It is strange to think that we are at the quarter pole of the 2012 NBA schedule, but most teams are through right around 16 of their games. Here at Bankroll Sports, we are going to try to capitalize on some of the up to date 2012 NBA championship odds by picking out some of the teams with the best value.

We still think that this is the world belonging to the Miami Heat (Current 2012 NBA Finals Odds: 1.75 to 1 at SportBet Sportsbook) and that the rest of the world is just playing in it. Dwyane Wade has been out of the lineup at times, and the combo of LeBron James and Chris Bosh has still been able to carry the load against some of the best teams in the league. Come playoff time, there will be a whole new set of pressures placed on men like rookie Norris Cole, but considering the fact that he was able to come right in and produce, we are optimistic that the team is really in a lot better shape now than it was a year ago, assuming that the Big Three are ready for the playoff push and fully healthy in the summer.

If there is a team that is knocking off the Heat in the East, it is the team that they beat soundly in the Eastern Conference Finals last year, the Chicago Bulls (Odds To Win the NBA Finals: 5.65 to 1 at SportBet Sportsbook). The Bulls have already played 10 road games this year, and they have already survived one major West Coast swing. They are undefeated at home, and they clearly play in one of the inferior divisions in the NBA, and unless the Indiana Pacers do really prove to be that legitimate of a contender, there is no way that this team won’t be at least the No. 2 seed in the playoffs. Derrick Rose and the gang have another year of playoff experience though, and that might make all the difference in the world and give the boys from the Windy City the edge needed to win the whole enchilada.

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Out West, we think that the Oklahoma City Thunder (2012 NBA Championship Odds: 6 to 1 at SportBet Sportsbook) are the very deserving favorites in the conference. They inked Russell Westbrook to a long term deal this week, guaranteeing to keep he and Kevin Durant together for quite some time. The Thunder have looked great both at home and on the road this year, and though they do play in one of the tougher divisions in the league, they are clearly the best team in the bunch. As long as Durant and Westbrook stay healthy, this is team that is a true force to be reckoned with.

We’re still not ruling out the consummate underdogs in the West though, the Los Angeles Clippers (2012 NBA Finals Odds: 18 to 1 at SportBet Sportsbook). There is no doubt that this is the best team in the city of LA this year (in spite of the fact that, for some unknown reason, the Lakers still have the shorter odds to win it all). Dwight Howard has put Lob City on his list of potential trade destinations, and if he ends up combining forces with Blake Griffin, Chris Paul, and Chauncey Billups, look the heck out! This all of a sudden could go from a team that has been the laughing stock of the league to one that wins the whole enchilada in a hurry.

List Of Past NBA Finals Champions
2011 NBA Champions: Dallas Mavericks
2010 NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers
2009 NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers
2008 NBA Champions: Boston Celtics
2007 NBA Champions: San Antonio Spurs
2006 NBA Champions: Miami Heat
2005 NBA Champions: San Antonio Spurs
2004 NBA Champions: Detroit Pistons
2003 NBA Champions: San Antonio Spurs
2002 NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers
2001 NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers
2000 NBA Champions: Los Angeles Lakers

We aren’t that sure that it is going to last, but we think that it is worth taking a flyer on the Philadelphia 76ers (Odds To Win The 2012 NBA Finals: 70 to 1 at SportBet Sportsbook) right now. The Sixers are leading the Atlantic Division by four games, and neither the New York Knicks nor the Boston Celtics really feel like they are going to be challenging for the league title this year. Philadelphia ranks No. 3 in the league in total offense and No. 2 in total defense, and for as long as that keeps up, this is a team that is going to contend. Challenging in the playoffs might be a different story when it is all said and done, especially with the Bulls and the Heat in this conference, but if the 76ers do end up as the No. 3 seed in the East as they would be right now, they would certainly be worth the bet at these odds.

