Sports Writer
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As is the case in most seasons, there are no more than six or seven teams that have a legitimate shot at the NBA title. The Boston Celtics are favored to repeat and should.
Who is the best Western Conference bet to knock them off and can anyone upset them in the Eastern Conference?
Team | Consensus | DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | BetRivers |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Celtics | -20000 | -10000 | -8000 | -10000 | -10000 |
Knicks | -7059 | -5000 | -8000 | -10000 | -5000 |
Thunder | -4865 | -4000 | -6000 | -5000 | -5000 |
76ers | -2264 | -1600 | -2000 | -2000 | -5000 |
Bucks | -2173 | -1600 | -1800 | -2000 | -2000 |
Timberwolves | -893 | -900 | -800 | -2000 | -1000 |
Cavaliers | -886 | -900 | -850 | -2000 | -910 |
Nuggets | -817 | -750 | -650 | -750 | -1250 |
Magic | -744 | -900 | -700 | -900 | -670 |
Pacers | -596 | -700 | -550 | -750 | -560 |
Mavericks | -524 | -525 | -430 | -550 | -670 |
Heat | -412 | -500 | -325 | -400 | -455 |
Suns | -276 | -265 | -340 | -225 | -240 |
Grizzlies | -236 | -245 | -215 | -275 | -250 |
Kings | -179 | -170 | -194 | -190 | -175 |
Pelicans | -158 | -170 | -158 | -140 | -148 |
Warriors | -120 | -110 | -110 | -115 | -115 |
Rockets | -104 | -110 | -110 | -115 | -106 |
Hawks | +165 | +170 | +146 | +165 | +180 |
Raptors | +557 | +600 | +570 | +450 | +500 |
*Odds as of October 21st
Team | Consensus | DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | Caesars Sportsbook |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Celtics | +450 | +400 | +400 | +525 | +550 |
Thunder | +833 | +600 | +1000 | +800 | +900 |
Knicks | +967 | +1000 | +1100 | +850 | +800 |
Timberwolves | +1117 | +950 | +1200 | +1100 | +1200 |
76ers | +1333 | +1300 | +1400 | +1000 | +1400 |
Bucks | +1500 | +1400 | +1500 | +1300 | +1600 |
Mavericks | +1650 | +2500 | +1700 | +1800 | +750 |
Cavaliers | +1900 | +2000 | +2000 | +2000 | +2000 |
Nuggets | +1933 | +2000 | +1800 | +1500 | +2000 |
Suns | +1967 | +2000 | +2100 | +2000 | +1600 |
Kings | +1967 | +2200 | +1700 | +2500 | +2000 |
Pacers | +2100 | +2500 | +2000 | +2000 | +2500 |
Grizzlies | +2300 | +2500 | +2200 | +2500 | +1800 |
Magic | +2367 | +2500 | +2400 | +2500 | +2200 |
Pelicans | +2867 | +3000 | +2600 | +2500 | +3000 |
Rockets | +3033 | +3500 | +2600 | +2500 | +3000 |
Lakers | +3267 | +5000 | +2600 | +2500 | +2200 |
Heat | +3733 | +4000 | +3200 | +3500 | +4000 |
Warriors | +4633 | +5000 | +4900 | +4500 | +4000 |
Hawks | +11000 | +13000 | +10000 | +20000 | +10000 |
Raptors | +28333 | +35000 | +25000 | +20000 | +25000 |
*Odds as of October 21st
Best Bet To Win a First Round Series: The Pacers. Indiana gained plenty of momentum last season and that experience will pay off during the 2025 NBA playoffs. Indiana is a threat to get out of the first round and advance to the Eastern Conference semifinals. Having Pascal Siakam will pay dividends for a team with high expectations.
Synopsis: We see the Cavs getting past the Milwaukee Bucks in what would be a mild upset. The Cavs have a good enough offense and with Evan Mobley taking a step forward, the Cavs will get to the second round. Look for Donovan Mitchell to have a big playoff series. The Knicks will get challenged, but will get past the confident Pacers.
Synopsis: Tyrese Maxey vs. Jalen Brunson will be one heck of a matchup. Joel Embiid will play well, but Karl-Anthony Towns will give the Knicks enough to get by a team that has some aging veterans off the bench. Will there be some grumblings or will the 76ers stay mentally focused? Also look for the play of O.G. Anunoby to be key for New York in the postseason.
Synopsis: It will be a war between a team looking to repeat against a team desperately looking to win a NBA title. Jrue Holiday and Derrick White are tough hombres when it matters and they will make a difference in this series.
Best Bet To Win a First Round Series: The Grizzlies. Memphis is a dangerous team that will be a tough out for the Timberwolves or whomever else it plays in the postseason. This is assuming Ja Morant is healthy and there is no way Memphis can be decimated by injury for the second consecutive season, right?
Synopsis: The West is tough, but we don’t project any first round upsets. Besides the Thunder, all four top seeds have playoff experience winning big series with their current cores.
The Thunder will just be too talented for Golden State or whatever team emerges from the play-in. Will this be the Warriors’ swan song with Steph Curry and Draymond Green in the same lineup? It probably will be. The No. 4 vs. 5 series in the West will likely be between two teams that have NBA title aspirations.
Sacramento just won’t be able to hold off the scoring of Dallas when it matters. The Nuggets will just convert too many easy buckets for Phoenix to have a realistic shot to beat them. There figures to be at least one West team that won’t be healthy around this time and it could shake things up.
Synopsis: OKC’s young core will finally get the breakthrough playoff series win it covets. Its perimeter defense with Alex Caruso in the fold, plus Cason Wallace and Jalen Williams, will slow down the defending conference champions just enough. Those who follow the NBA closely know how good Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is, and this season the casual fan will know it, too.
As for Denver, it has to take a stand; it’s now or never and even though Denver is not terribly deep, it will be a case of Joker’s Revenge as Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets will atone for last year’s playoff collapse against Minnesota.
Synopsis: It will be the Thunder’s time one day, just not now as the old guard will pull through after getting over the hump against the Minnesota Timberwolves. In order for Denver to get this far, Michael Porter Jr. will have to play better than he did in last year’s playoffs, and we think he will.
Aaron Gordon will outplay whoever checks him on OKC’s young frontline. Should the Timberwolves get past Denver, that increases the Thunder’s chances of advancing to the NBA Finals. A healthy Nuggets team has one run left in it.
Synopsis: The Celtics will repeat as champions for the first time since Bill Russell led his team (as a player-coach) to a big upset of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1969 NBA Finals.
Boston has the best combination of talent, coaching, motivation and depth that no team can match. OKC is close, it just doesn’t have the championship experience. Denver will finally run out of gas against a team that is just too potent on both sides of the ball.
Boston has the Michael Jordan mentality; creating slights to get motivated for another championship run. They also are the only team you can point to without a glaring weakness.
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