What I'm about to write might sound crazy.
I think it's very likely that one or two of the Sweet Million numbers that will be drawn the most in 2014 are currently in the lead with regard to how many times they've been drawn this year. (I'm talking about the seven numbers that have been drawn four and five times this year: 22 33 8 18 23 37 & 39)
In the past I've written in this forum that any SM number that was drawn at least 20 times per year was drawn a lot. In 2013, six numbers were drawn at least 20 times. The most number of times any SM number has ever been drawn in one calendar year happened in 2010, when one number was drawn 25 times.
Given there will be 104 SM drawings in 2014, and there have been 15 drawings to date, 14.4% of the drawings have been held. If you compare that percentage to the percentage of times the 22 or the 33 (each having been drawn five times) versus 20 times drawn, you'll get 25%. Both the 22 and the 33 are way ahead of the pace of drawings. They're at 25% of 20 times drawn, while only 14.4% of the 104 drawings to be held this year have happened.
Sure, those two numbers might go stone cold and fall back, while another number could get red hot and move ahead. But to do that, the number that gets red hot will have to make up ground in a fewer number of drawings. (In other words, it may have to be drawn in five or six consecutive drawings, which is something that has never happened in the history of SM.)
Numbers that are drawn at least 20 times per year all have one thing in common. They experience multiple times per year where they double repeat. (They were drawn in 3 consecutive drawings) I dont believe there has ever been a number that triple repeated since SM started in Sept of 2009, but I'll have to look back in Advantage Plus to verify that. But I will say this, if it has happened, it didnt happen many times.
So how do you use this information to your advantage? I'd say playing the seven numbers that are currently sitting at four and five times drawn is a smart play. Dont play all of them on a single line, rather mix them in on all of the lines you play.
I'm going to start looking back in A+ at numbers that have double repeated. I dont know if I'll gain much insight by doing that or not, but I do think that any number that's going to end up being drawn 20 times or more per year must get started early in the year, because as the year marches on(more drawings are held), there are fewer and fewer opportunities for any number to make up ground and take the lead. (A number would have to be drawn in too many consecutive drawings which just doesnt happen much.)
Right now the seven numbers in the lead have the best chance to make it to 20 (or more) times being drawn in 2014.