Bill Simmons on Indianapolis: 'It's the happiest basketball place'
The Ringer's Bill Simmons is well known for his love for the Boston Celtics but he had a shocking revelation on his podcast Thursday: He loves basketball in Indianapolis.
"It's a really special place," he said in a conversation with Zach Lowe. "It's the place of Hoosiers and Larry Bird. Forty-nine state and then there's Indiana, whatever the saying is.
"Everyone is wearing jerseys. Everyone is super optimistic. It's the happiest basketball place. It's so much fun to come here. The arena is probably the best. I think it's No. 1 for me. Even the corners are good. The crowd feels like it's on top of the game. When you have a game like today (the Pacers' Game 3 victory over Oklahoma City), I do think it affects the game. If you're the visiting team it feels like the fans are on top of you in a slightly different way and those fans are fantastic.:
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Newsweek
19 minutes ago
- Newsweek
Thunder vs. Pacers Game 4 Odds, Picks, Best Bets: OKC Looks To Even Series
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But against the rare opponent that is just athletic as OKC -- and just as deep -- the Thunder are in a very different type of battle than the ones they went through in the Western Conference playoffs. Going forward, OKC has a lot of tough questions to answer, including: Can Shai Gilgeous-Alexander play at an MVP level against unrelenting pressure from a long list of athletic Pacers defenders? What is the answer in the frontcourt? Chet Holmgren has played well the last two games after a clunker in Game 1, but Thunder coach Mark Daigneault is still struggling to figure out how much and when to play Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. Has OKC finally run into a team that can hold its own -- if not top the Thunder -- in the turnover battle? NBA Finals Game 4 Betting Odds: Spread, ML DK FD bet365 OKC spread -6 (-110) -6 (-110) -6 (-110) IND spread +6 (-110) +6 (-110) +6 (-110) IND ML -230 -235 -230 OKC ML +190 +194 +190 Total 227.5 (o-112; u-108) 227.5 (o-114; u-106) 227.5 (o-110; u-110) How to Watch NBA Finals Game 4: Thunder vs. Pacers Tipoff: 8:30 p.m. ET Channel: ABC NBA Finals Winner Odds: OKC Favored Despite 2-1 Deficit DraftKings : OKC -220; IND +185 FanDuel : OKC -230; IND +190 NBA Finals Game 4 Betting Picks, Analysis With all due respect to the Pacers, of course, writing off Game 1 slipping away from the Thunder was defensible. This time last week, it was hard to imagine OKC not having decisive advantages on the bench and in the turnover battle. 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In a series that has been impossible for me to figure out (outside of Game 2, when we predicted that the Thunder won big at home), let's go outside the box tonight for both of our best Thunder vs. Pacers Game 4 best ATS bets. The first one we like is the Thunder to win the first quarter. OKC has outscored Indiana by 9, 6 and 8 points in the first three games of this series. I expect the favorites to start tonight hot after being outscored 32-18 in the fourth quarter of Game 3. The other trend I expect to continue tonight is the Pacers' domination of the fourth quarter. Indy has outscored OKC 35-25, 33-30 and 32-18 in the final frames of the first three games of this series. There's also a real chance that the Pacers could win the fourth quarter tonight even if OKC builds a big lead after 36 minutes -- case in point: Game 2, when Indiana outscored OKC down the stretch despite entering the fourth quarter down 93-74. Thunder 1Q -3 (-105 at DraftKings) -- 1 unit Pacers 4Q ML (+120 at DK) -- 1 unit Newsweek may earn an affiliate commission if you sign up through the links in this article. See the sportsbook operator's terms and conditions for important details. Sports betting operators have no influence over newsroom coverage.
Newsweek
38 minutes ago
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Caesars Sportsbook Promo Code NEWSWK2DYW: Claim 10 NBA Finals Game 4 Boosts
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USA Today
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BetMGM Bonus Code WIREBG150: Bet $10, Win $150 for NBA Finals Game 4 & More Tonight
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