NBA Finals - The Rematch

This is the one everybody wanted to see. OKC wanted to see this too! Cavs vs Warriors.

 Steph against Lebron.

Love matched up with Green.


Both teams playing well. Both teams shooting a high percentage from outside 3 point line.
Vegas has the line set at +180 for series if you take the Cavs. You lay a price of -230 if you
like the Warriors.

Cavs are rested. Warriors are coming off a hard fought series against OKC. The Dubs would not even
be in the NBA Finals without Klay Thompson. I expect him to have a good series and dominate his match up with J.R. Smith or Shumpert. Irving will have something to prove and will score consistently against whoever plays him.

Curry and Lebron will cancel each other out with both having outstanding moments. Curry is more proficient in the clutch. Iguodala will match up with James and will start if the Cavs go up a game
on them.

Tristan Thompson will dominate Bogat in the middle. Andrew looked spent in game 7. Expect to see Eziel more.

Harrison Barnes is X factor. He is due for a breakout game. Channing Frye is X factor for Cavs. They may leave both of these guys open and they have ability to make opponents pay.

Both Benches are strong. Slight edge to Warriors.

Coaching edge goes to Kerr. Lue does have the pulse of his team. I am curious about his ability to adjust on the biggest stage of professional coaching career.

Fantasy Picks.
Lebron James is averaging 24.6 points,8.6 rebounds and 7 assists.
Kevin Love has 9 double double in the playoffs so far.
Draymond Green has 6 double double and 1 triple double in the playoffs.
Curry is averaging 26 points,almost 6.0 rebounds and 6.0 assists.
Thompson is dropping 26.2 with less production in rebounds and assists
Irving is averaging 24 points but give minimal numbers in the other categories.

Go with solid across the board and take Lebron over Curry.

Go with the champs in 7 and grab the Warriors. Don't let the price or the Lebron got help this time
sway you. Warriors dominated the Cavs in last meeting. The homecourt advantage is the difference.
I will add the video highlight of each game so you can get the top play of  #NBA Finals.

Game 1: Curry No look pass to Iguodala. Video.
Game 2: Warriors work the ball for an open 3. Video
Game 3: Lebron catches lob pass from Irving. video



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East Coast Gaming Congress - Day Two Recap

Day Two of The East Coast Gaming Congress was insightful because the panels were tackling issues that had the old guard vs. 21st Century thinking. I shuttled between Gender Equality in the Gaming Industry and Atlantic City.. And North Jersey?  They were in adjacent areas so I was able to cover both.

Virginia McDowell

The Gender Equality Panel consisted of Jan Jones Blackhurst,Vice President of  Government Relations at Caesars Entertainment, James Allen, CEO of Hard Rock International and Jane Bokunewicz,Assistant Professor of Tourism Management from Stockton University.  The moderator was the esteemed Virginia McDowell, President  and Board Chair of Global Gaming Women. This session should have been held by itself.  The turnout was light but the message was powerful. Women are underrepresented in management positions and are paid substantially less than their male counterparts. But the message and the numbers do not resonate unless they are heard by everyone. Most of the attendees were women and minorities. The data supports that companies that are diverse do better than one's that are not. Companies that have women in position of leadership are making more money than those where only men are present.

 

The Atlantic City ...And North Jersey panel had the most fireworks. The groups were divided by the trio that wanted a gaming expansion into North Jersey and one that was opposed. The Atlantic City group wants to maintain the momentum that they have by citing the increases in hotel occupancy and revenue over this time two years ago. They feel that casinos in North Jersey would derail that growth.

The North Jersey supporters of Jeff Gural and Paul Fireman, the two primary investors of the proposed Meadowlands and Jersey City project respectively, think that they are going after a market that Atlantic City does not have presently. No happy medium was reached.

 

The Casino Floor of Tomorrow gave a glimpse at what everyone thought the future gaming floor would look like. The consensus of this panel was that while we can't forget about our present customers, we must allocate a percentage of our space that will engage a younger crowd.

Geoff Freeman

Geoff Freeman, President & CEO, American Gaming Association, requested that the gaming industry do 3 things. The industry should expose the problems, see the opportunities and unify the stakeholders. This includes Sports Betting and Daily Fantasy Sports.

Part Two of the Day 2 recap will be on my Facebook and Twitter  mediums.


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East Coast Gaming Congress - Day Two Recap (Part 2)

The afternoon sessions of the East Coast Gaming Congress featured the CEO panels. This is the highlight of the conference. This year was unique because the organizers of the conference had a fashion show as to quote Lloyd Levenson, "To lighten things up."

