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With the NBA season still pretty far away, we try to stay close to the game by taking a look at the 10 most overrated players in the league. I`ve always wondered how certain guys can be considered so good, so it was only a matter of time for this list to be ‘masterminded’. We`ll only look at players dubbed as stars and superstars.

Popularity and salary make a star. The list will contain only players who are top 25 in at least one of these two categories, with emphasis on popularity. How`s that for a well structured and objective input? No Monta Ellis, DeAndre Jordan or other players that are on every other ‘most overrated’ list out there.

Hey, these guys are good, nobody is saying otherwise. But are they as good as advertised? Who are the most overrated stars in the league?

10. Kobe Bryant (LA Lakers, 30.5 million $)

Kobe is a special situation, as he is so popular that he is actualy being overestimated and underestimated at the same time. His fans think so much of him that the rest of the people started underestimating him to the point of considering James Harden better (more on this later in the article). But one thing is for sure: his league-best contract is not deserving from a basketball standpoint, as he is not the best player in the NBA anymore. Also, he tends to miss too many shots and his clutch performance is not so legendary as people think. He is recovering from an Achilles injury (much health, Kobe) which can damage his athleticism. Surely it has to be the last place on this list for Kobe.

9. Dwight Howard (HOU Rockets, 20.5 million $)

Dwight is good, actually very good. His numbers are solid, and he truly is the best center in the league. But with people considering him the second coming of Wilt Chamberlain, you can`t help but feel he is overrated. Without a championship to his name and with doubts over his ability to make teams better, Howard still has a long way to go to be a legitimate superstar. He`s overrated but hey, he`s on the second to last place on our list, in front of his great friend Kobe (yea, right), so that should make him very happy (yea, right).

8. Chris Bosh (MIA Heat, 19.1 million $)

Bosh has received a lot of undeserving criticism for his numbers in the playoffs last season, when he was only trying to respect coach`s gameplan to complement Lebron and Wade. But when you earn as much money as James, you should come up with more than zero points in Game 7 of the NBA Finals.

7. Jeremy Lin (HOU Rockets, 8.4 million $)

You gotta love Jermy Lin, but with 13.4 points and 6.1 assists per game as a starter for the Rockets last season (on poor shooting percentage), he is looking closer to a backup point guard than a fan sensation with a close to 9 million per year paycheck. He is still a good NBA player though, and is not earning so much in order to be considered a bust.

6. Rudy Gay (TOR Raptors, 17.9 milion $)

Rudy Gay is still seen as a franchise player and a superstar by some, including the Toronto Raptors front-office, who gave up some great assets to sign him. That`s mostly because of his tomahawk dunks and scoring numbers, but the reality is that Gay is a hugely inefficient scorer and he isn`t making any teammate better. Not now, not ever. Oh, and he makes more money than about 97% of the players in the league and every other non-playoff team player.

5. Amare Stoudemire (NY Knicks, 21.7 million $)

Poor Amare was plagued by injuries and actually he is not rated that high anymore by anyone. But looking at his humongous payroll you have to put him high on this list, as he isn`t producing anywhere near that 22 million $ contract. I said poor Amare? Ehm …

4. Joe Johnson (BK Nets, 21.5 milion $)

Joe Johnson has made a boatload of money in his career, as he is one of the best paid players in the league for years. If he could only throw shots the way people have been throwing dollars at him! Joe has shot around 42% in the last years, and is averaging just over 16ppg with few rebounds and assists. His fame has decreased a little bit, but he is still seen as a star and closer, despite him successfully closing something like 1 out of 10 matches. With his athleticism decreasing, one can wonder what will be harder for Johnson to close this year, games or the door to his cash-filled safe? Atlanta fans actually celebrated when their franchise player Joe left the Hawks, so I rest my case.

3. Carmelo Anthony (NY Knicks, 21.4 million $)

Carmelo Anthony is so overrated that he was actually dubbed as the MVP last season by many media idiots (ahem, experts). The fact is that Carmelo is a ball hog, he is inefficient with questionable basketball IQ and most importantly he does not know how to win at the highest level, never going further than the 2nd round of the playoffs. His playoff win-loss record stands at a lowly .350, which is laughable for a so-called MVP candidate and top 5 player in the league.

