March 25, 2022 • 34 mins
Jay Kornegay stops by the “Fifth Hour with Ben Maller, and Danny G Radio” as the fellas chat about Tyreek Hill’s impact with Miami, the Tom Brady insider info bets that rocked Vegas. Jay is the VP at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas. In addition, the guys discuss the fallout from Falcons WR Calvin Ridley being suspended for gambling on NFL games, the NBA team that keeps getting big bets despite being terrible. You can still listen to Jay’s podcast with SuperBook Sports on sports wagering, follow Jay on Twitter @JayKornegay Follow Danny G Radio on Twitter @DannyGradio, Follow Big Ben on Twitter @BenMaller, and listen to the original "Ben Maller Show," Monday-Friday on 400+ terrestrial Fox Sports Radio affiliates, iHeart stream, and SiriusXM Radio channel 83, 2a-6a ET, 11p-3a PT!
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
If you thought four hours a day, minutes a week
was enough, I think again. He's the last remnants of
the old republic, a sole fashion of fairness. He treats
crackheads in the ghetto cutter the same as the rich
pill poppers in the penthouse the clearing House of hot
takes break free for something special. The Fifth Hour with
(00:23):
Ben Maller starts right now, nine in the air. Everywhere
the weekend has begun. You have locked in on the
Fifth Hour with Ben Maller and Danny g Radio, saving
you from boring weekend sports chatter. And on the Friday Podcast,
(00:50):
we are back to the regular routine here. We wanted
to chat with somebody about the world of gambling here
this week in particular, there was some of the big
moves that have happened in the NFL and big weekend. Obviously,
college basketball is massive, so we tracked down a big shot,
(01:11):
a gambling mogul from the Westgates super book, The Vice President.
That's a big title. Jake Cornegate joined us here from
Las Vegas, and Jay, thank you. Why don't we start
with Tyreek Hill. That is the massive neutron bomb story
in our little world here, So Tyreek Hill we all
(01:32):
know by now traded from Kansas City to Miami for
a buffel bag of draft fix. But we're talking about
a wide receiver. So I ask you, Jay, does this
move the needle dramatically? It certainly did. It kind of
kind of thought guard a little bit, but you know,
(01:53):
once I reviewed it with with some of the other guys,
it was understandable. Know, um, why we were going to
adjust you know, the number uh that we did, because
they were sixty and thirty. We dropped it and this
is a receiver. Now, receiver changes teams and all of
(02:13):
a sudden they're down to forty and twenty the Dolphins.
So the Dolphins basically went from sixty to one down
to forty to one off that one move. But there's
a little bit more to it than that. There's there's
some other uh moves that really compounded uh you know
this uh adjustment that we made. Uh, there's been some
before the trade, and over let's say the last three
(02:36):
or four weeks, the Dolphins have kind of become a
a sharp kind of guys uh sexy pick you know,
and then they've been getting some love and some of
the future markets, you know, around town. So once they
got Hill, you know we we we made an aggressive
move for a receiver changing teams. Yeah, and and and
(02:59):
whose word? I guess the question who's worth box? I
saw the last week we had Davante Adams who went
from Green Bay to the Raiders. Uh, Who's gonna make
more of an impact? Is it Tyreek with the Dolphins
or do you think as far as the gambling markets concerned,
is it Davante Addams of the Raiders. Well, I mean
you're talking about two of the best receivers and the
(03:21):
NFL changing teams. And you know, I always thought he'll
you know, had a huge impact on all the other
receivers you know there we were looking at it, whether
it's Robinson, Hartman or Kelsey. Um, you know they're they're
gonna have their hands full, you know with the Homes
and Company trying to move this offense along because he'll
opened up so many things with this speed. He was
(03:44):
always on the radar the defensive backs. He's always on
the radar for the defensive coordinators out there. He has
a huge impact. So I think he has a bigger
impact on the overall scheme of the offense than maybe
Adams but I'm gonna take anything away from Adams. Adams
is fantastic. We also had a fantastic quarterback. So I
(04:05):
think it's gonna be very interesting to see, you know,
the relationship that the car and and Adams will have
moving forward. Now, one of the reasons I would have
you on Jay, you had some interesting comments recently. You're
talking about the Buccaneers with Tom Brady coming back and
uh you were were quoted and you said you think
there was some some big wages that were right before
(04:28):
with insider information. Now what is the latest on that, Jay?
Is anything come of that here? How confident are you
that somebody knew something they weren't maybe maybe weren't supposed
to know, or or took advantage of that situation. I
just thought you might bring this up then, But it's
all good. Um. You know, first of all, you know
(04:49):
a lot of people thought I was complaining or was
looking to avoid the wagers or cancel them, and that's
not true at all. I wasn't complaining. I was just
telling you what I saw and what we saw all
were the type of bets that are not categorized as
speculation or hunch bets when when someone comes to your
window and ask how much you're gonna take out a
(05:11):
certain number, and then you move it. They're gonna say
what are you moving it to? And how much are
you gonna take at that number? And then they want
to revet it again, what are you moving in to?
How much you're gonna take at that number? You know
that that's because that doesn't raise your flag a little bit. Um.
You know, you're you're probably not doing your job. I'm
(05:31):
not looking to cancel. The liability is very minimal and
and our eyes something that we can really get rid
of before the season even starts. But the way they
came in in the circle of people that bet them
around the country, not just in Las Vegas, but in
many other jurisdiction. We talked to a few operators there
(05:53):
were there was definitely some leaks there that got to
a certain you know, circle of people. It wasn't like
you know, a publication or whatever the newspaper is, the
Orlando Orlando Sentinel or something like that, you know, got
a leak at it. It it's uh leak out to
(06:14):
a certain group. And I thought that was a red flag.
I mean, we're moving on, um, you know, I can't
tell you everything, but uh, you know, they're still looking
into some things. And um, again no complaints. We're gonna
be fine with a liability. We're moving forward. And I
just told people what I saw, all right, So they
(06:34):
are looking into it though, So there are there are
people like an oversight group kind of looking into it.
Is that Is that an accurate way to talk about
what's going on with Brady? That the bets? Yeah, I
I uh, you know, we we have to do certain
things here on our end um. But you know, I'm
gonna probably keep it very big and as and as
I said that they are looking into it, I'll probably
(06:57):
leave it at that, all right. And you guys now
operate You're in Vegas, but you operate in multiple states here, Jay,
and and you reference something that's interesting because because of
the way the gambling set up now, it's not fully
matured the gambling market, but it's in a lot of
places these days. How how do you guys go about
(07:18):
protecting yourself? I guess you kind of referenced a little
bit that you saw some odd things pop up there
across the country. But what's to stop somebody from going
to seven eight different states and putting down a chunk
of change on something like that or does it matter,
doesn't matter. I mean you can go to different operators.
How does that all work. I'm fascinated by this. Yeah,
I mean it's it's uh, you know, the market continues
(07:41):
to expand. It it's obviously you know, comfort to control
and regulate. I think the regulators have done a terrific job.
