Victor Oladipo’s final three covers spread to chagrin, delight

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Victor Oladipo‘s 3-pointer as time expired wasn’t enough to be a game winner for the Indiana Pacers, but it was enough for those who bet the team to cover the spread.

Most sportsbooks opened Game 7 with the Cavaliers as 6.5-point favorites and closed at either 5 or 5.5. Oladipo’s 3 cut the Cavaliers’ margin of victory from seven points to four, 105-101.

“It was probably a swing of $3 million to $5 million in Nevada,” said Johnny Avello, head of race and sportsbook for the Wynn in Las Vegas. “These types of things happen five or more times a week in our industry, whether it’s a two-run home run to cover the run line in the bottom of the ninth or an empty-net goal in the last minute of an NHL game.”

The Oladipo shot got more attention on social media due to the larger audience watching the game.

“We need the Cavs,” Westgate assistant manager Ed Salmons told ESPN shortly after tipoff. “The smart money was on the Pacers.”

At William Hill’s Nevada sportsbooks, 70 percent of the money bet on the point spread on the game was on the Pacers.

Scott Shelton, sportsbook supervisor at the Mirage, told sports betting site Covers.com that the Pacers’ covering but losing was the worst outcome for the sportsbook. That’s because the sportsbook had a five-figure liability on the Pacers for the game but a six-figure win in the offing if the Pacers took the series.



Source : ESPN