2. Derrick Rose (CHI Bulls, 17.6 million $)

Jesus is a nobody in Chicago compared to this guy. Virtually everyone is expecting him to have the same impact on the franchise as Michael Jordan. Before his ACL tear (much health, Derrick), Rose was mostly bricking shots (under .400 FG% in the 2012 playoffs) and he didn`t do much with this Chicago team in the playoffs. He can win games as easily as he can lose them. His laughable 2011 MVP, arguably the most undeserving ever, is a testament to how overrated he is. Rose is so far an inconsistent talent who is not even the best at his position, despite being considered by many the second best player in the league before his rough injury.

1. James Harden (HOU Rockets, 13.7 million $)

James Harden has to be the most overrated player of the moment, despite some tough competition from Rose. Pretty much everybody is considering him the best Shooting Guard in the game, and many are viewing the bearded man as a top 5 player in the league. It is not even a debate for people if Harden is better than Kobe, they say he`s way better. Well, James Harden in his best year so far was below a 34 year old Kobe`s numbers in absolutely every department, from points to field goal percentage and assists. And his defense is rather poor. How is this guy the best Shooting guard, how does he make his teammates better by not passing and bricking shots, and how can he be a top 5 NBA player considering all this and his defense? He can`t, and he is just developing into a superstar, he is by no means there yet.

Last season was a brilliant one for German football, with Dortmund and Bayern playing in the Champions League final, the bavarians winning the elusive european trophy after a 12 year wait. The Reds achieved a historical treble, also claiming the national league and cup. With the 2013-2014 Bundesliga season just around the corner, we take a look on what we can expect in german football in the following year and we conclude with some betting stats and tips for punters.

TITLE RACE

Everybody always has a fighting chance, but the title is obviously set to be a two-team affair between Bayern Munchen and Borussia Dortmund. The bavarians will open the show friday against Monchengladbach and, on paper, they look even stronger than last year, with Josep Guardiola as manager and Thiago Alcantara and Mario Gotze in their squad, but it remains to be seen how the coaching change will impact the team. Borussia, despite losing Gotze to the rivals, also looks to be a better team after the signings of  Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Keeping Lewandowski is also a huge plus, and the striker should quickly forget about his transfer request when he will start pounding goals as the main striker in Klopp`s system. This year could be his claim for superstar status. Bayern is priced at only 1.20 to win the title and that is really not fair. Dortmund already beat them 4-2 in the Supercup, and while that result is not necessarily relevant, it did show that Borussia will not back down from the challenge. The facts are that the champions have some questions to answer this season, while Dortmund already answered them last year. Manager stability and team cohesion represent advantages for them, and while Bayern still remains the favorite, backing Dortmund at odds 6.00 offered by Youwin is a valuable investment that with a little bit of chance could pay-off big time.

BEST OF THE REST

Even if Bayern Munchen and Borussia Dortmund seem to be locked in the first two places, the last podium spot presents huge stakes, as it is the last direct Champions League position in Bundesliga, with the 4th spot sending its owner in the unforgiving underworld of qualifications.

Bayer Leverkusen surprised a few people by finishing third last season, and are set for another year in the top 4 under young manager Samy Hyypia. But a repeat of last years` success will be tough, with no important players being signed over the summer break. More so, key-pieces Schurrle, Kadlec and Carvajal left to Chelsea, Fenerbahce and Real Madrid.

Schalke 04 will rely on the offensive firepower they have with Huntelaar, Farfan, Draxler and newcomer Szalai (from Mainz). Losing Afellay will hurt them, but The Royal Blues did well enough in the transfer market to be considered at least as strong as last season. With Leverkusen clearly weakened in the off-season, Schalke should manage to get the third place in the standings.

If Bayer does not collapse under the losses of Schurrle, Kadlec and Carvajal, the top 4 seems more predictable then ever in the Bundesliga, as no other teams have the strength to upset the odds.

EUROPEAN HOPEFULS

The 5th, 6th and potentially 7th place (depending on the cup final) are the ones leading in the Europa League, and some of the teams in the group of european hopefuls could even hope to challenge the 4th spot, like Freiburg and Eintracht Frankfurt did last season. Both these teams are hugely underestimated by the bookies, generally being considered to be outside the best 10 teams in Bundesliga. Look to back Freiburg and especially Frankfurt (which strengthened in the off-season) if the bookies will continue to rate them so lowly.

