Grizzlies should move on from Randolph

Basketball Betting Lines

05/28/2010 - Philadelphia, PA - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - There aren't a lot of NBA players with the ability to put up double-doubles on a consistent basis.

Memphis power forward Zach Randolph is a member of that exclusive club, but it hasn't stopped him from moving from city to city over a nine-year NBA sojourn that has featured multiple arrests and a ton of innuendo.

The Grizzlies thought Randolph turned the corner this past season. He played hard on a consistent basis and was successful enough to be named to the NBA All-Star team.

In fact, he built up such goodwill that Memphis general manager Chris Wallace was willing to come to his defense after Randolph was implicated in an Indianapolis-area drug investigation earlier this week.

"Since Zach Randolph joined this organization, he has been an active member of the Memphis community and embraced our core values of hard work and leadership," Wallace said. "These qualities helped him develop into an NBA All-Star this season and guided one of the NBA's youngest teams to a 16-game improvement.

"Zach's continued commitment to the team has been evident the last couple of weeks as he's been working out with members of our staff on the West Coast.

"Due to the ongoing police investigation, we do not feel it would be appropriate to comment further. Unless some other information surfaces, Zach remains a valued member of the Grizzlies family and Memphis community."

Well, plenty of other information is about to surface.

Indianapolis' 6News has reported a trusted police informant identified Randolph as a "major" marijuana supplier in the city after narcotics officers were staking out a suspected drug house on Indianapolis' north side two weeks ago when they pulled over Arthur Boyd, 32, after he left the residence.

According to the report, the Cadillac Escalade Boyd was driving was registered to Randolph, and police found marijuana and ammunition stowed inside.

Randolph has already played dumb, claiming he loaned the SUV to his friend but had no knowledge of his activities.

Problem is, the police found information in the Escalade that led them to a storage facility where there were four units rented in the name of Randolph. Controlled substances were in two of the units as well as four cars fitted with hidden compartments.

Randolph's attorney, John Tompkins, described Boyd as Randolph's longtime friend who runs errands for the All-Star and takes care of his home in Indianapolis during the season. Tompkins also claimed the secret compartments were used for hiding valuables since Randolph, like a lot of NBA players, could be a target for burglary.

The police aren't buying it and described Randolph as a "financier" to drug dealers, supplying them with marijuana, vehicles and a house in a probable cause affidavit filed in Marion County Superior Court.

Wallace was right to play the "everyone is innocent until proven guilty" card but if you look at Randolph's legal resume, it might be a good idea for the Grizzlies' general manager to start building a contingency plan.

Randolph's history with the law dates back to 1999 when he was suspended for his entire junior year by Marion, Indiana High School after selling a stolen gun.

After being selected as the 19th overall draft pick by the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA Draft straight out of Marion in 2001, Randolph was cited for underage drinking in 2002.

The Blazers suspended Randolph for two games and fined him $100,000 in 2003 after he punched teammate Ruben Patterson in the face during practice, fracturing Patterson's eye socket.

A second DUI came in December of 2003 when Randolph was charged with driving under the influence of intoxicants after police smelled marijuana in his car.

Criminal charges in August of 2004 were filed after Randolph allegedly lied to investigators after his brother shot three men at a nightclub. Those were subsequently dropped, but Randolph's brother was sentenced to three years in prison.

In June of 2006, Randolph was cited for street racing with friends in downtown Portland. Two months later, he was charged with sexual assault, although that case was also eventually dropped.

Randolph was then faced a civil suit from a man who claimed he and teammate Qyntel Woods harassed and assaulted him in retaliation for dogfighting allegations against Woods.

In March of 2007, Randolph was granted bereavement leave by Portland after the shooting death of his girlfriend's cousin, and spent the night at a strip club. That would have probably gone unnoticed but Zach had the good sense to leave without paying his tab.

And less than two months ago, Randolph was arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence, a charge later reduced to one count of reckless driving.

Closed circuit to Chris Wallace -- Smoke is usually accompanied by fire, and the smoke burning here isn't just coming from Zach Randolph's hippie-lettuce.

It's conceivable that Randolph and the $71 million dollars he has accrued since debuting in the NBA can beat this latest rap, but does Memphis really want an accused drug dealer that has been tied to dogfighting, sexual assault and attempted murder in the past as one of the faces of its franchise?

A double-double is only worth so much.