I think the NFL does a fantastic job. I think
the league's overall do a great job of you know,
educating the players and educating the staff everybody in their
organization and what the rules are. And if those players
(08:03):
or somebody else in the organization, uh, don't follow the rules,
there's just no way to you know, prevent that. I mean,
we have same rules for people that are in the
gaming industry. You know, many states, if not all states.
You know, employees of betting operator can't wager at um
(08:24):
you know, their own operation. And that's been the regulation
here in Nevada for for ever ever since I've been
in the industry, that's over thirty years. So but if
someone wants to ignore that rule and and and do that,
they can. But it's just as a matter of time
before they get caught, and like I said, the leagues
(08:45):
to a termendous job policing and educating their players and
staff that they can't do certain things. But if they
go out and do it, uh and ignore those uh parameters,
you know that's on them and they're going to have
to suffer the consequences. Yeah. No, And jaysonbody's been in
the gamming world for a long time. You saw that
(09:06):
the Calvin Really story. I was surprised that was only
a one day story. The Falcon receiver that was suspended
for betting and he used his own phone. J Uh
that that does not seem like the wisest move to me.
I'm not that bright myself, but I would think you
might not want to use your phone on that. But, uh,
do you think this is a regular thing in the
end of I know you're you're part of it, but
(09:28):
these players with with the odds out every Week's been
that way forever. But do you think I can't imagine
Calvin Really is the only one doing this. Do you
think do you think this is just the outlier or
do you think this is more normal? Oh? I think
that this this is gonna happen. Uh, you know, moving forward.
I just hope it's somewhat minimized, and you know, we
(09:49):
have to do our job, you know, as as operators.
You know, we you know a lot of people don't
think that we care about integrity as operators, but it's
right on top of the list. Uh, integrity is our product.
You know. We want to make sure all gains are
fair and true. You know, we don't want to be
taken taking bets on something that's predetermined, and so uh,
(10:10):
you know, as it expands, you know, yes, people have
that opportunity to make those kind of wagers. Now, what
really did I I was surprised the channels that he
used his own channels, but uh, you know, I I
think it would have been more alarming, Uh if he
bet against the falcons um. You know, but that's that's
(10:31):
a that's definitely a bigger flag than than just placing
bets you know on you know, on the faccon or
on other games. But they know the rules, they know
the guidelines and parameters, and they cross those, you know,
that's you know, those are the consequences that they're going
to have to face. A one year suspension is pretty hefty,
(10:53):
and not to mention forfeiting, you know, a pretty large salary.
All right. So as far as that looking ahead here,
and you mentioned we talked about Brady and that move
things with him coming back. You're a Colorado guy, so
you also mentioned Russell Wilson ja and how dramatically have
have things changed? Obviously the Broncos now back at the
adults table in the NFL with a quarterback. But how
(11:16):
how dramatic are we talking about the perspective from the
gambling side with Russell coming to Denver? Yeah, I mean
when we were taking bets, you know, in January and
February for next year, you know a lot of these teams,
including let's say that the team that we're looking to land, uh,
you know, a premier quarterback, and Denver certainly was one
(11:36):
of them. You know, you look at the box, you
look at the Titans, you look at the Steelers. Um.
So when when the you know, Packers resigned Rogers, you
know that that was pretty much what we thought was
going to happen. So there wasn't much of an adjustment.
Russell going to the Broncos was a big surprise. Uh,
(11:58):
you know, we didn't think that the Broncos, We're gonna
give up that many picks and and you know a
couple of very solid players, but they're in the wind
now mode and that's understandable. Uh, they're trying to win
it now. And that was a dramatic change. I mean,
the Broncos were fifteen and thirty, fifteen for the conference,
thirty for the Super Bowl prior to the Wilson announcement.
(12:22):
But that's the fifteen and thirty. There was already, um,
you know, some thoughts built into those numbers, meaning that
they possibly could land somebody. We didn't know who it was.
We didn't know it was Gumbi Watson, Wilson or somebody else,
but they were shopping and they were looking for a quarterback.
So um, with that signing, you know, the Broncos went
(12:45):
right down to ten and twenty. So it was a
pretty big move. But it probably would have been bigger
if we uh, if it would have been a team
not looking for a premier quarterback. But the Broncos were
only fifteen and thirty as they were, sir and hunting
for that next quarterback. Yeah. And you look around the
NFL here and the balance of powers, it's all on
(13:09):
the a f C. I mean to me, I look
at the NFC. I see like three, maybe four teams
in the NFC that realistically, the outside of some lightning strike,
can can get to the Super Bowl and win it.
But in the a f C, you can make a
compelling argument for six teams maybe maybe even more than
that in the In the a f C, this thing
(13:29):
is really really shifted. And I am I seeing this right?
Is that it is my perspective correct. There's a lot
of teams in the a f C and not as
many in the NFC that seemed to be at the
very top levels. That an accurate portrayal of the gambling market.
Oh sure, I mean, look at all the premier quarterbacks.
They're all in the a f C. Outside of Brady,
you know you uh, you know, Stafford and the defending
(13:52):
champions are right there as well. Um, but the forty
nine will be there, certainly, the packers in the NFC,
the favorites there. I would suspect that, um, there probably
will be a team that we're not even looking at
that will pop up and be contenders at the end
of the you know, the next season. But the a
(14:13):
f C is just loaded, especially when you talk about
the quarterbacks. Everybody's talking about the a f C West,
and and that still holds true, you know with the
with an announcement that Hill is gone. Um, you know,
the the Chiefs just got closer to the rest of
the pack in the a f C West as everybody's
(14:33):
creeping up. I mean, Mahomes is going to be on
the highland out there and he's got a lot of
work to do because everybody else in that West division
is pretty loaded. Their rosters are very, very solid, and
it's gonna be it's gonna be one of those where,
you know, if the best team might be in the
(14:53):
a f C West, but because they're they're probably going
to beat up each other throughout the season. They might
not have of the best record in the a f C. Yeah, Well,
what do you do with a team like the Bengals
who were that out of nowhere team this past year
to get to the Super Bowl? And uh, they did
make some moves here they added to the offensive line. Uh,
(15:14):
a team like Cincinnati, did they go back uh and
did never never land? Or are they gonna gonna be
a prominent team again this upcoming? You what do you
think on that? Well, they're in between. You know, they're
not the favorites. They're they're you know, not an underdog,
but they're they're in the same category as the Denver Broncos.
You know, their ten to one for the conference, twenty
(15:36):
for for the super Bowl, and to put back to
back seasons together like they just had, it's gonna be
very difficult because everybody in their division is going to
be shooting for him. The Bangers will have a huge
target on their backs. And you've got quality rosters on
many teams in the a f C that could easily
(15:56):
win win that conference. So they're not the every they're
they're not a huge underdog, but they're probably at the
bottom of that maybe the top of that second tier
and staying in that division. Jay the Cleveland Brown's upsetting
many people. They get Deshaun Watson from the Texans, But
did they really get Deshaun Watson because he's facing some
(16:18):
kind of punishment from the NFL. So how how do
you guys handle a team like the Browns where you
don't really know for sure how many games if you
know any who knows Deshaun could be suspended for a
long years. So what do you do with a guy
like Deshaun Watson and the Browns there, Yeah, they're they're
at nine and eighteen and and uh, I think that's
gonna be an interesting story to follow because the Browns
(16:41):
have a fantastic offense. We all know that they can
run the ball, so that's certainly gonna help out Watson.