Elsewhere, Wolfsburg, Stuttgart, Monchengladbach, Hamburg and Hannover (most likely in that order) will be the teams that will hope to play european football this season. One can`t really guess which of these will manage to obtain those top spot, but Wolfsburg, Stuttgart and Borussia Monchengladbach seem to have an edge in terms of team quality, management and/or cohesion. It should be interesting.

RELEGATION BATTLE

Expect nothing else than a bottom-half of the table finish from Werder Bremen, Mainz, Nurnberg and Hoffenheim. These teams are in the ‘we just want to be on TV’ zone, as theoretically they should be able to stay safe from relegation, but certainly no more than that. The probability is that being so mediocre, and also with no motivation in the second part of the season, these teams will be the worst for the punters in this 1.Bundesliga season. One of them could still go down though.

The fight for survival looks to be an affair between Braunschweig, Augsburg and Hertha, with the teams mentioned in the previous paragraph also being long-shot contenders for relegation. Newcomers Braunschweig seem destined not only for the drop, but also for the last place, as they simply lack the quality required in the 1.Bundesliga. You can back them to finish in the last two with odds of 1.61 @ William Hill, as this bet seems to be a lock.

With one direct relegation spot and one relegation playoff spot still “up for grabs”, expect a tight fight between Hertha, Augsburg and one or two of Werder, Mainz, Nurnberg or Hoffenheim. Augsburg are a decent, hard-working team and Hertha is not bad either, so we could have a few surprises at the end of the rough battle for survival.

PREDICTIONS

Champions: Dortmund @ 6.00 at Youwin.

Champions League qualification: Bayern (2nd), Schalke (3rd), Leverkusen (4th)

Europa League qualification: Eintracht Frankfurt (5th), Stuttgart (6th), Wolfsburg (7th)

Relegation: Hoffenheim (16th), Hertha (17th), Braunschweig (18th @ 1.61 at William Hill).

Top scorer: Robert Lewandowski @ 4.50 at Ladbrokes.

Best player: Robert Lewandowski

BETTING INSIGHT

Things should not change much in the Bundesliga as far as betting is concerned, with the league establishing itself as one of the top two in the world. We will continue to see fast-paced action, and even an increase in spectacle after the successful campaigns Bayern and Dortmund had last year playing offensive football. About 60% of the games should finish with more than three goals, so Bundesliga should and will remain a favorite choice for punters when betting on goals. Over 2,5 with a 1-1 insurance could be a clever choice in some matches, as this result has been the most common last season, with more than 12% of the games finishing 1-1. Big handicaps will be covered in some cases by Bayern and Dortmund, so we shouldn`t back away from that kind of bets when we feel that the situation asks for it. Obviously, huge stakes on the big favorites are not recommended, as monumental upsets tend to happen in Bundesliga without any warnings or logic.

In the end, an honest league like the german one, with a fast rhythm, straight-forward football and few divings and time wasting episodes, should provide the football fan with top-class entertainment and the punters with profit and success.

Game on!

Football is the most popular game in the world, and as a result it produces more sportsbetting rollover than any other sport. At the same time, it has one of the worst return of investment percentage for punters. Football is not an easy sport to bet on, and we take a look at some of the reasons for which this is a fact.

1. Three possible outcomes

While most sports only have 2 possible moneyline outcomes, football also has the draw, which is a big disadvantage from the start. Of course, this can be dribbled with Asian Handicaps.

2. High number of individuals involved

Few sports have more individual participants than football. In soccer you have 22 players at once on the pitch, while in tennis or boxing for example you have only 2. It`s harder to analyze match-ups, and with so many players involved, there is a higher chance for something to go wrong.

3. Corruption

Where big money is involved, big-time corruption is present. Football is a huge market world-wide, and it is only natural to be one of the most corrupted sports. Match fixing, referees, can ruin a bet.

4. Referees

Football is one of the sports in which referees have the biggest role in influencing the outcome. While in sports like tennis referees have little impact on the game, in football they are often deciding the winning team, even when corruption is not involved. Analyzing the match properly can mean nothing if your team is punished by an undeserved penalty and a red card in the 30th minute. And it`s not like that happens only once in a while. Of course, refereeing errors go both ways, but the point is that you have less control over your bet.

5. Mentality

In rugby for example, you know what to expect from every player, everytime, since they will always give it their all. That makes betting easier. In football, many players are used to cheat, wine and have all sorts of demands. You can rarely know how focused a player will be.