Up To Date 2012 NBA Finals Odds @ SportBet Sportsbook (as of 1/20/12):
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Miami Heat 1.75 to 1
Chicago Bulls 5.65 to 1
Oklahoma City Thunder 6 to 1
Los Angeles Lakers 8 to 1
Dallas Mavericks 16 to 1
Los Angeles Clippers 18 to 1
Boston Celtics 26 to 1
New York Knicks 26 to 1
Portland Trail Blazers 26 to 1
San Antonio Spurs 26 to 1
Orlando Magic 33 to 1
Memphis Grizzlies 40 to 1
Atlanta Hawks 44 to 1
Denver Nuggets 50 to 1
Indiana Pacers 66 to 1
Philadelphia 76ers 70 to 1
Houston Rockets 125 to 1
New Jersey Nets 150 to 1
Utah Jazz 150 to 1
Golden State Warriors 200 to 1
Milwaukee Bucks 200 to 1
Phoenix Suns 200 to 1
Minnesota Timberwolves 250 to 1
New Orleans Hornets 250 to 1
Cleveland Cavaliers 300 to 1
Charlotte Bobcats 500 to 1
Detroit Pistons 500 to 1
Sacramento Kings 500 to 1
Toronto Raptors 500 to 1
Washington Wizards 500 to 1

2011-12 Odds To Win The NBA Finals @ BetRevolution Sportsbook (as of 1/20/12):
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Miami Heat 1.25 to 1
Chicago Bulls 4.25 to 1
Oklahoma City Thunder 4.55 to 1
Dallas Mavericks 15 to 1
Los Angeles Lakers 9 to 1
Portland Trail Blazers 25 to 1
New York Knicks 16 to 1
Orlando Magic 25 to 1
San Antonio Spurs 25 to 1
Atlanta Hawks 35 to 1
Memphis Grizzlies 60 to 1
Boston Celtics 25 to 1
Phoenix Suns 125 to 1
Houston Rockets 105 to 1
Los Angeles Clippers 14 to 1
Denver Nuggets 45 to 1
Golden State Warriors 150 to 1
Utah Jazz 60 to 1
Indiana Pacers 48 to 1
Charlotte Bobcats 250 to 1
Philadelphia 76ers 24 to 1
New Orleans Hornets 150 to 1
Milwaukee Bucks 125 to 1
New Jersey Nets 125 to 1
Detroit Pistons 250 to 1
Washington Wizards 350 to 1
Sacramento Kings 150 to 1
Toronto Raptors 250 to 1
Minnesota Timberwolves 250 to 1
Cleveland Cavaliers 250 to 1

The greatest stars in NBA betting action will all be assembled at Staples Center on Sunday night for one of the best games that the league has to offer. This year, the 2011 All Star Game odds will be contested in Tinseltown, and the game couldn’t be lined any closer than it is at a pick ‘em. Handicapping the All Star Game lines is tough, but we’ve got our top three picks for MVP picked out!

Kobe Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers (Current All Star Game MVP Odds: 4 to 1 at Hollywood Sportsbook)
Kobe is a tremendous star, and he knows what it takes to win the All Star Game MVP award. Bryant won the award in 2002 and 2007 by himself and took down half the honors in 2009, sharing the award with Shaquille O’Neal. Bryant is averaging 25.1 points per game this season, the third highest mark for any player on the Western Conference team, and only the man that we are even remotely afraid of stealing his “thunder” is Kevin Durant — as a scorer, anyway. However, when push comes to shove, Head Coach Gregg Popovich knows that the ball belongs to Kobe, especially since this is his gym that we’re all playing in. Bryant will get the most looks and the most touches, and that will probably translate into the most points if he is on his game.

Blake Griffin, Los Angeles Clippers (Current All Star Game MVP Lines: 9 to 1 at Hollywood Sportsbook)
It seems to be a bit of a stretch to think that this rookie can come in amongst all of the big boys and win the MVP award for the All Star Game, but in all honesty, what is going to stop him? Sure, we know that there are some massive rebounders on the Eastern Conference team, but we have seen some great games before out of Griffin against the likes of Kevin Love, Dwight Howard, and the rest of the best big men in the league. Knowing, again, that this is Griffin’s home court that this game is being played on, we know that Popovich should let the hometown crowd see more of him. That means more rebounds, more scores, and most important, more amazing dunks like this one that he had in the Rookies vs. Sophomores game. If the big man can put together a few moments like that, we wouldn’t be all that surprised if he found himself ending with 20 points, 12 boards, and some hardware that rookies don’t normally get to take home from All Star weekend.

