This story was originally published by Dead Spin
If the WNBA season ended today, the two-time defending league champion Las Vegas Aces wouldn’t have home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Good thing for the Aces, the 2024 campaign doesn’t halt until Sept. 19, giving them time to make a charge for the top of the “W”—or at least the top half of the bracket.
If the NFL season started today, many teams might know as much about new skill-position starters as they would when an occasionally anticlimactic preseason concludes.
Good thing there are sportsbooks out there to augment the intrigue. Let’s take a look.
NEW YORK LIBERTY AT LAS VEGAS ACES, 4.P.M. ET
A rematch of last season’s 2023 WNBA Finals highlights a “we’re back” weekend of women’s basketball. It also begins at a far friendlier hour than Sunday’s Olympic gold-medal thriller between the U.S. and host nation France, which drew droves of viewers despite a morning tip.
Sure, this game is being contested in The Land of the Replica Eiffel Tower and not the vrai one, but a look at the rosters shows 10 Paris Olympians from four countries are in the fold.
New York and Las Vegas haven’t met since June 15, when the visiting Liberty won 90-82. The Aces were without point guard Chelsea Gray (foot) then, but Gray has worked back to form and since helped Team USA win a gold medal.
Two top teams at full strength should make for an entertaining afternoon of hoops, but New York gets the nod for its superior depth and the benefit of a tune-up.
The league-leading Liberty (22-4) blasted host Los Angeles 103-68 on Thursday, behind double-figure scoring efforts from Breanna Stewart (27 points), Sabrina Ionescu (18), and Kayla Thornton (16). The Aces (16-8) are the last WNBA team to return to action after the break.
Best Bet: Liberty +3.5 (-110 at BetMGM)
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BUFFALO BILLS AT PITTSBURGH STEELERS, 7 P.M. ET
NFL preseason bulletin board material? Nah, there’s still no such thing, but Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson should be credited for his potentially inciting, if not insightful, words about exhibition games ahead of his team’s preseason debut.
Wilson missed last week’s meeting against Houston with a calf injury but nonetheless is ready to, well, cook during whatever allotment of series he gets versus Buffalo.
“I don’t play with fear,” Wilson said. “I never have. You play smart, just like in a normal game. Got to know when to get down; you got to know when to slide; get out of bounds; all those things. I don’t strap on the pads and just get ready to go and play fearful.”
Justin Fields played effectively in joint practices with the Bills this week after an up-and-down effort in the preseason opener.
Look for both combatants in the Steelers’ QB battle to move the offense against a Bills ‘D’ mourning the loss of linebacker Matt Milano (torn biceps). But this shouldn’t be a shootout after Buffalo managed just six points in its preseason opener.
Best Bet: Under 38.5 points (-105 at BetMGM)
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CLEVELAND GUARDIANS AT MILWAUKEE BREWERS, 7:15 P.M. ET
The Milwaukee Brewers remain in the hunt for the best record in baseball. Their National League Central counterparts can’t say the same.
Friday’s win against fellow division leader Cleveland, coupled with losses by the Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals, swelled the Brewers’ Central lead to 10 games, the largest in the majors.
That cushion figures to stay plump for some time, but the Crew’s three-game winning streak might be in peril.
Saturday’s Guardians starter, righty Tanner Bibee, has won three of his past four starts. Bibee has excelled lately by pitching to contact, collecting just 14 strikeouts in 22 1/3 innings over that span.
Look for Bibee to again be sharp here, much like when he defeated the Brewers in June 2023 behind six innings of two-run ball.
Best Bet: Tanner Bibee under 17.5 outs and 5.5 strikeouts as two-leg parlay (+170 at BetMGM)
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