Books Asses Eagles Woes; Cantor to Palms; Sportscasting
Las Vegas sports books assess Eagles’ problems
by Micah Roberts
Catch more of Micah and other fine writers at the great gaming website www.gamingtoday.com
When Las Vegas sports books started posting odds to win NFL Football Super Bowl XLVI following the Green Bay packers win over Pittsburgh Steelers, the Philadelphia Eagles were considered contenders to win at 15-1.
After aggressively acquiring prized free-agents Nnamdi Asomugha and Cullen Jenkins immediately after the lockout to go along with other signings like Ronnie Brown, Vince Young and a trade for Dominque Rodgers-Cromartie, the Philadelphia Eagles were elevated to co-favorite status with New England Patriots at 5-1.
Expectations were high and it didn’t help matters that back-up quarterback Vince Young dubbed the Philadelphia Eagles “The Dream Team.” The comment wasn’t meant to be boastful, but the media ran with it putting an even bigger bulls-eye on the Philadelphia Eagles back.
There was a nice story brewing and it got expanded even more because of the frenzied pace news and information was coming out following the lockout. Fans were eager for anything football and the reporters were eager to get them the story. Because of the Eagles commitment to win through free-agency like no other time in their history, the Eagles became the story.
It wasn’t like the story was made up out of thin air with no merit. The Eagles were a very good team coming off a 10-6 season and featured Michael Vick at quarterback with two of the rising offensive stars in the league in DeSean Jackson and LeSean McCoy. In everyone’s mind, adding the top free-agents in the market made them better with a chance at not only winning the NFC East again, but getting home field and winning the conference title.
But things unraveled quickly for Philly, losing four of its first five games. After winning two to get to 3-4 and remain in contention, they proceeded to lose 3 of 4 culminating with a 38-20 blowout loss at home to the Patriots in a matchup hyped before the season as a Super Bowl preview.
So who is to blame in the all disappointment of 4-7? Someone has to pay for the failures and lack of a return on investment. Richie Baccellieri didn’t even hesitate with his answer when posed the question.
“Andy Reid is gone,” said Baccellieri, co-star of The Linemakers on Discovery’s Velocity channel. “I’d make Reid about a -200 favorite to be gone before next season starts. It’s a big results driven city that wants big results now. For whatever reason, the job didn’t get done and it all has to fall on the coach.”
Baccellieri used to run sports books for Caesars Palace and the MGM in Las Vegas and state he’s never seen a hyped team fail so miserably.
“This season has been a disaster. Beyond all the free-agent signings, giving Michael Vick the $100 million deal was the worst of the moves and you know Reid had a hand in that,” he said. “The Philly fans are going to want someone to pay and even though Reid has had some success there, it’s more about what have you done lately.”
There was no better evidence of just how angry the fans are following the Patriots loss when thousands chanted in unison, “Fire Andy!”
Rick Herron ran sports books at the Las Vegas Hilton and Sands but has a much different take on Reid.
“I think Reid is going to weather the storm and will make him a -120 favorite to stay,” says Herron, co-star of The Linemakers. “Let’s be real, Reid’s not just any coach. He’s taken the Eagles to the playoffs in 9 of his 12 years with five conference title games and one Super Bowl. For the most part he did it without help of free-agency and coached a bunch of mediocre teams.”
Reid is the longest tenured head coach in the league having begun his career with the Eagles in 1999. Over that span, he has sent 19 different players to 44 Pro Bowls, more than any other team over that span. None of those players ever played in a Pro Bowl before Reid.
“His resume is pretty strong,” says Herron. “I don’t think there’s a better option for the Eagles than Reid and I think his good relationship with the owners knowing that this was just a freak year will give him a good chance of staying.”
One thing both Herron and Beccellieri did agree on was the fate of another coach.
“I make Norv Turner a -200 favorite that he’ll be gone before Reid,” said Herron after San Diego lost its sixth game in a row.
“One of the biggest mysteries has been how Turner has hung around that organization for so long,” Baccellieri said. “They were quick with the axe on Marty Schottenhiemer, but have hung on for so long with Turner for some reason. I don’t think there’s any way he survives this latest mess.”
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Cantor Gaming to Operate Race/Sports Book at Palms Casino
by Staff & Wire Reports, courtesy of www.gamingtoday.com
Under the terms of the agreement, Cantor Gaming will build a new race and sports book that offers sports betting fans the latest in technological advancements and convenience, including Cantor Gaming’s mobile sports wagering available throughout the state of Nevada, and its proprietary wireless gaming system which will be available across the entire resort area, including hotel rooms.