You know, they have some weapons there that offensively and defensively.
They got a really strong roster. You know, where they
were lacking was at the quarterback position. But we're talking
about a player that hasn't played in a while. We're
sure how good he's going to be. Is he going
(17:02):
to be able to up right back in and and
you know play to a level that you know where
he left off because he was playing at a very
high level, um, you know before all this came down.
So it's another contender in the a f C. And
the odds really reflect that as they're only nine to
(17:24):
one to win the a f C with all this
other competitions surrounding them. Who has been the hot team? Jay?
Who are who? People? The public? Who is there any
one team at this point we haven't even gotten the
draft yet, but is there is there one team that's
the hot sexy team the smoke show that the public
is jumping all over here. Well I can I'm just
(17:45):
looking at the ticket accounts right now then and some
of the ticket accounts, uh, people are in love with
a few teams here. It's very well balanced as far
as if you were to look at the top ticket
accounts and the for the Super Bowl and talking about
you're talking about teams like these, the Titans, Uh, the
(18:07):
um Bengals are right up there as well. You've got
the Bills, who are the favorites along with the Rams
um to actually win the Super Bowl. And then out
of the NFC. Uh, some of the top ticket account
leaders here are well, of course the Buccaneers. Now, uh,
(18:30):
the Buccaneers, you know they're they're they're always gonna be
a hot, hot flavor here with with you know who
coming back. But now you look at the usual suspects.
Then after that you look at the Packers. Of course,
the Cowboys and the forty Niners. Forty Niners are actually
(18:50):
right up there towards the top. They're they're kind of
another I'm not gonna say a sharp guy type of play. Ah,
it's more of a recreational player. A lot of people
believe in the forty Niners, and I don't blame them.
They they were playing great ball last you know, during
the playoffs, they look like they were going to be
(19:11):
the team. Um somehow, you know, the Rams won that game.
But forty Niners are certainly a team that's uh championship
worthy and of course a bit of a wild card though,
because they're supposed to change quarterbacks so that they still
have Jimmy Garoppolo with Tree Lance. Who know who knows
whether he's gonna be great or not. But I didn't
want to move on from that. Jay college basketball. As
(19:32):
we are talking here, as we're talking, the the second
weekend has not begun. So let's look back at the
opening weekend here. I heard a bit of a sounds
like a father there is that a good or a
bad sign? Here? How did everything go the first week?
It seems to me from a talk radio perspective, JA,
from where I'm at, this is a pretty good mix
(19:54):
for me, because there's still a lot of the traditional
college basketball powers that made it into the second week,
with a mix of a few surprise upstart teams. But
for you, where are you at on the the n
c A tournament at this point. Well, you know, a
good mixture of you know, premier teams and underdogs is
(20:18):
always a great recipe for us. Um. You know, we
we don't want all underdogs, we don't want all favorites,
we don't want all uh you know, the top tier
teams advancing. We we uh, we prefer a good mix.
And that's exactly what happened in the first weekend. And
they you know, with I mean I'm not talking about
big underdogs like St. Peter's, but teams like either Michigan
(20:40):
or North Carolina, those teams that had some you know,
uh um, some purse seating that you know, made some noise.
And these teams are um, I'll tell you they are. Um,
they're they're making us look really good because of the
results that the first weekend and was one of the
(21:01):
best martial madnesses we've ever had. And uh, you know,
we we did really well all four days out here
in Vegas. The venue was just packed. We we have
you know, we have the world's largest race of sports
books here and we also have a theater that seats people.
(21:21):
Both venues were sold out for the first three days
of the tournament, and that continues as we speak. We
we have some great crowds in house for the second
weekend here and um no, it's it's been fantastic. It's
a it's been a great tournament. Um. I think the
expansion of sports gaming throughout the country has really helped us.
(21:43):
That a lot of people thought that was gonna hurt us.
But I talked to so many people last weekend where
they were from, and they a lot of them came
in from jurisdictions that just you know, recently approved sports
gaming and they said, you know, once that happened and
they got you know, uh, you know, involved in it,
(22:04):
they knew that Vegas was going to be a box
that they needed to check. And we had so many
new customers come in and again, remember this was our
first true marriage madness in three years. Uh, you know,
we didn't have that one two years ago. Last year
we were restricted to. This year was full blown and
(22:25):
people were just elated to be out here, uh and
enjoying the you know, the tournament once again. Yeah. I
gotta tell you, I was in Vegas a few weeks
ago and I went to uh I think one of
one of your establishments. It is insane. The quality of
the video. It's like being at an NFL stadium now
with some of the stuff you guys have in these
(22:45):
sports books. It's it's it's absolutely amazing, and you guys
were charging. I was curious when I was walking through,
I was like, I wonder how this is gonna work
for the for the tournament. So did people have to
buy tickets? Is that how that went to watch? Or
they reserve seats or because I would think that that
was gonna be a madhouse the first couple of days
for sure, So how did that work? Well, yeah, you
(23:06):
have a good mixture. You have some first come, first serve,
you have some you know, basic reserve seating. Then you
also have v I p uh seating as well, that
which usually includes uh, you know, premier real estate in
the sports book with all your food and drinks included,
you know, I mean pricing of these things range from
forty dollars to and so it's uh and again they
(23:31):
were all sold out, so um you know, we we
always try to um accommodate all different levels and that's
exactly what happened. That was it was just really great
to see how many people were just having such a
good time, and you know, remember Marshal Madness is mostly
made up of males. In fact, it's probably nine five males,
(23:56):
and a lot of it is our reunions, people that
went to school together or co workers or just have
some history together and then they meet up here and
they always seem to come in groups of you know,
two to six guys, and um, I can't remember ever
seeing the level of enthusiasm that we saw here. It
(24:16):
was people were just having a good time, you know,
and we did really well, so you know, they were
doing that great on the betting side of things. You know,
they had their moments just like they always do, but
you know that that didn't curb the enthusiasm at all. Uh,
they had a blast and it was just a lot
of fun, a lot of excitement, and uh, the atmosphere
(24:39):
was just terrific here in the Super Bowl. Yeah, it's
I can imagine. Well, for three years in the making, right,
people been waiting around with the COVID and all this stuff.
So as far as a team like St. Peter's though,
Jake kind of walk me through that they're they're off
the grid, small school. Uh. Was anyone actually betting on St.
Peter's against Kentucky or was it mostly on on Kentucky
(25:00):
that first big upset of March Madness back last week. Well,
I'll say it wasn't a heavily beat game compared to
some of the others, because you know a lot of
the public out there they don't really like to lay
those big points and and uh, you know, on the
flip side, they're not really you know, have a history
of supporting in teams like St. Peter's, So it had,
(25:23):
you know, a fair amount of action versus all the
other games St Peter's. Um certainly, I'll tell you the St.
