The World Cup is only the biggest sporting event in the world, so it might as well have some company on the schedule. On the hardwood, the NBA Finals between Miami and San Antonio is shaping up to be another classic, with games this week on Tuesday and Thursday. And there is golf's second major of the year, beginning on Thursday at Pinehurst No. 2.

Odds provided by Sportsbook.ag

NBA Finals

Miami Heat (-140) - The two-time defending champions leveled the series in dramatic fashion on Sunday, tipping the scale from being considerable underdogs (after Game 1) to heading back to Miami for Tuesday's Game 3 as title favorites. They also lost Game 1 last year before prevailing in seven.

San Antonio Spurs (+120) - The Spurs no longer have home-court advantage, but that is something that may not be necessary for this veteran crew. San Antonio was an awesome 30-11 on the road during the regular season--by far the best in the NBA.

MVP: LeBron James (-150) - LeBron was not looking too good in this department after leaving Game 1 with well-documented cramps in Miami's loss. But it all changed on Sunday, when the two-time NBA Finals MVP drained 14-of-22 field goals for 35 points as the Heat prevailed 98-96.

MVP: Tim Duncan (+200) - Duncan is seeking his fifth NBA Championship and his fourth NBA Finals MVP. He missed two big free throws in Game 2, but for the most part he has been outstanding so far. The 38-year-old shot 9-of-10 and scored 21 points in the opener before contributing 18 points and 15 boards in San Antonio's loss.

World Cup Group G

Germany (-175) - No team is more consistent than Germany. It has reached at least the quarterfinals of seven consecutive World Cups, and it has made it to the semis in six of the last seven. The Germans won it all in 1990 and have finished runner-up three times since 1982. They are coming off consecutive third-place showings in 2006 and 2010.

Portugal (+270) - Portugal has Cristiano Ronaldo…and not much else. It is a solid club, but it has not finished better than fourth (in 2006) at the World Cup since 1966 (third). Ronaldo and company advanced out of group play last year before getting bounced by eventual champion Spain 1-0 in the round of 16.

United States (+900) - Jurgen Klinsmann says his Landon Donovan-less team is not good enough to win the World Cup. He's probably right, but is it good enough to get out of arguably the toughest group in the tournament? The U.S. national team escaped group play in miracle fashion four years ago before falling to current Group G foe Ghana in the last 16.

Ghana (+1000) - Don't sleep on Ghana, which is two-for-two in its two World Cup appearances (2006 and 2010) in terms of advancing out of the group stage. The Ghanaians came remarkably close to the semifinals in the last installment of the cup, but they lost a heartbreaker to Uruguay. Watch out for captain Asamoah Gyan, also the catalyst of the 2010 team.

World Cup Top Goal-Scorer

Lionel Messi, Argentina (+700) - Messi should be a man on a mission this summer after scoring no goals in 2010 (despite having a hand in countless of his team's tallies). He also has to have a bitter taste in his mouth over Argentina's dreadful 4-0 quarterfinal loss to Germany.

Neymar, Brazil (+1000) - Still just 22 years old, Neymar barely missed out on Brazil's 2010 World Cup squad. At 19, he won the South American Footballer of the Year Award in 2011, and he won it again 2012. He should be a household name after this tournament.

Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal (+1200) - The good news for Ronaldo is that he is in fine form, coming off a recent Champions League title with Real Madrid. He will also have tons of opportunities as a do-it-all kind of guy for Portugal. The question is: will Portugal play more than three games?

Luis Suarez, Uruguay (+1200) - Suarez found the back of the net three times during Uruguay's march to the 2010 semifinals. The other three players on this list combined for just one goal in the last World Cup. Suarez is good to go after a knee injury following a stellar English Premier League season for Liverpool.

U.S. Open

Rory McIlroy (+1000) - After breaking up with fiancée Caroline Wozniacki, McIlroy promptly went out and won the European Tour's BMW PGA Championship. He followed that up with a 15th-place showing at the Memorial. McIlory's last five PGA Tour results dating back to the week before the Masters are seventh, eighth, eighth, sixth, and 15th.

Phil Mickelson (+1300) - Mickelson would prefer not to be dealing with an insider trading scandal, but it does not seem to be too much of a problem on the course. Lefty still finished a decent T-49 at the Memorial, and he was T-11 last week at the St. Jude Classic. Mickelson's past U.S. Open finishes include five runner-ups and three additional top-10s.

Adam Scott (+1400) - Scott seems to be a different player, at least mentally, since winning his first major at last year's Masters. He had top-5 finishes at the 2013 British Open and PGA Championship and in neither event did he choke (like he did at the 2012 British). Scott, the No. 1 player in the world, has a second and a fourth in his last two events.

Bubba Watson (+1800) - The two-time major champion (both at the Masters) has never been outstanding at the U.S. Open. Pinehurst's rough is not as nasty as it was in 1999 and 2005, which is good news for Watson. However, there is always danger when drives are bombed and do not find the fairway.

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