Lloyd Levenson  (standing) with Mark Frissora

Here our two images of the Fashion Show Presentation by Cintas.

I decided to give bulletin board material to all of my readers. This can be used as food for thought and came directly from the CEOs that were on the last two panels.

James Allen

James Allen- CEO of Hard Rock International: "One size does not fit all. Look for a Return on Investment of 15 to 17% before committing to a deal."

Bobby Soper- CEO of Mohegan Sun :"Innovation drives business. Right size your investment"

Felix Rappaport- President & CEO of Foxwoods Resort Casino: "Go after brands that are highly engaged in social media."

Keith Smith

Keith Smith- President & CEO of Boyd Gaming: "Trying to predict the future is impossible. Don't lose sight of the core customer of today"

Tim Wilmott- President & CEO of Penn National Gaming: "Combine all platforms to your Loyalty Programs"

Greg Carlin - CEO of Rush Street Gaming:  Carlin was the most innovative with his presentation.
He incorporated a video that dealt with the fantasy sports betting issue. He got the biggest rise from the crowd.  My take from his presentation is that you have to engage your audience and your customer to keep them in tune to your message.

The CEO panel also included Mark Julliano, President Sands Bethlehem, Dave Cordish, Chairman of Cordish Companies and John E.Taylor Jr., Chairman of Twin Rivers Worldwide Holdings.

This year's Conference was the best one I have ever attended. This is the only conference that you can get an intimate conversation with the CEOs and network with your peers at the same time. Worth the money! I would double down next year and await  #ECGC21.

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East Coast Gaming Congress Recap Day 1

The East Coast Gaming Congress entered it's 20th year of providing information and updates from the top organizations in the gaming industry. This year opened with the I Gaming Institute.

After the welcoming address, the keynote presentation was given by Itai Pazner, Head of B2C,

888 Holdings. Mr. Pazner cited the growth in E Commerce along with the potential increase of DFS and social casinos as reasons for optimism. 888 is currently in 9 regulated markets.

The 1st roundtable was the I Gaming: The View from New Jersey. This panel consisted of several top operators and one regulator. It was moderated by Eugene Johnson, Senior Vice President from Spectrum Gaming. The key takeaways  from this discussion were the absence of cannibalization with the online gaming product compare to the brick & mortar. George Rover, Director of Gaming Enforcement for New Jersey indicated that in over 2 years there was not one case of underage gambling.

The sessions were divided for the next panels, so I went to the I Gaming Expansion- Who's Next?

Pennsylvania, California and New York were all mentioned as possible players with different levels of optimism. California and New York are leaning to Poker only in an online gaming environment.

Pennsylvania would mimic New Jersey and do casino games and Poker. None of these states appear ready to leap into action in 2016.

One of the final panels of the day was Attracting Millennials: How to connect with the Next Generation. Each participant on this panel felt that the creation of an integrated resort experience that has non gaming amenities along with gambling is the way to go forward. Operators must have multiple catch points and target the millennial customer differently than a Baby Boomer or Generation X patron.  Victor Rocha, Owner and Editor of Pechanga.net, cited skill based gaming as a way of building the casino floor of the future. Chris Davidson, moderator and VP of Global strategy for MMCY Global had an excellent slide presentation. Sarah Robertson, from Income Access  & Dana Takrudtong, Vice President of Sales for GAN, represented their companies admirably. This was the highlight of the first day at #ECGC20th.

A networking event closed the day. It was held at the Pool at Harrah's Resort in Atlantic City.
                                                                Here is a peek.

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                             My day two recap of the Conference will be on LinkedIn.

Smart Responsible Gaming

This is the change I have been alluding to. Over the past weeks, I have mentioned that I was going to add a new feature to the website. I totally changed it. That change is Smart Responsible Gaming.

We will promote an intellectual view that will focus on a younger and new gamer. I am excited and passionate about this endeavor. Our posts will provide information about fantasy sports, sports betting and skill base games. There will still be updates about entertainment from the casino world. We will still provide interviews from the top executives,insiders and policy makers periodically.

What we were doing before this change was giving 70% of our attention toward the traditional casino player. A transition had to be made to stay relevant.

So we have invested in a new look for the website. smartresponsiblegamng.com

Gone are the static references to major sports leagues and gaming capitals. Our post will engage you with fresh content that will include this week in gaming review and  the current sporting event that is trending on social media.

