Robinson upsets Howard in Dunk Contest

Basketball Betting Lines

02/14/2009 - Phoenix, AZ (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - New York's Nate Robinson earned 52 percent of the fans' votes to edge defending champion Dwight Howard, of Orlando, in the 2009 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.

Howard's final two dunks received a great roar from the crowd and appeared to give the big man the upper-hand in the competition. The first dunk had Howard stationed behind the hoop at the right corner. He ran in towards the basket, threw the ball off the side of the backboard and caught it before slamming home a one-handed beauty. His second attempt was a dunk from the foul line, though some aura was taken away as replays showed his foot to be over the line.

Robinson's first dunk in the final round saw the 5-foot-9 guard, wearing an all green Knicks uniform, throw a lob pass from the left wing, run up and catch it with two hands before bringing the ball between his legs and then over his head for a reverse slam. Robinson's second effort was a one-handed slam over Howard.

After the fans' votes were tallied, Robinson was deemed the slam dunk champion, a title he also claimed in 2006.

J.R. Smith's first dunk, where he threw himself a pass while standing at mid-court and then caught it and slammed it down with a windmill, earned him a score of 43. Smith's second dunk saw his Denver teammate Sonny Weems throw a pass from the stands that he caught and turned into a two-handed slam, which garnered 42 points for a total of 85.

Rudy Fernandez' first dunk was a behind-the-back pass off the backboard into a one-handed slam, and it earned him a 42. His second effort, with help from Pau Gasol of the Lakers, garnered him another 42 for a total score of 84. Gasol tossed the ball off the back of the backboard and Fernandez came running from the right side, caught it and threw down a one-handed reverse slam.

Portland's Fernandez and Smith failed to make it out of the first round.

Robinson offered a windmill dunk for his first dunk and used teammate Wilson Chandler for his second. The latter had Chandler on his hands and knees as Robinson ran in and used him as a step for a one-handed slam. Robinson's first-round total was 87, good for a trip to the second round.

Howard displayed a one-handed slam on his opening dunk and recruited teammate Jameer Nelson for the next. The spectacle that was Howard's second dunk had officials bring in a new backboard and hoop -- which were set a bit higher at 12 feet -- and then the 6-foot-11 Howard came out of a phone booth donning a Superman cape. The act was an homage to last year's event when he won while wearing a Superman cape.

The actual dunk was set up as Nelson threw a pass off the backboard that Howard caught before slamming a two-handed dunk home. His first two dunks were both scored at a perfect 50, setting up the dramatic final round.

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American Idol odds : Blake Lewis the Early Standout

An important American Idol betting lines recap from February 20 Guys episode. The 12 men came out flat overall with Blake Lewis appearing to have the early edge after the first hour and a half.

Rudy - was quite good singing "Free Ride" to start off.  Randy was not impressed though.  Paula thought he started off fantastic.  "Never had anyone stop off so lively" said Paula but Simon (who does not like Rudy) does not feel he has a distinct voice and was not impressed either. 

Brandon was a little pitchy according to Randy and Paula agreed.  Simon said he was a good singer but the song was "too safe" and he needs to make an impact.  He was listed at +1200 odds or $1200 paid out on a $100 bet should he win the competition. 

Big favorite Sundance came in with a flat version of "Knights in White Satin" and the judges let him have it, including Paula.  Randy claimed the song was out of pitch throughout.

Korean American - and a Jenny Woo favorite - Paul Kim was up next.  Another pitchy flat one but Randy said he still liked his potential.  Kim at +3000 odds was said to have sung a "third rate version of that (George Michael) song" according to Simon Cowell.  He sang "Careless Whisper".

22 year old Chris Richardson was up next.  He was listed with +1100 odds coming in.  He got the best response from the judges though Simon did not believe the vocal was that great. 

Nick was boring and pitchy.  Simon didn't think he was that bad though and predicted he would be back next week.  Nick Pedro was a big +3000 dog coming into this competition. 

Beat boxer Blake Lewis was listed with early +1000 odds or $1000 payout on a $100 bet if he were to become the next American Idol winner odds .  These of course were the early odds.  He was considered original for picking an "odd song".  He did not beat box and the judges felt it was the best vocal of the night. 

Sanjaya came in as the second biggest favorite after Chris Sligh but his performance Tuesday night was not very good. 

Chris Sleigh was the early favorite at +450 odds.  Great voice and a great sense of humor.  He's a real standout.  Randy felt it was on point but maybe ahead of the chorus a little bit.  Simon Cowell said he felt like he was in some "sort of weird student gig". 

Jared Cotter followed.  He was listed with +2000 odds early on to win the competition.  The judges felt he needs to take more risks but looked good. 

22-year old AJ Talbado, who has tried out for American Idol five times, was up next.  "Kind of a theme park performance" said Simon.  Though the judges felt he performed okay.  Simon did feel AJ might be better than he originally thought.

Phil - this season's military favorite - came into this competition with +1200 odds to win the competition.  He was the last to perform.  He was certainly strong enough to get through this stage of the competition and perhaps the best one after a shaky start. 

Tomorrow night, the ladies perform and I sure hope they do a better job than the boys.  Check out all the American Idol betting odds here.

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