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


by Doc's Sports - 5/22/2018

Lebron James Cleveland Cavaliers

Betting action the NBA conference finals continues to heat up this week as teams vie for a spot in the NBA Finals. Also, following Wednesday night's Game 7 in the NHL's Eastern Conference Finals, the showdown in this season's Stanley Cup Finals will be set. Justify put himself in position to become just the third Triple Crown winner since 1978. And with so much action on the board heading first big holiday weekend of the summer betting season, it is a great time to check in with Doc's Sports expert handicapper Raphael Esparza .

During his tenure as the Vegas Sports Informer while working in the Las Vegas sportsbook industry, Raphael also honed his craft as one of the top sports handicappers in the nation. At the peak of his sportsbook career, he held the prestigious position as the Director of the Race and Sports Book for MGM Grand's Aria. He retired from that position in 2013 to spend all of his time running a successful and diverse sports investment service from his home base in Las Vegas as well as from 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: The home team in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals matchup between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics has won each of the first four games both straight up and against the spread. Do you that trend continuing for Game 5 on Wednesday night with Boston currently set as a one-point home underdog ?

RE: The reality of losing back-to-back games in this series could have an impact on Boston's play in Game 5. LeBron James knows that his team needs to win one game on the road in this series, and he would much rather get it done on Wednesday night as opposed to a Game 7 scenario.

Doc's Sports: Golden State appears destined to make a fourth straight trip to the NBA Finals heading into Tuesday's Game 4 at home with a 2-1 series lead over the Houston Rockets. The Warriors are favored by 8.5 points in that game, so is there any value in taking the Rockets and the points?

RE: If Golden State goes on to win Game 4 at home (which I think it will), it would most likely be by more than 10 points. The big variable in this one is the health of the Warriors' Andre Iguodala as a big part of their defensive effort. If he cannot go, you might want to take a closer look at the "over" in this game.

Doc's Sports: We have talked extensively in the past about how anything can happen in a Game 7 winner-take-all showdown in the NHL Playoffs. This Wednesday night's Game 7 between the Washington Capitals and the Tampa Bay Lightning is about as good as it gets with a trip to the Stanley Cup Finals on the line. Tampa Bay is favored at home, but which way are you leaning in this Game 7 matchup?

RE: For individual reasons, I am going with Tampa Bay as a hedge bet against an earlier series price play. If the Lightning get off to a fast start with a couple of goals, they should win this game. If Washington can keep the overall scoring down into the third period, Braden Holtby playing well in goal would give the Capitals the edge.

Doc's Sports : After watching Justify win the second jewel of the 2018 Triple Crown with Saturday's successful run in the Preakness Stakes, what is your updated take on his chances to complete this run with a victory in next month's Belmont Stakes?

RE: My biggest takeaway from the Preakness was that this horse can be beat in the absence of a dominating win against a much smaller group of competitors. Once the actual field for the Belmont Stakes is set, I will break things down further. However, with the added distance of this 1 ½ mile race, a competitor with late-breaking speed would move to the top of my list.

Doc's Sports: This is a big week for sports bettors heading into the Memorial Day weekend given the added events for soccer and motor sports along with MLB and WNBA regular-season action. What is at the top of your list when it comes to your betting radar this week?

RE : Along with some of the things you mentioned, I am also looking at the value in a few Johnny Manziel CFL props as well as some entertainment props for the "Solo: A Star Wars Story" movie premier. Also, if you are looking to break things up during Sunday's Indy 500, FOX Sports 1 is carrying UFC Fight Night 130 in the afternoon from Liverpool, England.

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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