You will get an insider perception of what going on. This will come from people that actually work in the professions they are sharing their opinions about. Imagine watching NFL Insiders and you'll visualize what we are doing. We will be data driven with analytics that will support assessments.

The biggest addition is the mobile app that accompanies this transition. Smart Responsible Gaming is available on Android and I phone versions. It is currently in the App Store - Official Site and can be downloaded for free. It will allow you to look at gaming as a social medium that requires planning to minimize risk.

It includes concepts that are novel such as nutritional advice. The app provide access to real time engagement.  The app will also increase your awareness so you'll make sound decisions. Decisions that will improve your gaming experience and allow for a balance quality of life.   If you are interested in online gaming or the aforementioned information targets, you can review it here.

Thanks to all that read any prior post over the past 3 years and are coming with us.

Welcome all the new audience members for joining in.
Enjoy the journey!
.
A new logo will accompany this change. For more details e mail info@smartresponsiblegaming.com

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                                                                  #ECGC20th

NBA Final Four

We are down to the last 4 teams in the NBA. We have the Cavaliers, Raptors, Warriors and OKC.
The anticipated matchup between this 4 would be between the Cavs and Golden State because they were in the Finals last year.

First things first. The Warriors are heavy favorite over OKC. They are a -500 to win the series.
The Thunder are a +400 to win. That means if you take OKC and bet 100 on them to win, you get 400 back. You also get your 100. Sounds good! But not likely to happen. Warriors have OKC number this year, winning each time they have played. Curry will give them something to talk about. This should be quick. Golden State in 5.

Cavaliers are favored against the Raptors because they are playing their best ball of the season right now. They have home court advantage and are well rested. Lebron, Love and Irving are all playing well. The entire team is shooting outstanding from 3 point range. Cavs are rested. Raptors did take the season series 2-1 from them. They will only win 1 in this series. Cavs in 5.

I saw a nice prop bet that had Curry and Thompson vs. Durant and Westbrook. Who would score the most?  Durant and Westbrook are a -150 to win a hundred. I like that bet because Durant and Curry will cancel each other out. Westbrook will win his match up of scoring over Klay.

                                                                     Enjoy the games!


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Hugo's Frog Bar & Chop House in SugarHouse Casino

SugarHouse Casino is having it's ribbon cutting ceremony on Monday, May 9th.This will mark the completion of the 164 million dollar expansion and renovation reported by the Philadelphia Business Journal. This  is a prelude to the unveiling of a fine dining restaurant located by the riverfront. Hugo Frog's Bar and Chop House is renowned in Chicago and will become part of the Philly restaurant scene this month.

I was able to have a private,pre opening tour and dinner earlier this month.
“We are excited to bring an unmatched level of beef quality to a city that is steeped in steak history, from cheesesteaks to porterhouse,” said Hugo’s General Manager Jeff Cybulski.
“We know the city will be sweet on our new SugarHouse Philly Cut 12-ounce steak, as well as the quality, service and atmosphere that are central to the Hugo’s experience.”

The friendly atmosphere of Hugo Frog was on full display when I met Restaurant Manager Raju Jamil. He made it a point to greet every table and patron.Raju was associated with several fine dining establishments, notably the Palm Restaurant that is located in center city.

My server was Meagan. She admitted to being nervous but I could not tell. She delivered flawless service and paid attention to detail through out. Mind you, this was the 1st day that the staff actually serve food to someone other than each other.

 

My most memorable moment during my meal was the presentation that displayed the meat and the different cuts that you could order. I never witness that! This was a superb idea that had me salivating what to order. I decided not to let my eyes rule my stomach and ordered the scallops with shrimp cocktails as an appetizer. My dinner companion decided on the sea bass with crabmeat avocado as her appetizer.We enjoyed our meal and would recommend either of these selections if you desire.

 

 

 

Several other friends that were seated near me order steak ranging from filet mignon to porterhouse. After their food arrived. there was minimal conversation within an earshot of me as everyone was concentrating on eating. I expect them to come again.

 

 

 

My dessert recommendation would be the chocolate mousse. It has oreo shavings at the bottom.

 

Delectable!

Several points of note. Hugo's gives healthy portions so you should come hungry and leave full.

They also encourage sharing so you will get a chance to experience things together. The combined seating in the bar and dining rooms will accommodate more than 300 guests. Add this to a breath taking view and you'll tell everyone you know about Hugo's Frog Bar & Chop House in Philadelphia. The only location is at SugarHouse Casino. Where Philly loves a Winner!

Hugo's Frog is now open.

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