Leaving a trail: Turkoglu snubs Portland, to sign with Raptors

Basketball Betting Lines

07/04/2009 - Portland, OR (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Sharp-shooting forward Hedo Turkoglu appeared headed to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday afternoon, but by nightfall those talks apparently broke off.

In the latest turn of events, TNT basketball analyst David Aldridge reported late Friday night that Turkoglu has verbally committed to a five-year, $60 million contract with the Toronto Raptors, citing league sources.

According to the report, Toronto renounced its rights to forward Shawn Marion and guards Anthony Parker and Carlos Delfino, freeing up enough salary cap space to add the Turkish star.

The Oregonian newspaper originally reported Turkoglu agreed to a five-year, $50 million contract with Portland, but later in the day indicated he had rejected such an offer.

The 30-year-old Turkoglu, a first-round draft pick of Sacramento in 2000, had spent the previous five years with the Magic and averaged 16.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists over 77 games last season. He helped the Magic into the NBA Finals, but last week opted out of the final season of his deal that would have paid him $7.3 million.

Not only that, but the Magic already made a big move to replace Turkoglu by working out a trade with New Jersey for Vince Carter on draft night.

The 6-foot-10 Turkoglu spent his first three seasons with the Kings before joining the San Antonio Spurs for one seasons. For his career, he's averaging 12.3 points and 4.2 rebounds and is a career 38.5 percent shooter from three- point range.

21planet Basketball Betting News

<< Roughriders hang on to top Lions in season opener
Regina, SK (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Darian Durant threw for 313 yards and had a rushing touchdown to help the Saskatchewan Roughriders to a 28-24 win over the British Columbia Lions in the season opener for both clubs. Durant went 18-for-32

<< Sadowski, Giants' offense destroy Astros
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Sadowski got plenty of run support while throwing seven scoreless innings, as the Giants erupted offensively in a 13-0 whipping of the Astros. Sadowski (2-0), who made his major league debut Sunda

<< Kings acquire F Smyth in multi-player deal
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings boosted their offense on Friday, acquiring All-Star forward Ryan Smyth from the Colorado Avalanche in a three-player deal. Smyth, 33, tied for the Avalanche lead in points last seas

<< Report: NHL to investigate Blackhawks' qualifying offers
Toronto, ON (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Chicago Blackhawks are reportedly under investigation by the NHL for failing to tender qualifying offers to several restricted free agents by the league's set deadline. According to TSN Canada, th

<< Late miscue forces 'Quakes to share points with RSL
Sandy, UT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Jose Earthquakes and Real Salt Lake battled to a 1-1 draw in Major League Soccer action at Rio Tinto Stadium on Friday night. Arturo Alvarez scored the game's first goal for San Jose before a Chr

Ramirez quiet in return but Dodgers still double-up Padres >>
San Diego, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Manny Ramirez returned from a 50-game suspension and played only 5 1/2 innings, going 0-for-3 with a walk, two groundouts and a pop out, but the rest of his Dodger teammates picked up the slack

Huff leads O's past Angels >>
Anaheim, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Aubrey Huff went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run, as the Baltimore Orioles hung on to edge the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, 6-4, in the second test of a four-game series. Luke Scott stroked a two-ru

Raburn, Tigers use three-run 16th to edge Twins >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Ryan Raburn's RBI single in the 16th proved to be the game-winner as the Detroit Tigers took an 11-9 win over the Minnesota Twins in a 16-inning contest to open a three-get set at the Metrodo

Twins place Slowey on DL; recall Swarzak >>
Minneapolis, MN (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Following the Twins' 16-inning 11-9 loss to the Tigers, Minnesota placed pitcher Kevin Slowey on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right wrist. Slowey started on the mound for the Twins Friday bu

Giants option INF Downs; activate INF Aurilia >>
San Francisco, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Following the Giants' 13-0 win over the Astros, the team optioned infielder Matt Downs to Triple-A Fresno to make room for infielder Rich Aurilia, who was activated from the bereavement list. The 25-ye

FOOTBALL BETTING

Sportsbook Betting

After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

NFL Betting Lines

To visit this sportsbook go to MySportsbook.com for all your college football betting needs.