2018-19 NBA Championship Odds Update
It continues to be the Golden State Warriors vs everyone else on the NBA championship futures odds, as the Warriors remain massive favorites less than a month into the season.
On the latest NBA championship futures at Bovada Sportsbook, the Warriors are -165 favorites to win their third straight title and fourth in the last five years. Golden State is off to a 9-1 start and even has reinforcements waiting in the wings, with injured DeMarcus Cousins still recovering from an Achilles injury.
After the Warriors, the odds rise substantially, with the Boston Celtics next in line at +700 and the Toronto Raptors at +900. They are the only other teams getting triple-digit odds on the NBA championship futures right now.
The Celtics are still finding a way for their lineup to jell after a 6-3 start. Boston made it to the Eastern Conference championship a year ago, but that was without Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. With Irving and Hayward both healthy, it’s taken some time to figure out what the best Celtics lineup looks like every night. Bettors have a long wait ahead of them before they’ll get to see the Celtics and Warriors meet up on January 26.
The Raptors may be the best team in the East right now after a 9-1 start and the oddsmakers have taken notice, moving them to +900 from +1400. With LeBron James out of the conference, could this finally be the Raptors’ year? Kawhi Leonard has been as advertised and has fit in well alongside incumbents Kyle Lowry and Serge Ibaka. Toronto already has a win over Boston this season and gets its first shot at Golden State on November 29.
Odds for Rockets, Lakers tumble with tough starts
Two teams that have seen their odds fall on the futures are the Houston Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers.
Houston was at +850 a few weeks ago but has dropped down to +1200 after a 3-5 start. That start looked even worse before the Rockets reeled off back-to-back wins in their last two games. The addition of Carmelo Anthony alongside James Harden and Chris Paul hasn’t been very successful so far. However, if you think the Rockets that took the Warriors to seven games in the Western Conference final last year could re-emerge, they could be a great value bet right now.
LeBron James’ Lakers have been a massive disappointment so far and have fallen from +1000 to +2200 on the NBA futures. To say LeBron’s supporting cast has been lacking would be an understatement. If LeBron couldn’t take down the Warriors last year in Cleveland, does he really have a chance with this current Lakers squad?