LeBron James, Miami Heat (Favorite To Win All Star Game MVP Odds: 4 to 1 at Hollywood Sportsbook)
He might not be a Cleveland Cavalier anymore, but he is still LeBron Freaking James, and the ball is still going to be in his hands when push really comes to shove and the game is on the line. Sure, Dwyane Wade, his teammate, is the man that is the defending MVP of this duel, but James is due to really light up Tinseltown in a huge way. He’s averaging 26.1 points per game this year, tied for second in the NBA, and in all likelihood, he isn’t going to be worrying about getting the ball into the paint for Amare Stoudemire or Dwight Howard all that often. The only man we’re afraid of stealing his touches down the stretch is Derrick Rose, but even then, Rose hasn’t quite been there and done that yet. If you like the Eastern Conference All Stars, you have to just love what James brings to the table at these odds.

Odds to Win 2011 All Star Game MVP @ Hollywood Sportsbook (as of 2/19/11):
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Amare Stoudemire 9 to 1
Blake Griffin 9 to 1
Carmelo Anthony 9 to 1
Chris Paul 9 to 1
Derrick Rose 6 to 1
Dirk Nowitzki 15 to 1
Dwight Howard 8 to 1
Dwyane Wade 7 to 1
Joe Johnson 15 to 1
Kevin Durant 4 to 1
Kevin Love 8 to 1
Kobe Bryant 4 to 1
LeBron James 4 to 1
Paul Pierce 15 to 1
Ray Allen 15 to 1
Field 15 to 1

The NBA All-Star Game tips off on Sunday night at the brand new Dallas Cowboys Stadium in “Big D.” Basketball’s brightest stars all come together in this fantastic spectacle between the best in the Eastern Conference and the best in the Western Conference. Bankroll Sports takes a moment to look at the odds for and predict the All-Star Game MVP, which is a job that has become a lot harder since last year’s winner and three-time All-Star Game MVP, G Kobe Bryant won’t be playing in the game. Last season’s co-MVP C Shaquille O’Neal didn’t make the Eastern Conference roster.

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I know we have not even hit the All-star break which will take place this weekend, but it is not too early to kick-start the MVP talk for the NBA. Especially with all the spectacular performances over the past week or so between the two leading candidate Kobe Bryant and Lebron James, it brings a great debate into full focus. Despite their being nearly 30 games or more left in the season, we will take a look at what to expect for the rest of the season along with how things are shaping up with the most prestigious title in the NBA which is the MVP Award.

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Nearly no less than a week ago, many people would have given the edge to Lebron James considering he had been one of the primary reasons the Cleveland Cavaliers were one of the best teams in the East while sporting a perfect home record. However, Kobe Bryant and the Lakers have had a really strong start to February with some important victories. Bryant initiated all the madness when he broke the Madison Square Garden record for points scored inside the historic building with an amazing 61 points against the Knicks back on February 2nd. While many consider that to be the standout performance in all the Bryant uproar, I believe the Lakers big victories over Boston and Cleveland which were both on the road against the two best teams in the league at home was the biggest shocker in this insane stretch of basketball. The Lakers win over the Cavaliers ended the amazing home run Cleveland had been on with a perfect 23-0 start that ranked as one of the top 5 best starts in NBA history. It would be hard to give anybody the edge over Kobe at this point in the season considering the huge performance and wins he has lead the Lakers to over the past 2 weeks of basketball. Hard to imagine that with all the Championships and all the considerable achievements in Bryant’s career that last season was his first and only MVP Award. However the 30 year old is the prime candidate to repeat his title this season even if there is a long way to go.

Lebron James really highlighted the two standouts battle for league supremacy last week when he backed up Kobe Bryant’s performance at Madison Square Garden with an electrifying performance of his own. In only two days after Bryant broke a Madison Square record with 61 points, James made a huge impact for the Cavaliers in their win over the Knicks. Lebron was given credit for a triple-double with an outstanding 52 point performance to go along with the stats for the night. Cleveland won the game 107-102 and James finished with 52 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assist. The game would have been the only triple-double in Madison Square Garden history that included 50 or more points. However, the NBA reversed the ruling a few days after the event claiming Ben Wallace tapped the 9th rebound that was recorded to Lebron giving Wallace the rebound instead. Still, Lebron ended with a huge night and quite possibly if the night had not been so big there would probably never have been a review on that rebound. Instead when you are in the spotlight, everything goes through the microscope. While King James declared that his performance was no attempt to match Kobe’s 61 in the garden, Lebron definitely wanted to make a statement that night. James who was an MVP finalist last season will be the most likely candidate with the chance of stealing the hardware away from Kobe in search of his first MVP Award.