Peter's open five thousand and one, all right to win
it all and now they're down to five one to
win it all. But that that game against Kentucky, which
it just electrified the room. I mean, there were a
(25:47):
lot of I think anybody that was not wearing blue
and white in the room was cheering for St. Peter's. Uh,
it was, it was. It was incredible. And I'll tell
you the second game against Murray State, and no one
believed in St. Peter's. Everybody was on Murray State. And
(26:07):
I understand that Murray State was a you know, eight
and a half point favorite, and St. Peter's pretty much
controlled that whole game and came out with an easy
win and going into you know this today, you know
it's St. Peter's is um, you know, not really getting
a lot of attention from the bettors Um, but a
lot of people have wondered why they're still getting double
(26:27):
digits and being in the business for a long time.
We don't make knee jerk changes, you know. We we adjust, uh,
little by little, and that's exactly what we did with
their power ranking. If this game would have been played,
you know, before the tournament even started, uh, you know,
Purdue probably would have been like a fifteen sixteen point favorite.
(26:49):
So now it's down to twelve because of what St.
Peter's did the first weekend got you And is there
one team of the fields we head in again we're
talking before the sweet sixteam, But is there one team
that is getting the the action, the popular pick by
popular people here of the field remaining in the tournament? No,
not really. It's really spread out, and as it should
(27:11):
be because there's just so much parody. We saw a
number of these number one seeds either you know, one
one got knocked out, but you look at it and
it seems like all of them got tested. You know
what maybe Kansas did in Kansas, Kansas. To me, it
looks like they just got an easy road, you know,
to to the final four. You know that Miami's there,
(27:32):
but other than that, they're looking pretty good to get there.
And that's why their their odds are a little lower
than maybe some of the others, because the others have
a tougher road to get there. Like Kansas, everything opened up,
you know, as you know, their number two seed, number
three seed in that region have already lost. So uh,
(27:52):
they're they're looking pretty good. But when it when it
comes down to it, it looks like it probably could
be Gonzaga. You know, They're they're just so good. The
power ranking on them is so hi that they're gonna
be a favorite no matter who they play. Um, but
watch out, you know, watch out for those Gags, but
also watch out for those Jayhawks because they got an
easy road. Interesting all right, now, speaking of wide open
(28:16):
this is very rare. I want to go to the
NBA j because you know, typically, I know, we're not
quite at the time where people get all excited for
the NBA, but the playoffs will be here before you
know it next month. And typically the NBA, I could
I could pick five teams JA and I would be right.
I would say over the last twenty five years, I
would be right. Twenty four out of the TWI I
(28:37):
picked five teams, one of them would win the championship.
I don't see it that way? Am I wrong in that?
I look at the NBA and I see I know
Celtics have played well recently as we're talking here, but
that looks pretty wide open like that. I don't see
the typical four teams that are invincible, four or five
teams in the NBA or that that just nobody can beat.
(28:59):
So what's going on in the NBA as far as
the gambling world is concerned? You you know, the NBA
is wide open, as you stated, especially in the East side,
you know, the West side not so much. But anybody
can come out of the East. There's like six teams
that will have the chance of coming out of you know,
the Eastern Conference, but not as many teams on the
(29:22):
Western side. But you're exactly right. It's not down with
two teams. It's not down to four teams. There's there's
probably eight teams that could win the championship this year,
which you know, as a bookmaker, we're loving well. And
what what do you do with a team like the Lakers? Now?
I know, you know you're in Vegas, but you guys
run uh you know, gambling shops and other states and stuff.
(29:42):
But in Vegas. Every time I go to Vegas, I
go to a sports book and I have to go drink.
Basketball season. There's a million guys in there with Laker gearon.
And are are people still betting on the Lakers? There's
been a miserable season for the Lakers. Here are people
still loading up on the Lakers despite the be as
flawed roster that they appear to have this year, and
then the way it's played out all season, that's exactly
(30:05):
what's happening. They just can't get away from the Lakers.
You know, the Lakers are on right now, which they
probably should be like, but people continue to bet them.
And right now, we have so much liability on the
Lakers that they were to somehow pull this off that uh,
I might be looking for a different job by the
(30:26):
end of tune if they were to win it. But
they it's not. Yeah, it's it's something that they just
can't get away from They still believe somehow they're going
to make a d eighty degree turn and make this
thing happen. But we don't see it as bookmakers. But
we've got to be careful because you know, we were,
(30:47):
you know, we're taking bets on this at some hefty odds,
and that liability does add up very quickly. But you're
spot on. They love Lakers and they continue to do
it despite the play that we see on the court there,
I mean, and all of our eyes out here, there's
no chance they're gonna win. Okay, I'll knock on wood,
(31:07):
but you know, you know, I just you know, it's
just they have so many issues, so many problems they
you know, just to turn the switch on. I just
don't see how they could do it. Yeah, I agree
with you, But like I said, every time I've we've
been in Vegas, it's like a million guys, you know,
all wearing their Laker gear, convinced that the that they're
gonna turn the switch. All right, Well we'll get out
(31:29):
on this. Ja Baseball a bunch of moves has been
very interesting the last couple of weeks, with all the
free agent signings and trades, a bunch of transactions all
packed in and the season getting going in a couple
of weeks here, Uh, any of those, you know, Freddie
Freeman to the Dodgers, Carlos Carea went to the Twins,
a bunch of big trades, anything moving the needle there,
(31:53):
any impactful things as far as baseball is concerned down
the line, which is not until obviously October. But did
anything really stand out to you guys in the gaming world. Well,
you know, it's about the Dodgers around here, and and
they they clearly, I mean, that lineup is ridiculous, right,
I mean, at Freeman to the mix that's just crazy.
I mean, now, you know, losing Seeger, it just isn't
(32:16):
a big deal, you know. Uh, it's all gonna be
about their pitching. You know, if Bauer could uh you know,
I think if he's able to clear it and somehow
get back to the Dodgers at some point, that is
like adding another ace to to their their staff. I'm
sure the Dodgers are not done. They'll probably you know,
(32:36):
add another picture or two down the stretch. So they're looking,
you know, like the team a bit. We we expect
them to win more than a hundred games this year.
I mean looking out West, you look at the two
tease injury again, that's the problem. Well you got to
Carves and Snell look a little passive prime and that's
(32:57):
gonna be a huge hurdle for them. Uh. But I
don't know. Nationally, you get the Brewers, you got the Braise,
you know, the Braids get a Kuna back back in May. Um,
I think, you know, obviously that's gonna hurt them losing Freeman,
but also it's not that bad so Brewers praise Mets.
Out of the National Aid, those are going to be
(33:17):
the big contenders, I think. Um. I mean obviously outside
of the Dodgers and then the A l you know,
Houston looks solid again Prea. I understand that's gonna hurt
a little bit, but we'll we'll see what Berlander has left.
White Sox looked took a big step last year. I
think that they're gonna be there at the end, and
(33:37):
then the Rays or the Raise. Blue Jay's lineup looks
really strong, you know, behind them, you can look at
the Red Sox and the Yankees, but it's pretty much
the usual suspects what we've seen in recent years. Uh,
you know, heading into the baseball season. I got you
and uh, and you have a podcast right now. You
run the book there, but you also have a case
(34:00):
promote that. How can people hear you? How can they
find your podcast? Yeah, you can follow us at superbook
dot com. You know, check us out, and you know
our our app is available and four states now. We're
about ready to add Tennessee to the mix in a
couple of weeks. Uh, so look us up and sign
up for app no matter where you are, you can
do that. That's under super Book Sports and uh, you know,
(34:23):
follow us and you can get all the details of
whatever we're gonna be. Well, Jay, thanks for the info.
