Weekly Q&A with Doc's Sports Expert Handicapper Raphael Esparza 4/26/2016

by Doc's Sports - 4/26/2016

Doc's Sports already knew that Raphael Esparza was an expert handicapper when it came to beating the sportsbooks, but in this week's discussion we will take a look at how a couple of the biggest books in the game used him as an oddsmaker for a recent prop bet in the field of entertainment.

During his long and successful career in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry, Raphael earned the title of Vegas Sports Informer while at the same time rising to the prestigious title of Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria until his retirement in 2013. Since then, he continues to run a successful and diverse sports investment service from both his home base in Las Vegas and the Big Easy in New Orleans. The following is this week's Q&A with one of Doc's most interesting handicappers.

Doc's Sports: Key injuries are starting to shape the future outcome of the NBA Playoffs in the Western Conference with Stephen Curry going down in Golden State with a strained MCL and the Los Angeles Clippers' Chris Paul breaking his hand. How do these two key injuries change your outlook of which team eventually makes it to the NBA Finals out of this conference?

RE: I liked San Antonio's chances to beat Golden State in the conference finals even if Curry was healthy, but the Spurs taking on Oklahoma City in the next round should still be a great series. If you are the Warriors you have to hope that Los Angeles can get past Portland because right now the Trail Blazers would be the tougher opponent to face with Curry out of the lineup.

Doc's Sports : The Cleveland Cavaliers made short work of Detroit in an opening-round four-game sweep in the NBA's Eastern Conference, while the other three series are knotted at two games apiece heading into Game 5. Does this point to a clear path back to the NBA Finals for Cleveland out of the East?

RE: I was really disappointed with Miami's effort on the road in back-to-back losses to Charlotte, but I still think that the Heat can give Cleveland a tough battle in a best-of-seven setting. Toronto has also failed to live up to expectations against Indiana, so I would have to agree that the Eastern Conference title is Cleveland's to lose.

Doc's Sports: Over in the Western Conference of the NHL Playoffs, both Chicago and Los Angeles have been eliminated in the opening round after laying claim to the past four Stanley Cup titles. Which of the remaining teams in the West do you have replacing them in this year's Stanley Cup Finals?

RE: I realize that Anaheim still needs to win a Game 7 showdown against Nashville just to advance past the opening round, but I like the Ducks' chances in that game and I also like their chances to stay on a roll in the next two series to make all the way to the NHL Finals this year.

Doc's Sports : The NFL Draft has become one of the most hyped events in sports that does not involve an actual game. Have you gotten involved with handicapping any of the betting props that have been released in conjunction with this year's draft starting on Thursday night in Chicago?

RE: I could not agree more that everything NFL is completely over-hyped, but that is not going to stop me from cashing in on a few props for Thursday night. Last week I was able to lock in Jared Goff at -174 as the first overall pick in the draft over Carson Wentz, and I really feel confident about that pick. I also took the "under 1.5" on total running backs drafted in the first round. I am pretty sure that after Ezekiel Elliott goes early in the first round we are going to have to wait until Day 2 for the next back to come off the board.

Doc's Sports: You recently posted your own prop bet odds for which celebrity will be tapped to replace Michael Strahan on the morning talk show "Live!", and both MyBookie and TopBet decided to use your betting odds in a recent prop on their site. Do you think you have a future as an oddsmaker for props like this or are you just going to stick to handicapping them?

RE : I have actually had opportunities in the past to become an oddsmaker at a few offshore sportsbooks, but for right now I am going to stick to handicapping the games. Being a handicapper gives me far more flexibility as far as covering the sports and events that I like the best.

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 .

Start:	November 23, 2024 @ 10:07 PM
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