Rockets agree to 3-year deal with C Miller

Basketball Betting Lines

07/17/2010 -

HOUSTON (AP) -Free agent center Brad Miller has agreed to a three-year, $15 million contract with the Houston Rockets.

Agent Mark Bartelstein said the 7-foot Miller will back up All-Star center Yao Ming, who's expected to return healthy next season after sitting out a year to recover from foot surgery.

The 34-year-old Miller averaged 8.8 points and 4.9 rebounds for Chicago last season. Miller played in Sacramento from 2003-09, including three seasons playing for current Houston coach Rick Adelman.

Bartelstein said in a phone interview on Saturday that reuniting with Adelman was a major factor in Miller's decision.

The Rockets initially pursued Chris Bosh when free agency opened on July 1. But Bosh chose to join LeBron James and Dwyane Wade in Miami. Houston agreed to terms this week with restricted free agents Kyle Lowry and Luis Scola.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Wwwclassiccasino Basketball Betting News

<< Ilgauskas joins new-look Heat
Miami, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Center Zydrunas Ilgauskas has officially joined former Cavaliers teammate LeBron James in Miami. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the Plain Dealer of Cleveland reported earlier in the w

<< Kings sign Richardson for one year
Los Angeles, CA (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Los Angeles Kings signed forward Brad Richardson to a one-year contract on Saturday. The Belleville, Ontario native is coming off a career-high 27-point season (11 goals, 16 assists) while playing

<< Polanco returns for Phils
Chicago, IL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Philadelphia Phillies activated third baseman Placido Polanco off the 15-day disabled list on Saturday. Polanco has not played since June 25 due to inflammation in his left elbow. He had been playing

<< Serena to miss three events due to foot injury
St. Petersburg, FL (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Serena Williams is scheduled to undergo surgery in the near future after cutting her foot on broken glass in a restaurant. The injury will cause the No. 1 ranked player in the world to miss ev

<< Indians place Wood on DL again
Cleveland, OH (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Cleveland Indians have placed closer Kerry Wood on the 15-day disabled list and recalled reliever Jensen Lewis from Triple-A Columbus to take his spot on the roster. A blister on Wood's right index

Pennetta advances to Palermo final against Kanepi >>
Palermo, Italy (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Top-seeded Flavia Pennetta and Estonian Kaia Kanepi both moved into the finals at the $220,000 Palermo International tennis tournament with straight-set wins on Saturday. Pennetta of Italy rolled ov

Celtic inks Mexico international Juarez >>
Glasgow, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Mexico international Efrain Juarez has agreed to a four-year deal with Celtic and has met up with his new teammates in Seattle on their preseason tour of North America. The 22-year-old has been gra

Woods unable to get anything going >>
St. Andrews, Scotland (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Three-time Open champion Tiger Woods mixed four bogeys and three birdies in a round of one-over 73 Saturday at the British Open. Woods finished three rounds at three-under-par 213 and is currently

Martino to remain Paraguay's manager >>
Asuncion, Paraguay (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Gerardo Martino has agreed to a four- year contract extension to remain in charge of Paraguay's national team, although he could still leave following the Copa America tournament. Martino's new

Monfils, Montanes to battle for Stuttgart title >>
Stuttgart, Germany (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - France's Gael Monfils and Albert Montanes of Spain will square off in the final of the Mercedes Cup tennis event following their semifinal wins Saturday. The third-seeded Monfils was taken

Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com

For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.