I appreciate it. Have a wonderful weekend and that we'll
talk to you down inline. Thanks Jake, Thanks, I appreciate it.
If you thought four hours a day, minutes a week
was enough, I think again. He's the last remnants of
the old republic, a sole fashion of fairness. He treats
crackheads in the ghetto cutter the same as the rich
pill poppers in the penthouse the clearing House of hot
takes break free for something special. The Fifth Hour with
(00:23):
Ben Maller starts right now, nine in the air. Everywhere
the weekend has begun. You have locked in on the
Fifth Hour with Ben Maller and Danny g Radio, saving
you from boring weekend sports chatter. And on the Friday Podcast,
(00:50):
we are back to the regular routine here. We wanted
to chat with somebody about the world of gambling here
this week in particular, there was some of the big
moves that have happened in the NFL and big weekend. Obviously,
college basketball is massive, so we tracked down a big shot,
(01:11):
a gambling mogul from the Westgates super book, The Vice President.
That's a big title. Jake Cornegate joined us here from
Las Vegas, and Jay, thank you. Why don't we start
with Tyreek Hill. That is the massive neutron bomb story
in our little world here, So Tyreek Hill we all
(01:32):
know by now traded from Kansas City to Miami for
a buffel bag of draft fix. But we're talking about
a wide receiver. So I ask you, Jay, does this
move the needle dramatically? It certainly did. It kind of
kind of thought guard a little bit, but you know,
(01:53):
once I reviewed it with with some of the other guys,
it was understandable. Know, um, why we were going to
adjust you know, the number uh that we did, because
they were sixty and thirty. We dropped it and this
is a receiver. Now, receiver changes teams and all of
(02:13):
a sudden they're down to forty and twenty the Dolphins.
So the Dolphins basically went from sixty to one down
to forty to one off that one move. But there's
a little bit more to it than that. There's there's
some other uh moves that really compounded uh you know
this uh adjustment that we made. Uh, there's been some
before the trade, and over let's say the last three
(02:36):
or four weeks, the Dolphins have kind of become a
a sharp kind of guys uh sexy pick you know,
and then they've been getting some love and some of
the future markets, you know, around town. So once they
got Hill, you know we we we made an aggressive
move for a receiver changing teams. Yeah, and and and
(02:59):
whose word? I guess the question who's worth box? I
saw the last week we had Davante Adams who went
from Green Bay to the Raiders. Uh, Who's gonna make
more of an impact? Is it Tyreek with the Dolphins
or do you think as far as the gambling markets concerned,
is it Davante Addams of the Raiders. Well, I mean
you're talking about two of the best receivers and the
(03:21):
NFL changing teams. And you know, I always thought he'll
you know, had a huge impact on all the other
receivers you know there we were looking at it, whether
it's Robinson, Hartman or Kelsey. Um, you know they're they're
gonna have their hands full, you know with the Homes
and Company trying to move this offense along because he'll
opened up so many things with this speed. He was
(03:44):
always on the radar the defensive backs. He's always on
the radar for the defensive coordinators out there. He has
a huge impact. So I think he has a bigger
impact on the overall scheme of the offense than maybe
Adams but I'm gonna take anything away from Adams. Adams
is fantastic. We also had a fantastic quarterback. So I
(04:05):
think it's gonna be very interesting to see, you know,
the relationship that the car and and Adams will have
moving forward. Now, one of the reasons I would have
you on Jay, you had some interesting comments recently. You're
talking about the Buccaneers with Tom Brady coming back and
uh you were were quoted and you said you think
there was some some big wages that were right before
(04:28):
with insider information. Now what is the latest on that, Jay?
Is anything come of that here? How confident are you
that somebody knew something they weren't maybe maybe weren't supposed
to know, or or took advantage of that situation. I
just thought you might bring this up then, But it's
all good. Um. You know, first of all, you know
(04:49):
a lot of people thought I was complaining or was
looking to avoid the wagers or cancel them, and that's
not true at all. I wasn't complaining. I was just
telling you what I saw and what we saw all
were the type of bets that are not categorized as
speculation or hunch bets when when someone comes to your
window and ask how much you're gonna take out a
(05:11):
certain number, and then you move it. They're gonna say
what are you moving it to? And how much are
you gonna take at that number? And then they want
to revet it again, what are you moving in to?
How much you're gonna take at that number? You know
that that's because that doesn't raise your flag a little bit. Um.
You know, you're you're probably not doing your job. I'm
(05:31):
not looking to cancel. The liability is very minimal and
and our eyes something that we can really get rid
of before the season even starts. But the way they
came in in the circle of people that bet them
around the country, not just in Las Vegas, but in
many other jurisdiction. We talked to a few operators there
(05:53):
were there was definitely some leaks there that got to
a certain you know, circle of people. It wasn't like
you know, a publication or whatever the newspaper is, the
Orlando Orlando Sentinel or something like that, you know, got
a leak at it. It it's uh leak out to
(06:14):
a certain group. And I thought that was a red flag.
I mean, we're moving on, um, you know, I can't
tell you everything, but uh, you know, they're still looking
into some things. And um, again no complaints. We're gonna
be fine with a liability. We're moving forward. And I
just told people what I saw, all right, So they
(06:34):
are looking into it though, So there are there are
people like an oversight group kind of looking into it.
Is that Is that an accurate way to talk about
what's going on with Brady? That the bets? Yeah, I
I uh, you know, we we have to do certain
things here on our end um. But you know, I'm
gonna probably keep it very big and as and as
I said that they are looking into it, I'll probably
(06:57):
leave it at that, all right. And you guys now
operate You're in Vegas, but you operate in multiple states here, Jay,
and and you reference something that's interesting because because of
the way the gambling set up now, it's not fully
matured the gambling market, but it's in a lot of
places these days. How how do you guys go about
(07:18):
protecting yourself? I guess you kind of referenced a little
bit that you saw some odd things pop up there
across the country. But what's to stop somebody from going
to seven eight different states and putting down a chunk
of change on something like that or does it matter,
doesn't matter. I mean you can go to different operators.
How does that all work. I'm fascinated by this. Yeah,
I mean it's it's uh, you know, the market continues
(07:41):
to expand. It it's obviously you know, comfort to control
and regulate. I think the regulators have done a terrific job.
I think the NFL does a fantastic job. I think
the league's overall do a great job of you know,
educating the players and educating the staff everybody in their
organization and what the rules are. And if those players
(08:03):
or somebody else in the organization, uh, don't follow the rules,
there's just no way to you know, prevent that. I mean,
we have same rules for people that are in the
gaming industry. You know, many states, if not all states.
