NBA Betting: Heat at Magic
Written by Jack Jones - Google +
It’s no surprise that two of the NBA’s most formidable franchises reside in Florida; we knew that heading into the season. What is surprising, however, is how close the two powerhouses are in the standings.
Given that the Miami Heat have 2/1 odds of winning the NBA championship, and the Orlando Magic just 10/1, you would assume that there would be more of a gap between them in the fight for the Eastern Conference’s top seed.
Though both the Heat and Magic trail the Boston Celtics for top-dog status in the conference, it’s their rivalry with each other that has the rest of the east coast fearing for the future, a future in which LeBron James and Dwight Howard are destined to reign indefinitely.
This Thursday, the Magic will host the Heat in a nationally-televised battle royale. The two clubs have already split a pair of games in the 2010-11 season with each team winning on their home court.
Although their emergence as contenders in the East may very well fall in the shadows of Boston’s campaign for a third straight NBA Finals appearance in four years, there’s no mistaking who holds the future of the conference and, perhaps, the NBA.
In Miami, fans have LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, not to mention offseason acquisition Chris Bosh and a now healthy Mike Miller. Projected as early title favorites since the day James and Bosh signed with the club, their place at the top of the pile has always been expected.
Their Orlando counterparts, however, have built their own success in a different way. The old-fashioned way. Though the Magic have been as far as the NBA Finals in 2009, they’ve never been considered more legitimate contenders than this season with Howard at the top of his game and an early season trade that shook up much of their previously disappointing roster.
Will Howard and newcomers Gilbert Arenas, Jason Richardson and Hedo Turkoglu have what it takes to pry the season series lead when the teams collide?
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