Cantor Gaming intends to operate in the existing race and sports book area through March Madness 2012. Construction of the new race and sports book will begin in April 2012 and is expected to be completed in time for the 2012 football season. During the interim period Cantor Gaming will operate an ancillary sports-only book near the Mint High Limit Lounge located on the main floor of Palms.
Joseph A. Magliarditi, President of Palms, said: “At Palms Casino Resort customer satisfaction and enjoyment is of paramount importance. By partnering with Cantor Gaming, a book operator known for its creative and innovative approach to sports wagering and its spectacular sports book environments, we are confident that our guests will enjoy the same high standards and superb experience in our race and sports book as they have come to expect across our resort.”
Lee M. Amaitis, President and Chief Executive Officer of Cantor Gaming, said: “It is a great honor for us to partner with the Palms, known for its distinctive gaming, nightlife and entertainment choices, making it a leading choice for visitors attracted to Las Vegas. We look forward to transforming the race and sports book into a formidable space that encompasses exquisitely stylish designs and the latest mobile gaming technology, complementing the rest of the property.”
Cantor Gaming’s approach to sports wagering uses high frequency Wall Street trading technology and proprietary algorithms that allows sports book patrons to place a wide range of unique wagers on different outcomes before and during a sporting event. Cantor Gaming can process millions of dollars of individual wagers within seconds. The advance of Cantor Gaming’s cutting edge mobile technology gives customers the flexibility and convenience to review and place wagers instantaneously during their normal daily activities from wherever they are. Cantor Gaming also engineers a sophisticated and luxurious audio visual experience within the sports books that provides an industry leading viewing experience.
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Review of Scorecasting
Scorecasting: The Hidden Influences Behind How Sports Are Played and Games Are Won
Author: Tobias J. Moskowitz and L. Jon Wertheim
Publisher: Crown Archetype
Pages:
278
Price:
$26.00
Reviewed by Nick Christenson, npc@jetcafe.org
Tobias Moskowitz is a professor of finance at the University of Chicago. L. Jon Wertheim is a writer for Sports Illustrated. Scorecasting is their overture into the recently popular book genre of applying a rigorous analysis to the sporting world. As a sports bettor, I’ve read a bunch of these with an eye toward applying their techniques towards the modeling of sporting events in an attempt to improve my handicapping.
Moskowitz and Wertheim cover a lot of bases in their book. With a more qualitative approach they discuss inconsistent refereeing, competitiveness in sports leagues, diversity in NFL coaching, economics and steroid use in baseball, and other issues. These topics are generally interesting, and I find their conclusions to be compelling.
At times the topics the authors discuss come from academic research regarding sports related issues, some of which I had previously read. They mention the famous 1985 “hot hand” paper regarding the myth of streaky shooting in basketball. They also cover research regarding the practice of icing the kicker in football and how far NFL coaches diverge from optimal strategy. Each of these deserves a much wider audience than it has received, so despite the fact that these topics were familiar to me, I was more than happy to see them included in this book.
The authors also performed their own research on a number of topics, most notably on home field advantage. This topic is one I have extensively researched myself, and I have to say that I have come to some very different conclusions than they. Moskowitz and Wertheim have done some interesting research, but a considerable bit of the data I’ve collected doesn’t line up with their conclusions. Certainly, more work is needed here.
As one might expect from an SI writer, the prose is clear and easy to read. The book is aimed at an audience of sports fans, albeit ones who are willing to think a little bit, so the sorts of mathematical details that I would relish aren’t present. I believe that the authors struck a fine balance by providing enough information for someone with mathematical inclinations to reproduce their work without causing eyes to glaze over from even those who choose to skip over box scores. The different essays really fly by, making Scorecasting a much easier read than one might at first expect.
Of the genre of books covering an analytic approach to sports, Scorecasting weighs in about average as far as it’s relevance to serious sports bettors. The home field advantage articles are useful. The chapter titled “The Value of a Blocked Shot” makes some good points that those who try to parameterize player performance in basketball should consider. The bits about icing and the relative value of NFL draft picks may not be directly applicable, but it’s not hard to imagine how this knowledge might help sports bettors approach certain situations.
So little of what is written specifically on the topic of sports betting is of value that if we want to study to improve our approach to our craft we sometimes need to come at it from different angles. Scorecasting is a light book that’s pleasant and easy to read that provides some insight into betting sports, and I think it works as entertainment and provides enough meat to make it worthwhile to the sports bettor looking to improve his handicapping skills. Those who found value in similar books, such as Mathletics, or The Wages of Wins, will be rewarded with Scorecasting.
Capsule:
Scorecasting is aimed at those willing to expend some energy thinking about sports without requiring even the modest levels of mathematical exertion. The book is surprisingly light, and while it is far from being an indispensable handicapping reference, it does provide enough insight to make it worthwhile for both thoughtful sports fans and serious sports bettors.