You know, employees of betting operator can't wager at um
(08:24):
you know, their own operation. And that's been the regulation
here in Nevada for for ever ever since I've been
in the industry, that's over thirty years. So but if
someone wants to ignore that rule and and and do that,
they can. But it's just as a matter of time
before they get caught, and like I said, the leagues
(08:45):
to a termendous job policing and educating their players and
staff that they can't do certain things. But if they
go out and do it, uh and ignore those uh parameters,
you know that's on them and they're going to have
to suffer the consequences. Yeah. No, And jaysonbody's been in
the gamming world for a long time. You saw that
(09:06):
the Calvin Really story. I was surprised that was only
a one day story. The Falcon receiver that was suspended
for betting and he used his own phone. J Uh
that that does not seem like the wisest move to me.
I'm not that bright myself, but I would think you
might not want to use your phone on that. But, uh,
do you think this is a regular thing in the
end of I know you're you're part of it, but
(09:28):
these players with with the odds out every Week's been
that way forever. But do you think I can't imagine
Calvin Really is the only one doing this. Do you
think do you think this is just the outlier or
do you think this is more normal? Oh? I think
that this this is gonna happen. Uh, you know, moving forward.
I just hope it's somewhat minimized, and you know, we
(09:49):
have to do our job, you know, as as operators.
You know, we you know a lot of people don't
think that we care about integrity as operators, but it's
right on top of the list. Uh, integrity is our product.
You know. We want to make sure all gains are
fair and true. You know, we don't want to be
taken taking bets on something that's predetermined, and so uh,
(10:10):
you know, as it expands, you know, yes, people have
that opportunity to make those kind of wagers. Now, what
really did I I was surprised the channels that he
used his own channels, but uh, you know, I I
think it would have been more alarming, Uh if he
bet against the falcons um. You know, but that's that's
(10:31):
a that's definitely a bigger flag than than just placing
bets you know on you know, on the faccon or
on other games. But they know the rules, they know
the guidelines and parameters, and they cross those, you know,
that's you know, those are the consequences that they're going
to have to face. A one year suspension is pretty hefty,
(10:53):
and not to mention forfeiting, you know, a pretty large salary.
All right. So as far as that looking ahead here,
and you mentioned we talked about Brady and that move
things with him coming back. You're a Colorado guy, so
you also mentioned Russell Wilson ja and how dramatically have
have things changed? Obviously the Broncos now back at the
adults table in the NFL with a quarterback. But how
(11:16):
how dramatic are we talking about the perspective from the
gambling side with Russell coming to Denver? Yeah, I mean
when we were taking bets, you know, in January and
February for next year, you know a lot of these teams,
including let's say that the team that we're looking to land, uh,
you know, a premier quarterback, and Denver certainly was one
(11:36):
of them. You know, you look at the box, you
look at the Titans, you look at the Steelers. Um.
So when when the you know, Packers resigned Rogers, you
know that that was pretty much what we thought was
going to happen. So there wasn't much of an adjustment.
Russell going to the Broncos was a big surprise. Uh,
(11:58):
you know, we didn't think that the Broncos, We're gonna
give up that many picks and and you know a
couple of very solid players, but they're in the wind
now mode and that's understandable. Uh, they're trying to win
it now. And that was a dramatic change. I mean,
the Broncos were fifteen and thirty, fifteen for the conference,
thirty for the Super Bowl prior to the Wilson announcement.
(12:22):
But that's the fifteen and thirty. There was already, um,
you know, some thoughts built into those numbers, meaning that
they possibly could land somebody. We didn't know who it was.
We didn't know it was Gumbi Watson, Wilson or somebody else,
but they were shopping and they were looking for a quarterback.
So um, with that signing, you know, the Broncos went
(12:45):
right down to ten and twenty. So it was a
pretty big move. But it probably would have been bigger
if we uh, if it would have been a team
not looking for a premier quarterback. But the Broncos were
only fifteen and thirty as they were, sir and hunting
for that next quarterback. Yeah. And you look around the
NFL here and the balance of powers, it's all on
(13:09):
the a f C. I mean to me, I look
at the NFC. I see like three, maybe four teams
in the NFC that realistically, the outside of some lightning strike,
can can get to the Super Bowl and win it.
But in the a f C, you can make a
compelling argument for six teams maybe maybe even more than
that in the In the a f C, this thing
(13:29):
is really really shifted. And I am I seeing this right?
Is that it is my perspective correct. There's a lot
of teams in the a f C and not as
many in the NFC that seemed to be at the
very top levels. That an accurate portrayal of the gambling market.
Oh sure, I mean, look at all the premier quarterbacks.
They're all in the a f C. Outside of Brady,
you know you uh, you know, Stafford and the defending
(13:52):
champions are right there as well. Um, but the forty
nine will be there, certainly, the packers in the NFC,
the favorites there. I would suspect that, um, there probably
will be a team that we're not even looking at
that will pop up and be contenders at the end
of the you know, the next season. But the a
(14:13):
f C is just loaded, especially when you talk about
the quarterbacks. Everybody's talking about the a f C West,
and and that still holds true, you know with the
with an announcement that Hill is gone. Um, you know,
the the Chiefs just got closer to the rest of
the pack in the a f C West as everybody's
(14:33):
creeping up. I mean, Mahomes is going to be on
the highland out there and he's got a lot of
work to do because everybody else in that West division
is pretty loaded. Their rosters are very, very solid, and
it's gonna be it's gonna be one of those where,
you know, if the best team might be in the
(14:53):
a f C West, but because they're they're probably going
to beat up each other throughout the season. They might
not have of the best record in the a f C. Yeah, Well,
what do you do with a team like the Bengals
who were that out of nowhere team this past year
to get to the Super Bowl? And uh, they did
make some moves here they added to the offensive line. Uh,
(15:14):
a team like Cincinnati, did they go back uh and
did never never land? Or are they gonna gonna be
a prominent team again this upcoming? You what do you
think on that? Well, they're in between. You know, they're
not the favorites. They're they're you know, not an underdog,
but they're they're in the same category as the Denver Broncos.
You know, their ten to one for the conference, twenty
(15:36):
for for the super Bowl, and to put back to
back seasons together like they just had, it's gonna be
very difficult because everybody in their division is going to
be shooting for him. The Bangers will have a huge
target on their backs. And you've got quality rosters on
many teams in the a f C that could easily
(15:56):
win win that conference. So they're not the every they're
they're not a huge underdog, but they're probably at the
bottom of that maybe the top of that second tier
and staying in that division. Jay the Cleveland Brown's upsetting
many people. They get Deshaun Watson from the Texans, But
did they really get Deshaun Watson because he's facing some
(16:18):
kind of punishment from the NFL. So how how do
you guys handle a team like the Browns where you
don't really know for sure how many games if you
know any who knows Deshaun could be suspended for a
long years. So what do you do with a guy
like Deshaun Watson and the Browns there, Yeah, they're they're
at nine and eighteen and and uh, I think that's
gonna be an interesting story to follow because the Browns
(16:41):
have a fantastic offense. We all know that they can
run the ball, so that's certainly gonna help out Watson.
You know, they have some weapons there that offensively and defensively.
They got a really strong roster. You know, where they
were lacking was at the quarterback position. But we're talking
about a player that hasn't played in a while. We're
sure how good he's going to be. Is he going
(17:02):
to be able to up right back in and and
you know play to a level that you know where
he left off because he was playing at a very
high level, um, you know before all this came down.
