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Weekly Q&A with Doc's Sports Expert Handicapper Raphael Esparza

by Doc's Sports - 12/1/2015

Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson

This Saturday's limited college football slate features a number of conference championship games, especially in the majors, so in this week's discussion with Doc's Sports expert handicapper Raphael Esparza we will try and find out if he is leaning towards any of the underdogs in a few of these showdowns.

Previously known as the Vegas Sports Informer during a long and successful career in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry, Raphael once held the prestigious position as the Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria until his retirement in 2013. Since then, he continues to make a name for himself with his successful and diverse sports investment service, while keeping his finger on the pulse of the betting scene in both Las Vegas and New Orleans. The following is this week's Q&A with one of Doc's most interesting handicappers.

Doc's Sports: The Las Vegas books probably cleaned up on Thanksgiving with a trio of upsets in the three NFL games on the schedule. How did they fare this past Sunday in what was another mixed bag of results?

RE: The books gave some money back on Sunday with bettors cleaning up on teams such as Houston and Cincinnati. There was also quite a bit of money riding on Denver this past Sunday night. Thursday was still such a big day for the books in light of Detroit and Chicago's SU wins that they still came out ahead of the game in Week 12.

Doc's Sports: The New England Patriots just lost their first straight up game of the year as injuries to key personnel appear to be taking its toll. The Patriots are now just 2-3-2 against the spread in their last seven games after a 3-0-1 ATS start, so is this a good team to keep going against down the stretch?

RE: Injuries continue to hurt New England, and while I probably would not go against the Patriots this week against Philadelphia, after that there could be a few excellent opportunities to go against them, especially in road games against Houston, Miami and the New York Jets.

Doc's Sports : North Carolina in the ACC, Iowa in the Big Ten and Florida in the SEC are all underdogs heading into this Saturday's three major conference title games. Do any of these teams have a legitimate shot at pulling off the SU upset?

RE: I would give both North Carolina and Iowa a fighting chance to pull off a SU upset in Saturday's title games. I have been really impressed with the Tar Heels' offense as of late, and I think that the Hawkeyes actually match up well against Michigan State. After personally attending last Saturday's Florida State vs. Florida game, I do not see Alabama having any trouble getting past the Gators in the SEC Championship.

Doc's Sports : The Golden State Warriors have captured the attention of both NBA fans and bettors alike with their record-breaking 19-0 start. Now the question becomes can they match or break your Chicago Bulls' record of 72 wins in a single season?

RE: The way this team is playing right now, that record could be in jeopardy. However, given the long and grueling nature of an NBA regular season, I still see the Warriors losing more than 10 games along the way. Health is always a factor, and it would be easy to see Golden State resting some players here and there with an eye towards a second straight NBA title being the ultimate prize.

Doc's Sports: We all know just how much you enjoy handicapping events that are usually well of the grid for the average sports handicapper. Is there anything coming up that has caught your eye along these lines with posted odds?

RE : One big event I will be focusing on in December will be UFC 194 on Dec. 12, simply because it is stacked with a number of great fights. Right after the first of the year I will turn my attention to the Golden Globes on Jan. 10 and soon after that I will start handicapping the 2016 Presidential Election. A few books released some entertainment props centered on the premier of the new Star Wars movie later this month. Right now they are not up anywhere I can find, but I will be keeping my eye out to see if they do reappear.

Click here to visit Raphael Esparza's Insider's Page at Doc's Sports for more information on his amazingly-profitable sports handicapping picks. Also, get $60 worth of Esparza's member's picks absolutely free - no obligation, no sales people - you don't even have to enter credit card information. You can use this $60 credit for any sport Esparza handicaps. Click here for $60 worth of free picks from Raphael Esparza .

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