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MySportsbook.com: NBA Championship Odds

With the playoffs about two months away, the top two teams in the Western Conference are the clear cut leaders to win the NBA Championship. The Dallas Mavericks have the best record in the NBA (44-9) and have been absolutely scorching since the second week of the season.  What makes the Mavs’ record more impressive is the fact that they dropped their first four games of the season.  Currently they have won 17 out of their last 18 and are MySportsbook.com’s favorite (2-1) to win it all.  Right behind the Mavs are the Pacific leading Phoenix Suns (39-13).  Last season, the Suns lost in the Conference Finals to non-other then the Mavericks four games to two.  Of course the Suns were without center Amare Stoudemire who has is averaging 19.9 PPG and 9.5 RPG since coming back from his knee injury.  Unlike the Mavs, the Suns have struggled a bit lately having lost their last three and four out of their last seven.  Of course the main reason for their three straight loses is due to the absence of two time MVP Steve Nash, who is out with a shoulder injury.  Heads-up, the Mavs have beaten the Suns in both of their meetings this season.

In the Eastern Conference, the Pistons (32-19) are the favorites to win it all at 6-1. The addition of Chris Webber seems to have been a good move for the Pistons.  Since coming over from the 76ers, Webber has averaged 13.1 PPG and 7.3 RPG and the Pistons are 11-4.  Even though the defending champion Heat are currently on the playoff making cusp, they are the Eastern Conference team that is getting the most action to win it all (9-1).  The fact that Shaquille O’Neal is back in the starting lineup after missing 39 games probably has something to do with this.  No doubt, Shaq makes a difference when in the lineup as their winning six out of their last seven would indicate.

Just because it is the All-Star break doesn’t mean that you can’t bet on NBA hoops this weekend.  Be sure to log onto MySportsbook.com to bet on who you think will cut down the nets this July. Also, be sure to check out all of the lines and props for All-Star weekend.  With the highest credit card acceptance rate in the industry, there are plenty of ways to cash in on the NBA this weekend.

MySportsbook.com’s NBA Championship odds:

Atlanta Hawks 1000-1

Boston Celtics 5000-1

Charlotte Bobcats 5000-1

Chicago Bulls 20-1

Cleveland Cavaliers 20-1

Dallas Mavericks 2-1

Denver Nuggets 25-1

Detroit Pistons 6-1

Golden State Warriors 250-1

Houston Rockets 12-1

Indiana Pacers 60-1

Los Angeles Clippers 45-1

Memphis Grizzlies 5000-1

Miami Heat 9-1

Milwaukee Bucks 1000-1

Minnesota T-Wolves 200-1

New Jersey Nets 50-1

New Orleans Hornets 150-1

New York Knicks 150-1

Orlando Magic 75-1

Philadelphia 76ers 1000-1

Phoenix Suns 5-2

Portland TrailBlazers 1000-1

Sacramento Kings 250-1

San Antonio Spurs 9-1

Seattle Sonics 5000-1

Toronto Raptors 35-1

Utah Jazz 20-1

Washington Wizards 25-1

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Big 12 Conference betting odds

Work left to do: Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Kansas State

Texas joins Texas A&M and Kansas as locks after getting league win No. 11. Texas Tech greatly helped its own hopes and crippled OK State's with the two-point win Saturday. Is K-State the last reasonable hopeful? Could be an elimination match in Stillwater on Tuesday, at least for the Cowboys.

Work left to do:

Texas Tech [18-11 (7-7), RPI: 44, SOS: 12] A critical two-point win over OK State leaves the Red Raiders with Baylor and at Iowa State left. Get both and the Red Raiders likely are good to go. Get one and there could be some interesting comparisons with a K-State team that could finish two or three games "ahead" of them in the standings but doesn't have any of the quality wins Texas Tech has. Not a lot in nonconference play (against Arkansas in Little Rock being the best win, by far) to lean on.

Oklahoma State [18-9 (5-8), RPI: 50, SOS: 35] Still without a road win, the Cowboys now need to win two on the road just to get to .500 in conference play. It's hard to recall a team (OK, other than Clemson) falling so precipitously from lock status to almost certainly out of the NCAAs at this point. There are wins to be had in the last three, including a very big home game against K-State on Tuesday, but this team is reeling. Can you tell the pressure to win is getting to them with the way the final possession played out at Texas Tech? There are some good nonconference performances to lean on, specifically beating Missouri State and Syracuse on neutral floors and Pitt in OK City, but if the Pokes don't right this very, very soon, that won't be enough.

Kansas State [20-9 (9-5), RPI: 56, SOS: 96] It pays to be in the Big 12 North. The nine league wins are Colorado (twice), Missouri (twice), Iowa State (twice), Baylor, Nebraska and (a good one against) Texas. That helps explain the middling computer profile. The win over USC is nice, but the nonconference leaves a lot to be desired. The game at OK State in Stillwater on Tuesday is huge, as it could KO the Cowboys and leave K-State with a home date against Oklahoma with which to work.