Everything that happens in sports has some additional context when viewed from a sports betting perspective. From season-changing injuries to record-setting moments and so much more, the sports news cycle will constantly and significantly affect the sports betting industry.
Our betting buzz file, with contributions from David Purdum, Doug Greenberg and others, aims to provide fans a look at the sports betting stories that are driving the conversation.
Key links: Sports betting home | NFL odds page | College football odds page | ESPN BET 
Nov. 19: Celtics favored in bid to end Cavaliers’ streak
Doug Greenberg: At 15-0, the Cleveland Cavaliers are tied with the 1993-94 Houston Rockets and 1948-49 Washington Capitols for the second-best start to a season in NBA history, trailing only the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors (24-0).
On Tuesday night, the Cavs face their stiffest test yet when they enter TD Garden to face the Boston Celtics, who are second in the Eastern Conference standings at 11-3. Despite the discrepancy in records, Boston is a 5.5-point favorite over Cleveland, with the defending NBA champions gaining steam from the opener at -2.5, per ESPN BET odds.
The sportsbook reports that 34.3% of the tickets, but 60.9% of the handle, is backing the C’s, which would seemingly justify the line movement. DraftKings has a more slight handle advantage for the Celtics and also listed this contest at a commanding -200 odds for the Cavaliers’ first loss of the season in a special NBA futures market.
Elevating the stakes is the fact that Tuesday’s showdown is an NBA Cup game. Boston and Cleveland have been two of the most popular future selections to win the in-season tournament at ESPN BET, with the Cavs (+700) leading in bets (18%) and the Celtics (+1000) leading in money (19.6%).
If the Cavaliers’ streak does end Tuesday, it’s been a heck of a run for bettors. Bet tracking tool Pikkit reports that while nobody using its service has bet their moneyline in every game, 13 users have bet it in 13 of their 15 games to start the season.
Cavaliers by the numbers
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$1,349.54: How much you would be up, if you placed a $10 money line bet on the Cavs to win their season-opener and rolled over the winnings on each of Cleveland’s first 15 games, the equivalent of a 134-1 parlay.
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11-4-1: Cavaliers record against the spread entering Tuesday, the second-best ATS mark in league (Brooklyn Nets).
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3: The number of games in which the Cavaliers have been underdogs this season, including against the Celtics.
ESPN sports betting writer David Purdum contributed to this piece.
Nov. 18: Allen passes Jackson as MVP fave after game-winning run
Greenberg: On fourth-and-2 just before the two-minute warning on Sunday night, quarterback Josh Allen dropped back and unleashed a highlight-reel 26-yard touchdown run to seal a 30-21 victory for the Buffalo Bills and hand the Kansas City Chiefs their first loss of the season. That single play probably tipped the scales in the NFL MVP race.
Before that play, Allen trailed Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson on the NFL MVP odds board +225 to +150; immediately following the fateful score, ESPN BET moved the odds to Allen +160 and Jackson +185. As of early Monday afternoon, Allen is +150 and Jackson remains at +185.
In the last week, Allen attracted a leading 40.5% of handle to win the award, with 63.8% in the time frame since Sunday morning, per ESPN BET. Jackson is still the overall handle leader since the market opened, taking 14.4% of the money.
The quarterback facing Allen on Sunday, Patrick Mahomes, saw the precipitous drop in his odds continue after another relatively disappointing showing. The two-time MVP began the season as the +500 favorite, fell to +600 before Week 11, and now finds himself at +1200, fourth on the odds board.
The third spot on the board belongs to Jared Goff, whose odds graph resembles a roller coaster. Early in the season, the Detroit Lions signal-caller was as long as +6000, shortened to +600 by mid-October, but then rose to +4000 after he threw five interceptions in Week 10. After a demolition of the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday that made the Lions Super Bowl favorites, Goff now sits at +650 and has taken more bets in the month of November than any other contender (21.1%).
Another big mover is Justin Herbert, who led the Los Angeles Chargers to a high-profile win over the Cincinnati Bengals on “Sunday Night Football”. Herbert was 100-1 throughout October, came down +4000 before the weekend and now shows +2500 after his big night, tied for sixth in the odds.
