Covering the Spread
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Sports gambling will ruin sports.
But that being said, I don’t get people’s issue with this.
@LuFins-Dad said in Covering the Spread:
Sports gambling will ruin sports.
Just a matter of time. You think we would learn.
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Sports, as leisurely activities, can be kind, considerate, friendly, collegial.
Friends playing against friends, it should be totally fine if one were to let a friend “win a little”, “save face,” or “not lose too badly.” These should be totally at the players’ discretion.
But no, people taking sports too seriously make that “unethical” if not outright “illegal.” These people are not only sports gamblers, but also some coaches, schools, communities, players, fans, even the citizenry using sports as a proxy for national pride. These people codify “sportsmanship” in a way that does not allow individual player to play a little less hard to be nice, like somehow if you play less than 100% you’re letting down your team, your coach, your school, your fans, your community, your country, if not violating this charter or that rule or that law. Of course many players are happy to make that trade for $millions in contracts.
But if you want talk about what ruins sports, taking sports too seriously ruins sports.
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@Jolly said in Covering the Spread:
BTW, Ax, what did you play?
Counting only sports where you are supposed to play against an opponent or an opposing team in real time, softball, baseball, soccer, basketball, tennis, table tennis, badminton, squash, racketball, one-legged tag, (various versions of chess, if you consider chess a sports).
Why do you ask?
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As one goes up the sports ladder, things become serious. Much more serious.
A high school athlete may dedicate a few hours each day to practice or training. A college athlete has special living arrangements and at the better programs, there is a bevy of nutritionists, strength coaches and position coaches. At that level, there is also NIL money. At the pro level, all that ratchets up by several notches. Sport is the athlete's life and his way of making a living.
That's just an example looking at the seriousness of sports, as one moves up the ladder.
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This is a pro game we're talking about, with athletes dedicated to the sport. They are trained and should be doing their best to win.
“Cry havoc and let slip the DOGE of war!”
Those who cheered as J-6 American prisoners were locked in solitary for 18 months without trial, now suddenly fight tooth and nail for foreign terrorists’ "due process". — Buck Sexton
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You can bet on sports in the UK. I can't really say that it's ruined it.
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I’m trying to think back 35 years to when I was a football fan. You would regularly see teams with no chance to win trying to score anyway out of pride.
But with seconds left they’d usually snap the ball, the qb would take a knee, get tapped by a defensive lineman, and they’d all shake hands and walk off the field as the clock ran out.
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This is a pro game we're talking about, with athletes dedicated to the sport. They are trained and should be doing their best to win.
@Jolly said in Covering the Spread:
This is a pro game we're talking about, with athletes dedicated to the sport. They are trained and should be doing their best to win.
But taking a meaningless low-probability shot at a touchdown vs. a high-probability shot at a meaningless field goal will not affect the game outcome either, but the margin of victory CAN have an effect on playoff tiebreakers. Strength of Victory and Best Combined Ranking in Points Scored and Points Allowed are tie breakers that may be used. The odds are extremely slim, but the Rams put themselves in a better position by kicking the three than taking a wing and a prayer shot at the endzone, gambling lines be damned.
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Yes, but we are having the conversation about whether the spread affected the play selection.
Without gambling where it's at today, we may not even be having the conversation.
“Cry havoc and let slip the DOGE of war!”
Those who cheered as J-6 American prisoners were locked in solitary for 18 months without trial, now suddenly fight tooth and nail for foreign terrorists’ "due process". — Buck Sexton
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Yes, but we are having the conversation about whether the spread affected the play selection.
Without gambling where it's at today, we may not even be having the conversation.
@Jolly said in Covering the Spread:
Yes, but we are having the conversation about whether the spread affected the play selection.
Without gambling where it's at today, we may not even be having the conversation.
They are making the play that best helps their team. Even if victory is eliminated, 3 more points helps their team more than an incomplete pass attempt. If it fucked over some bettors and helped others is irrelevant. It was in the best interest of the team to kick the field goal.
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- Take a knee, to avoid injury - gutless and suspicious
- Go for the TD - only 4 seconds left there would be no time for the field goal
- Go for the Field Goal, then maybe time for 1 play - onside kick - they could tie the game
Was there any time left after the field goal?
