We hope this issue of the Bondi Bulletin finds you healthy, hanging tough and not going stir crazy!
Speaking of not going stir crazy, we have been providing horse racing picks for those looking to make a few bucks and have a little action during the shutdown of major sports. If your state does not offer these options, visit our list of Approved Sportsbooks or give Harry a call at 1-877-332-0077 for details. Now, more than ever, it makes sense to be set up with a reliable outlet offshore.
We made a fortune during March Madness last year and were prepared to do the same in 2020. Even though the tournament was cancelled, some clients called to ask who I thought was going to win it all. The NCAA never released brackets, so I used Joe Lunardi’s brackets and my Final 4 was going to be Kansas, Dayton, Michigan State and Oregon.
Kansas was clearly the best team for most of the season. They really had no weaknesses, although Head Coach Bill Self has a reputation of choking in big games. If you missed seeing Dayton play this year, you missed one of the most exciting teams in several years. Head Coach Anthony Grant did a great job making the Flyers a Top 5 team for the first time since 1955 and 6-foot-9 Obi Toppin is a sure-fire NBA lottery pick. They were for real with only two losses to Kansas and Colorado, both in overtime. They were effectively on both ends of the floor but were particularly outstanding on offense where they were high flying and efficient.
Michigan State was the preseason No. 1 team for good reason.They won 32 games in 2019 and returned Player of the Year candidate Cassius Winston and fellow starters Xavier Tillman and Aaron Henry. The Spartans suffered injuries and they just didn’t show up in a few early season games, but Sparty won six of their last seven games and they were playing their best basketball of the season when the season stopped. They were a veteran team with five wins over ranked teams in those final seven games. If the Spartans won the Big Ten Tournament, as I felt they would, they would have been the team nobody wanted to play in the tournament.
Oregon was my favorite team to watch this year, mainly because of the outstanding play of my Player of the Year, Payton Pritchard, a point guard extraordinaire. He could beat you from outside with his amazing range, go to the basket for his size better than any college player in the country and was an amazing passer. The Ducks battled injuries to multiple players throughout the season but were burying teams at the end of the regular season. They loved to go on scoring runs and numerous times when we were on them this year, they would be up by 5 and then three minutes later the lead would swell to 12 and a couple of minutes later it would be up 23. They could score in bunches and would have made us a lot of money in the tournament.
As for the NFL, the Panthers ended up cutting Cam Newton after not being able to trade him, even for a late round pick. Cam had a good run in Carolina, especially early in his career when he was named Rookie of the Year, won an MVP award and made a Super Bowl appearance. Amazing that the Panthers were able to get a fifth-round pick for QB Kyle Allen in a trade but got nothing for Cam. Best option for Newton is with the Chargers. Tyrod Taylor is currently the starter and he and Cam have been working out together this offseason. If Cam wins the job, it would create some buzz for a Charger squad that is moving into a new stadium and has not been able to create any traction in the LA market. Could Cam and his crazy hairdos be heading to LA?
Speaking of the Panthers, we mentioned in our last issue about how we really like the offseason moves they have made and last week there was another signing that will pay dividends as the team brought QB PJ Walker on board. While Tedy Bridgewater is the likely starter, he has been prone to injury. If he misses any time, the 25-year-old Walker will be a great fit for the offense since he played for new head coach Matt Rhule at Temple from 2013 to 2016. Walker was the best player during the shortened XFL season, leading Houston to a 5-0 record while throwing for a league-leading 1,338 yards and 15 touchdowns.
Another XFL player to make the jump to the NFL where he’ll serve as a back-up QB is Jordan Ta‘amu, who has signed with the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. The “Flying Hawaiian” is a native of Hawaii and good friends with Alabama’s Tua Tagavailoa. He was QB for the XFL’s St. Louis Battlehawks, where he led the league with a 72% completion rate and threw 12 TD passes. The Chiefs have two other quarterbacks signed, Chad Henne and Kyle Shurmur, but we expect the former Ole Miss QB to make the final roster and it will be fun to watch how Head Coach Andy Reid uses him. There’s a good chance Reid will have some plays installed for his new QB similar to what Sean Payton did with Taysom Hill the last two seasons in New Orleans.
With the signing of RB Todd Gurley, the Atlanta Falcons now have 11 former first round picks on their offensive roster. Unfortunately, for the Falcons, that may not lead to victories. They are paying $6 million to Gurley, a guy who was released by his former team and hasn’t been healthy for two years. They should have instead gone out and bolstered the defensive secondary, which as of right now is one of the worst in the league on paper. The team will most certainly look to draft some defensive help because the rest of the division is loaded at QB with Bridgewater, Tom Brady and Drew Brees.
Congrats to Harry Bondi Sports handicapper Greg Turner who bet that Tom Brady would leave New England for Tampa Bay. That late February wager paid 40-1! Look for another Bondi Bulletin in a couple of weeks.
Stay in touch and stay healthy!