, as the Rockets don’t really have anyone to match up with him. NBA odds have the Lakers as a huge -1200 favorite, and this will be a hotly-contested series. (basketball betting pick: Lakers in five)

Hawks vs Cavaliers - NBA odds have Cleveland as a huge -2500 favorite, and I heard someone say over the week that if the Hawks were to get past Miami, Josh Smith could contain LeBron James. Awesome. Quite possibly the funniest thing I’ve heard this year. Mo Williams needs to be better than he was in the Detroit destruction, while Joe Johnson needs to carry the Hawks on his back for them to have the slightest chance. Atlanta may steal one at home, but not much else. (basketball betting pick: Cavs in five)

Magic vs Celtics - NBA odds have Orlando as a -125 favorite over the defending champions, who are coming off a grueling seven-game classic with Chicago. Paul Pierce looked exhausted near the end of the series while Ray Allen, who is two years older, looked like a 25-year-old jackin’ clutch threes from everywhere. Rajon Rondo won’t be able to have his way in the paint with Dwight Howard in the lane, and D-12 should dominate the Celtics’ interior defense without Kevin Garnett. It was a good run, but the Chicago series may have taken it all out of the Celtics, and the long it goes, the more it’s in Orlando’s favor. (basketball betting pick: Orlando in seven)

-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)

Short and sweet, just like the fight there are boxing odds out there for next weekend (Hatton doesn’t stand a chance). Here’s some picks for the weekend in the NBA.

Nuggets vs Hornets (Saturday, 1:00 PM ET)

The Hornets seem to have mailed it in this season, as they didn’t put up a fight in a pair of blowouts in Denver. The Nuggets are led by Chauncey Billups, who has been there and done that and has the t-shirt (as well as a Finals MVP and a championship ring). (basketball betting pick: Nuggets)

Lakers vs Jazz (Saturday, 9:00 PM ET)

The Jazz pulled out a clutch Game 3 victory thanks to a late Deron Williams jumper, but they were helped by a terrible shooting performance by Kobe Bryant. That won’t happen again. I promise. (basketball betting pick: Lakers)

Celtics vs Bulls (Sunday, 1:00 PM ET)

In what has been the most exciting series so far, the Bulls were ripped in Game 3, and they definitely showed some nerves on their homecourt.  Chicago needs a massive effort from Ben Gordon and Derrick Rose to even the series. (Basketball betting pick: Bulls)

Cavaliers vs Pistons (Sunday, 3:30 PM ET)

If the Cavaliers win Game 3 on Friday night, there is no way they lose this game. If the Cavaliers don’t win Game 4, well………they still win Game 4. (Basketball betting pick: Cavaliers)

Those looking at their basketball betting odds this morning got more injury news from the Boston camp, as Leon Powe is out for the season after he tore his ACL in the Celtics’ thrilliing 118-115 win over Chicago on Monday night. So what does it all mean?

It means Boston’s interior defense is a terrible state right now. The Celtics were in bad shape with no Kevin Garnett, and now are down to Kendrick Pendrick, Glen “Big Baby” Davis and Mikki Moore in the post. The Bulls have to take advantage of this if they want to pull off a huge basketball betting upset. If Derrick Rose can get into the paint like he did in his 36-point performance in Game 1, that leaves the likes of Brad Miller and Tyrus Thomas to do their thing down low. Offensively, Davis is their biggest threat in the post, and that can’t be a good sign for those looking over the Bulls vs Celtics odds, if you’re a Boston fan, that is. If Garnett’s absence is like a Kentucky Derby betting player losing his star thoroughbred, what happens when you lose the backup as well?

Still, this was pretty insane at the end of Game 2:

Here we go…I’m done with my UFC 97 odds for the moment, so here’s your basketball betting picks for the playoffs, starting with the Eastern Conference.

No.1 Cleveland vs No.8 Detroit

The Pistons made the worst move of the year in the Allen Iverson trade, while Cleveland’s acquisition of Mo Williams is proving to be the best. Plus, it’s LeBron. He’ll put up a triple-double at some point. (NBA betting pick: Cleveland in four)

No.2 Boston vs No.7 Chicago

The Celtics may not have Kevin Garnett for the entire playoffs, but they should have enough to get by the Bulls, who will try to make this a track meet. Experience wins out. (NBA betting pick: Boston in five)

No.3 Orlando vs No.7 Philadelphia

The 76ers slumped down the stretch, for seemingly no reason. The Magic also struggled, but their spot has been wrapped up for a while and were more concerned with avoiding injuries. Philly’s got no answer for Dwight Howard. (NBA betting pick: Orlando in four)

No.4 Atlanta vs No.5 Miami

The series with the most mystery. Dwayne Wade has carried this team all season, but the Hawks are well balanced with six players in double digits. Maybe next year, D-Wade. (NBA betting pick: Atlanta in six)