I bet Portland over their season wins total.  Choices range from over 44.5 laying -133 to over 45.5 at even money.  It is my lone NBA season total wins play.  The Blazers open their season tonight at 10:35 EDT.

There may be other good ones out there, but I’ve been fully absorbed in football and didn’t do a complete analysis of every team.  A couple of other plays I was interested in had schedule dynamics that conflicted with my “on-court” opinion of their prospects.

The Blazers are a talented young team that played well in spurts last season.  They exhibited good chemistry and solid rapport.  Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge (I have to admit that LaMarcus was not on the list of names that my wife and I considered for any of our children) are tremendous building blocks and now they’re joined by Spanish Olympic sensation Rudy Fernandez and, of course Greg Oden.  Their youth and inexperience will hurt them at times, but the young legs and depth will help at others.  And the talent is undeniable.

Taking a look at their schedule, clearly Portland won’t start out on fire, as they play 16 of their first 24 on the road.  But big picture, the schedule is favorable. The Blazers play 16 back-to-backs, while 27 times they’ll be playing unrested opponents.  This is a solid advantage, especially for a deep, young team.  The fact that there is no longer a team in Seattle means that a lot of those unrested opponents will not just be on short hops, but facing arduous travel, and/or playing the night after playing in altitude in SLC or Denver.

If you want more information on Portland, a good collection of Blazers articles is hosted here.

Good luck if you decide to join me in playing the Blazers over on their season wins.