So it's another contender in the a f C. And
the odds really reflect that as they're only nine to
(17:24):
one to win the a f C with all this
other competitions surrounding them. Who has been the hot team? Jay?
Who are who? People? The public? Who is there any
one team at this point we haven't even gotten the
draft yet, but is there is there one team that's
the hot sexy team the smoke show that the public
is jumping all over here. Well I can I'm just
(17:45):
looking at the ticket accounts right now then and some
of the ticket accounts, uh, people are in love with
a few teams here. It's very well balanced as far
as if you were to look at the top ticket
accounts and the for the Super Bowl and talking about
you're talking about teams like these, the Titans, Uh, the
(18:07):
um Bengals are right up there as well. You've got
the Bills, who are the favorites along with the Rams
um to actually win the Super Bowl. And then out
of the NFC. Uh, some of the top ticket account
leaders here are well, of course the Buccaneers. Now, uh,
(18:30):
the Buccaneers, you know they're they're they're always gonna be
a hot, hot flavor here with with you know who
coming back. But now you look at the usual suspects.
Then after that you look at the Packers. Of course,
the Cowboys and the forty Niners. Forty Niners are actually
(18:50):
right up there towards the top. They're they're kind of
another I'm not gonna say a sharp guy type of play. Ah,
it's more of a recreational player. A lot of people
believe in the forty Niners, and I don't blame them.
They they were playing great ball last you know, during
the playoffs, they look like they were going to be
(19:11):
the team. Um somehow, you know, the Rams won that game.
But forty Niners are certainly a team that's uh championship
worthy and of course a bit of a wild card though,
because they're supposed to change quarterbacks so that they still
have Jimmy Garoppolo with Tree Lance. Who know who knows
whether he's gonna be great or not. But I didn't
want to move on from that. Jay college basketball. As
(19:32):
we are talking here, as we're talking, the the second
weekend has not begun. So let's look back at the
opening weekend here. I heard a bit of a sounds
like a father there is that a good or a
bad sign? Here? How did everything go the first week?
It seems to me from a talk radio perspective, JA,
from where I'm at, this is a pretty good mix
(19:54):
for me, because there's still a lot of the traditional
college basketball powers that made it into the second week,
with a mix of a few surprise upstart teams. But
for you, where are you at on the the n
c A tournament at this point. Well, you know, a
good mixture of you know, premier teams and underdogs is
(20:18):
always a great recipe for us. Um. You know, we
we don't want all underdogs, we don't want all favorites,
we don't want all uh you know, the top tier
teams advancing. We we uh, we prefer a good mix.
And that's exactly what happened in the first weekend. And
they you know, with I mean I'm not talking about
big underdogs like St. Peter's, but teams like either Michigan
(20:40):
or North Carolina, those teams that had some you know,
uh um, some purse seating that you know, made some noise.
And these teams are um, I'll tell you they are. Um,
they're they're making us look really good because of the
results that the first weekend and was one of the
(21:01):
best martial madnesses we've ever had. And uh, you know,
we we did really well all four days out here
in Vegas. The venue was just packed. We we have
you know, we have the world's largest race of sports
books here and we also have a theater that seats people.
(21:21):
Both venues were sold out for the first three days
of the tournament, and that continues as we speak. We
we have some great crowds in house for the second
weekend here and um no, it's it's been fantastic. It's
a it's been a great tournament. Um. I think the
expansion of sports gaming throughout the country has really helped us.
(21:43):
That a lot of people thought that was gonna hurt us.
But I talked to so many people last weekend where
they were from, and they a lot of them came
in from jurisdictions that just you know, recently approved sports
gaming and they said, you know, once that happened and
they got you know, uh, you know, involved in it,
(22:04):
they knew that Vegas was going to be a box
that they needed to check. And we had so many
new customers come in and again, remember this was our
first true marriage madness in three years. Uh, you know,
we didn't have that one two years ago. Last year
we were restricted to. This year was full blown and
(22:25):
people were just elated to be out here, uh and
enjoying the you know, the tournament once again. Yeah. I
gotta tell you, I was in Vegas a few weeks
ago and I went to uh I think one of
one of your establishments. It is insane. The quality of
the video. It's like being at an NFL stadium now
with some of the stuff you guys have in these
(22:45):
sports books. It's it's it's absolutely amazing, and you guys
were charging. I was curious when I was walking through,
I was like, I wonder how this is gonna work
for the for the tournament. So did people have to
buy tickets? Is that how that went to watch? Or
they reserve seats or because I would think that that
was gonna be a madhouse the first couple of days
for sure, So how did that work? Well, yeah, you
(23:06):
have a good mixture. You have some first come, first serve,
you have some you know, basic reserve seating. Then you
also have v I p uh seating as well, that
which usually includes uh, you know, premier real estate in
the sports book with all your food and drinks included,
you know, I mean pricing of these things range from
forty dollars to and so it's uh and again they
(23:31):
were all sold out, so um you know, we we
always try to um accommodate all different levels and that's
exactly what happened. That was it was just really great
to see how many people were just having such a
good time, and you know, remember Marshal Madness is mostly
made up of males. In fact, it's probably nine five males,
(23:56):
and a lot of it is our reunions, people that
went to school together or co workers or just have
some history together and then they meet up here and
they always seem to come in groups of you know,
two to six guys, and um, I can't remember ever
seeing the level of enthusiasm that we saw here. It
(24:16):
was people were just having a good time, you know,
and we did really well, so you know, they were
doing that great on the betting side of things. You know,
they had their moments just like they always do, but
you know that that didn't curb the enthusiasm at all. Uh,
they had a blast and it was just a lot
of fun, a lot of excitement, and uh, the atmosphere
(24:39):
was just terrific here in the Super Bowl. Yeah, it's
I can imagine. Well, for three years in the making, right,
people been waiting around with the COVID and all this stuff.
So as far as a team like St. Peter's though,
Jake kind of walk me through that they're they're off
the grid, small school. Uh. Was anyone actually betting on St.
Peter's against Kentucky or was it mostly on on Kentucky
(25:00):
that first big upset of March Madness back last week. Well,
I'll say it wasn't a heavily beat game compared to
some of the others, because you know a lot of
the public out there they don't really like to lay
those big points and and uh, you know, on the
flip side, they're not really you know, have a history
of supporting in teams like St. Peter's, So it had,
(25:23):
you know, a fair amount of action versus all the
other games St Peter's. Um certainly, I'll tell you the St.
Peter's open five thousand and one, all right to win
it all and now they're down to five one to
win it all. But that that game against Kentucky, which
it just electrified the room. I mean, there were a
(25:47):
lot of I think anybody that was not wearing blue
and white in the room was cheering for St. Peter's. Uh,
it was, it was. It was incredible. And I'll tell
you the second game against Murray State, and no one
believed in St. Peter's. Everybody was on Murray State. And
(26:07):
I understand that Murray State was a you know, eight
and a half point favorite, and St. Peter's pretty much
controlled that whole game and came out with an easy
win and going into you know this today, you know
it's St. Peter's is um, you know, not really getting
a lot of attention from the bettors Um, but a
lot of people have wondered why they're still getting double
(26:27):
digits and being in the business for a long time.
