The Friday night schedule will almost certainly have three home dogs.
So far this season home dogs are:
5-13 ATS (-2.86 points/game)
13-5 OVER (+7.94 points/game)
In all basketball, OVERs are dominating....shooting is very good, especially from three point land.
A couple of observations from this weeks games. Diana Taurasi has now offically turned into a liability for the Mercury. All she can do is shoot and in this season's games she has flashes of great shooting and other games are complete wastes of time, she easily takes the toughest shots of any player in the league. She doesn't pass, doesn't play defense, does bother to get back on defense, complains the whole game. She hurts her team, I would trade her, maybe to New York....Griner has been very, very good and this year I think Brondello has puts her team in very good situations. It helps that the Mercury have a couple of fantastic defensive players coming off the bench for their overall defensive effort.
The Sky still has issues with Pondexter and now if I'm coaching the team I'm giving her 3 minutes game time, and that is it....she is a HUGE liability, and you could see her frustration with her role and her terrible streak of games boil over in the Sparks game. Adding to the Sky issue is that Stephanie Dolson, besides being a dirty player, is a foul magnet....perhaps the refs don't like her, I probably wouldn't if I am reffing. She fouls EVERY time the ball goes inside and she is close to the ball.
The refereeing in the W is poor as anytime the ball takes the ball inside and someone falls down a foul is called. The players have to learn as defenders to avoid reaching and to avoid contact as when the offensive player is driving they are initiating contact and getting a foul called on the defender 95% of the time.
Dolson will foul out of every game and give the opponents 10 free throws...between her and Pondexter's terrible shooting and turnovers, those two players are donating about 20 points to the opposition every game. When the Sky are getting generous points, Vandersloot's floor leadership can get some of those points back, but it is a mountain to climb. They covered versus the Sparks only because Ogwumike had a career-worst game. The Sky and the Stars are obviously the worst teams in the league.
Sun will be dangerous throughout the season..well coached, they play hard, good defenders, and my favorite part of them is their effort is superior every game. They must have some kind of conditioning regime that just is better than everyone else and plus, they love the game, which is a lethal combination...they'll be a team to watch to see how they do in second half betting situations.
Props to the Liberty and their coaching staff, they are making the most out of a tough situation. They've taken a couple of players that hadn't been doing much and put them in situations where they could succeed. They like to win, and Tina Charles is a winner, I'll take her over EDD EVERY time. They really haven't been in a lot of situations where they are at their best, on the road in hostile situations. They're very, very good as dogs and on the road, there is a direct reflection of their head coach who was used to being in hostile situations in his playing career. Some individuals just thrive in that situation. and it looks like the Liberty will be that way as long as he is coaching them.
Lynx are the best team in the league, by a large margin. They are like the hydra-monster....they have long arms and length and they pummel teams inside with their physicality and aggressiveness. Maya Moore hasn't really done much so far, right now she's about their 5th best player... but it hasn't mattered. They will continue to dominate the league.
The Sparks right now are about the 4th best team in the league and will fall from their perch as champions this year. They still look pretty and efficient in running their sets, but their supreme finisher, Ogwumike is not finishing and their defense looks average, and they also miss their awesome three point clutch shooter, Tolliver who they let walk.