6. Match time

Most sports have a fixed amount of actual-play (Basketball, Hockey, Rugby, etc.). Others are being played until the event is over (Tennis). In football there is a fixed 90 minute amount of total playing time with no clock-stoping, which causes time-wasting, passing the ball around and other things that prevent a game to run its normal course anticipated by the punter. Overtime is a joke, since it makes up for less than 10% of the interruptions.

7. Unpredictability

If a player misses an open layup in basketball, there`s no stress. If you miss an easy volley at set point in tennis, you are still in the game. But if the football keeper makes a huge error and a goal is scored from nowhere, it could well mean losing a solid bet. Deflected shots, ball jumping from a patch of grass or above mentioned referees and high number of players, all contribute to a high degree of unpredictability which very often has a huge impact on the outcome.

Of course, all these arguments above do not mean that you shouldn`t bet on football anymore or that you can`t make profit betting on it. All sports have their shortcomings and advantages when it comes to betting. But the truth is that when you are betting on football, you have many things going against you. It could be wise to back away from certain events, and maybe learn some other sports in order to increase your betting coverage and winning chances.

Many of you may know Vinnie Jones as the british tough guy from Hollywood`s action-packed motion pictures, but some of you may not be aware that before shooting people`s heads off and beating them senseless  in gangster-like movies, Vinnie was actually a nightmare for Premier League stars like Eric Cantona, Alan Shearer or Jurgen Klinsmann. That`s right, the Watford-born Jones was a footballer, and a damn good one. He is a legend for Wimbledon with over 200 competitive matches (`86-`89 and `92-`98). He played for Chelsea or Leeds and has 9 international caps for his adoptive country, Wales, which he even captained. He won the FA Cup in 1988.

Jones was born in 1965 in Watford Hertfordshire, and he quickly discovered the toughness of life, with his parents separating when he was 13 (a thing which still haunts him) and with him ending up washing dishes or digging ditches for a living. Football was his only outlet, and after moving to Sweden for one year, things finally lined up for him when he was bought by Wimbledon, then a high-profile english club, in 1986.

As a defensive box to box midfielder in the Premier League, Vinnie Jones affirmed himself with his powerful long shots and an unmistakable physical, aggressive game. He still holds the record for the fastest booking in football history, receiving a yellow cards after only 3 seconds in a game against Sheffield United in 1992, which led football broadcasters in making experiments to see how it was even possible to achieve that “performance”. Jones stated that “It`s impossible to have been too late to the ball … I think I was too early”. The second placed player on this list? Surprise:  the same Vinnie Jones, getting booked after 5 seconds against Manchester City, while playing for Wimbledon. He was sent off a total of 12 times during his career. Vinnie`s game brought him many critics during his football days, and for good reason, as his tackles were absolutely horrific at times. In 1992, Jones took pride in presenting the video “Soccer`s hard men”, which featured a mix of dangerous tackles made by different players, including him. He was fined and banned by the FA, with Wimbledon chairmain Sam Hammam stating Vinnie had a “mosquito brain”.

Despite all these, Jones was a reliable leader and defensive midfielder that ended up with a more than honorable career. He was widely appreciated for his heart and determination showed on the pitch as well as for his funny and friendly nature, and he stands a legend between Wimbledon fans. Aside from winning the FA Cup and playing for Wales at international level, he won the English Second League and First League (with Leeds, his second favorite club), and Sweden`s third league (with Holmsund).

In 1998, he left Wimbledon and joined QPR as a player-coach. That`s when he starred in his first movie, the widely appreciated “Lock, Stock and two Smoking Barrels”, portraying a ruthless debt collector (no surprises here). In 1999 he retired from football and pursued the acting career for which he is most well-known in our days, playing alongside Nicholas Cage and Angelina Jolie in “Gone in 60 Seconds” (2000) and mainly portraying gangsters and tough guys, an image that is not too different from his personality on the football pitch, and off of it. Jones was arrested multiple times for bar brawls and fights, but is now a convinced family man. He played a Manchester United fan in the 2004 comedy “Eurotrip”.

As it seems, there is no end to this man`s talents, as Vinnie is also a singer, and actually a pretty decent one. He released an album in 2002 and his covers are really pleasant to hear. As of now, Jones is focusing on his acting career and charity events. He became even more of an icon at Wimbledon after donating his FA Cup winners medal to the fans in 2010.