Outside of the undeclared two horse race that many perceive the MVP race will come down to there are still a few others with a shot at the MVP even though the odds will be stacked against them. Dwayne Wade leads the NBA in scoring with 28.3 points over James and Bryant. Wade is also posting a solid 7 assist per game, but the problem is that the Miami Heat is mediocre at best right now. Not to mention MVP Awards are usually handed to individuals that really make a huge impact for their team. While Wade’s numbers are impressive, he has not led the Heat to the success that they need at this point in the year. Dirk Nowitzki is another player having a big year with a long shot to make a run at an MVP trophy. Nowitzki won the 2007 MVP Title and is having a solid season trying to give the Mavericks a boost to get them back in the playoff race. Fresh off a 44 point night against Chicago, Nowitzki is 4th in the NBA in scoring while adding a little over 8 rebounds per night. Chris Paul was a leading MVP Finalist last season and is posting strong numbers again this year with double-double averages 21.5 points and 11 assist per outing. However, the Hornets have been struggling and Paul has been battling a groin injury. Still Paul is one of the most exciting players to watch in the league and it will be interesting to see if he can turn it on during the latter part of the season.

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Kobe Bryant has been known for outstanding performances of the past and for his ability to take control over in games over the best the NBA has to offer. Last night was not any different as Bryant lit up the scoreboards again posting a 61 point performance in Madison Square Garden. The Los Angeles Lakers had a solid night as they held of a New York Knicks team who had won 6 of their last 7 by a score of 126-117. Lakers power forward Pau Gasol had an excellent night in a double-double performance knocking down 31 points and pulling down 14 boards. However, it was Bryant that stole the spotlight as he dropped 60 plus points for the 5th time in his career.

Kobe Bryant is no stranger to huge performances as he quite possibly is the best scorer of the modern era. Of course Wilt Chamberlain’s 100 points back in 1962 is a feat that will likely never be broken considering how evolved and competitive the NBA has become. However, Bryant has made a few runs and big performances that rank as high as Wilt’s 100 point performance. Last night, the Lakers franchise player posted 50 or more points for the 25th time in his career. The performance took place in the historic and majestic Madison Square Garden where Kobe surpassed Michael Jordan as the highest scoring game ever for an opponent ever at the Garden. The 61 points also ranked 1st all time at Madison Square Garden for any player as Bryant edged out Bernard King’s 60 points back in 1984.

Kobe’s 25 50 point games ranks 3rd all-time behind Wilt Chamberlain who had 118 50 point nights back before there was a shot clock and the great Michael Jordan who posted 31 50 point games. The miraculous night still fell short of Kobe Bryant’s career best when he drained 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in January of 2006. Bryant performance last night was led by a 61% shooting performance from the floor (19-31), 50% shooting from behind the arc (3-6), and Bryant capped all of it off by not missing a single free throw in 20 attempts from the stripe. The performance along with the 31 points from Pau Gasol marked the highest scoring game all-season by two teammates as they nearly got to the century mark between the two as they ended up with 92 points combined.

The Lakers win moved them to a 38-9 record on the year that ranks the 2nd best in the NBA. Los Angeles has now won their last 3 games including the last 6 of 7. The game was the 3rd of six straight road games. Los Angeles will now get one night off before two hectic back to back games with Toronto and the highly anticipated showdown with the Boston Celtics on Thursday night. The Celtics own the best record in the NBA at 40-9 barely ahead of the Lakers and the showdown will represent last year’s Finals re-match and also represents the two best teams in the NBA at this point in the season. The Lakers won the first meeting this season inside the Staples Center when Bryant led the team with 27 points as they took down the Celtics 92-83. However, the Celtics will likely be in better position to get some revenge this time around. Boston not only will host the meeting which is huge considering Boston owns a 24-2 home record after sporting the best home record in the league last season at 34-6 in the NBA. The Celtics will also get the slight advantage heading into the contest considering they will be on a little fresher legs as the Lakers battle the Raptors on Wednesday night. However, Bryant has a tendency to have some of his biggest nights on the biggest stages and the Lakers will look for him to have another big performance when they travel to Boston on Thursday.