We don't make knee jerk changes, you know. We we adjust, uh,
little by little, and that's exactly what we did with
their power ranking. If this game would have been played,
you know, before the tournament even started, uh, you know,
Purdue probably would have been like a fifteen sixteen point favorite.
(26:49):
So now it's down to twelve because of what St.
Peter's did the first weekend got you And is there
one team of the fields we head in again we're
talking before the sweet sixteam, But is there one team
that is getting the the action, the popular pick by
popular people here of the field remaining in the tournament? No,
not really. It's really spread out, and as it should
(27:11):
be because there's just so much parody. We saw a
number of these number one seeds either you know, one
one got knocked out, but you look at it and
it seems like all of them got tested. You know
what maybe Kansas did in Kansas, Kansas. To me, it
looks like they just got an easy road, you know,
to to the final four. You know that Miami's there,
(27:32):
but other than that, they're looking pretty good to get there.
And that's why their their odds are a little lower
than maybe some of the others, because the others have
a tougher road to get there. Like Kansas, everything opened up,
you know, as you know, their number two seed, number
three seed in that region have already lost. So uh,
(27:52):
they're they're looking pretty good. But when it when it
comes down to it, it looks like it probably could
be Gonzaga. You know, They're they're just so good. The
power ranking on them is so hi that they're gonna
be a favorite no matter who they play. Um, but
watch out, you know, watch out for those Gags, but
also watch out for those Jayhawks because they got an
easy road. Interesting all right, now, speaking of wide open
(28:16):
this is very rare. I want to go to the
NBA j because you know, typically, I know, we're not
quite at the time where people get all excited for
the NBA, but the playoffs will be here before you
know it next month. And typically the NBA, I could
I could pick five teams JA and I would be right.
I would say over the last twenty five years, I
would be right. Twenty four out of the TWI I
(28:37):
picked five teams, one of them would win the championship.
I don't see it that way? Am I wrong in that?
I look at the NBA and I see I know
Celtics have played well recently as we're talking here, but
that looks pretty wide open like that. I don't see
the typical four teams that are invincible, four or five
teams in the NBA or that that just nobody can beat.
(28:59):
So what's going on in the NBA as far as
the gambling world is concerned? You you know, the NBA
is wide open, as you stated, especially in the East side,
you know, the West side not so much. But anybody
can come out of the East. There's like six teams
that will have the chance of coming out of you know,
the Eastern Conference, but not as many teams on the
(29:22):
Western side. But you're exactly right. It's not down with
two teams. It's not down to four teams. There's there's
probably eight teams that could win the championship this year,
which you know, as a bookmaker, we're loving well. And
what what do you do with a team like the Lakers? Now?
I know, you know you're in Vegas, but you guys
run uh you know, gambling shops and other states and stuff.
(29:42):
But in Vegas. Every time I go to Vegas, I
go to a sports book and I have to go drink.
Basketball season. There's a million guys in there with Laker gearon.
And are are people still betting on the Lakers? There's
been a miserable season for the Lakers. Here are people
still loading up on the Lakers despite the be as
flawed roster that they appear to have this year, and
then the way it's played out all season, that's exactly
(30:05):
what's happening. They just can't get away from the Lakers.
You know, the Lakers are on right now, which they
probably should be like, but people continue to bet them.
And right now, we have so much liability on the
Lakers that they were to somehow pull this off that uh,
I might be looking for a different job by the
(30:26):
end of tune if they were to win it. But
they it's not. Yeah, it's it's something that they just
can't get away from They still believe somehow they're going
to make a d eighty degree turn and make this
thing happen. But we don't see it as bookmakers. But
we've got to be careful because you know, we were,
(30:47):
you know, we're taking bets on this at some hefty odds,
and that liability does add up very quickly. But you're
spot on. They love Lakers and they continue to do
it despite the play that we see on the court there,
I mean, and all of our eyes out here, there's
no chance they're gonna win. Okay, I'll knock on wood,
(31:07):
but you know, you know, I just you know, it's
just they have so many issues, so many problems they
you know, just to turn the switch on. I just
don't see how they could do it. Yeah, I agree
with you, But like I said, every time I've we've
been in Vegas, it's like a million guys, you know,
all wearing their Laker gear, convinced that the that they're
gonna turn the switch. All right, Well we'll get out
(31:29):
on this. Ja Baseball a bunch of moves has been
very interesting the last couple of weeks, with all the
free agent signings and trades, a bunch of transactions all
packed in and the season getting going in a couple
of weeks here, Uh, any of those, you know, Freddie
Freeman to the Dodgers, Carlos Carea went to the Twins,
a bunch of big trades, anything moving the needle there,
(31:53):
any impactful things as far as baseball is concerned down
the line, which is not until obviously October. But did
anything really stand out to you guys in the gaming world. Well,
you know, it's about the Dodgers around here, and and
they they clearly, I mean, that lineup is ridiculous, right,
I mean, at Freeman to the mix that's just crazy.
I mean, now, you know, losing Seeger, it just isn't
(32:16):
a big deal, you know. Uh, it's all gonna be
about their pitching. You know, if Bauer could uh you know,
I think if he's able to clear it and somehow
get back to the Dodgers at some point, that is
like adding another ace to to their their staff. I'm
sure the Dodgers are not done. They'll probably you know,
(32:36):
add another picture or two down the stretch. So they're looking,
you know, like the team a bit. We we expect
them to win more than a hundred games this year.
I mean looking out West, you look at the two
tease injury again, that's the problem. Well you got to
Carves and Snell look a little passive prime and that's
(32:57):
gonna be a huge hurdle for them. Uh. But I
don't know. Nationally, you get the Brewers, you got the Braise,
you know, the Braids get a Kuna back back in May. Um,
I think, you know, obviously that's gonna hurt them losing Freeman,
but also it's not that bad so Brewers praise Mets.
Out of the National Aid, those are going to be
(33:17):
the big contenders, I think. Um. I mean obviously outside
of the Dodgers and then the A l you know,
Houston looks solid again Prea. I understand that's gonna hurt
a little bit, but we'll we'll see what Berlander has left.
White Sox looked took a big step last year. I
think that they're gonna be there at the end, and
(33:37):
then the Rays or the Raise. Blue Jay's lineup looks
really strong, you know, behind them, you can look at
the Red Sox and the Yankees, but it's pretty much
the usual suspects what we've seen in recent years. Uh,
you know, heading into the baseball season. I got you
and uh, and you have a podcast right now. You
run the book there, but you also have a case
(34:00):
promote that. How can people hear you? How can they
find your podcast? Yeah, you can follow us at superbook
dot com. You know, check us out, and you know
our our app is available and four states now. We're
about ready to add Tennessee to the mix in a
couple of weeks. Uh, so look us up and sign
up for app no matter where you are, you can
do that. That's under super Book Sports and uh, you know,
(34:23):
follow us and you can get all the details of
whatever we're gonna be. Well, Jay, thanks for the info.
I appreciate it. Have a wonderful weekend and that we'll
talk to you down inline. Thanks Jake, Thanks, I appreciate it.
Host
Ben Maller
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