Vinnie is a celebrity in the United States now, but for british football fans he will always be that devoted, hard-working, sometimes over the edge midfielder who led Wimbledon in its last years on the biggest stage of british football.

European competitions qualifiers are always warmly welcomed by punters and are a great warm-up before the start of the big football leagues. If approached wisely, this summer action can be a great bankroll builder for the football season ahead. With the Champions League and Europa league qualifiers reaching the 2nd round, we take a look at some stats, facts and tips that bettors should keep in mind in order to be successful betting on the preliminaries.

The qualification rounds are viewed by many as being the most upset-filled football competition, but the reality is that a huge percentage of favorites win their games and their ties, sometimes by a big margin. This comes from difference in quality, but also from the motivation that mediocre teams have of doing well in Europe, thus not underestimating the minnows and completing the job. Also, teams from countries like San Marino, Andorra, Northern Ireland, Wales or Estonia simply don`t have the quality to compete regardless of the opponent`s struggles, and they can`t win a tie to save their lives. Of course upsets happen, but really, betting on favorites in the UEFA Champions League and Europa League qualifiers is more profitable than doing the same in most football leagues and for sure better than doing the same in the main stages of European Competitions, where upsets DO happen often. The thing is that many punters are filling a betting slip with 10-15 events at very low odds, and of course one will lose – thus the “upsets” legend in the qualies.

The Under/Over is kept in high regard by punters and is an important part of football betting, so we ‘masterminded’ a statistic for you in this department, including the last 15 years.

As seen in the above table, the goal average is high in the qualies, especially in the Europa League (current season is highlighted in red). We can also see two very interesting trends here: while in Champions League the goals per game average has increased in recent years, in the EL it has dramatically decreased, with all the last 4 seasons being under the average. We can conclude that the new playoff format in the CL has helped the chances of high-scoring matches, while the transition from UEFA Cup to Europa League has decreased the possibility of goals. While traditionally being more rich in goal-scoring, the second european competition is now seeing less goals than the Champions League.

Match-fixing is a common phenomena in the european qualifiers, but the reality is that if you don`t have inside info, the best you can do is avoid the “usual suspects” (see below in betting tips). You can`t and musn`t skip betting on preliminaries just because of suspicions that can or can not be well-founded, but it`s something one must be aware of.

The qualifiers are a great opportunity to make profit, as their are not so unpredictable as they may seem, but one must keep himself prepared, as there is usually not much information available for these low rated football games. Some punters miss the chance to build their bankroll here and instead end up losing money, and that`s because of the usually low amount of info available, combined with the urge to bet many events and to place high stakes after the season break. You need to make sure you gain every piece of information that you can, manage your stakes and your choices based on accurate insight, knowledge and stats and you can be in for a great betting summer. Hey, maybe we`ll have some great football stories too, as a bonus, as they don`t happen only in high-profile football events.

Betting tips for Champions League / Europa League qualifying stages

• Be aware that you may be anxious to bet after the summer break in football. Think twice if your bets and stakes are justified or just impulsive.

• Remember that teams can sometimes transform over the season-break. Don`t dwell too much on last season`s performance if big squad-changes have been made

• These qualifiers can produce suspect matches, usually in the Europa League, so high stakes (or any stakes) on teams from certain countries are not recommended. Eastern European clubs are usually suspected, especially the ones with no tradition. Albania is the country most linked with match fixing.

• Be careful with teams from countries with emerging football. Luxembourgese, Maltese or Licthenstainian clubs are able to defend and can challenge better clubs.

• Don`t be afraid of high handicaps and high overs when the situation asks for it.

• Look for odds changes – they can vary a lot on these games

• Usually you may want to bet against the underdog more than on the favorite. Upsets will happen only when the underdog has the quality to be able to take advantage of the circumstances.

• Multi-game combos are not recommended. You don`t have much info on the teams, so stick to one game (ideal), no more than 4, and analyze them thoroughly.

• Teams that have started playing competitive football in the internal league have a big advantage over the ones that are in pre-season training.

• Some teams (mainly eastern-european ones) are having big financial problems, with players that are not paid. Look that up, as it is crucial information.

• The final round of the qualifiers is the most upset-prone.