All season long, the main question on everyone’s mind will be who can stop the Golden State Warriors from winning another NBA Championship? Now that the playoffs have finally arrived, we’ll get our answer.
The Warriors enter the postseason as a +120 favorite, according to the odds at BetDSI Sportsbook. While they’ve been the favorite from start to finish this season, their odds to win the title have actually become longer as we’ve progressed. That’s because they’re not the top team in the league according to the standings. That achievement goes to the Houston Rockets, who finished with seven more wins. Secondly, the Warriors are going to be without superstar Steph Curry for at least the first round of the playoffs, which is a major concern. When will he be back in the lineup, in what shape and will the Warriors be able to hang on without him?
Speaking of the Rockets, not only did they win seven more games than the Warriors, they also beat Golden State in two out of three meetings. Even if Golden State is fully healthy, the Rockets feel like they’re good enough to win a seven-game series with the NBA’s perceived top dog. And remember, the Rockets have home-court advantage where they went an NBA-best 34-7 this season.
In the East, the main questions are focused around LeBron James and whether or not his Cleveland Cavaliers can be stopped. Following a somewhat challenging season, they’re merely the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference. They completely overhauled their roster at the trade deadline and while they labored a little bit to get to 50 wins, they won 10 of their last 13 games and are playing well going into the playoffs. More importantly, they have LBJ in what might be his final playoff run as a Cavalier. Expect him to will his team to wins.
But the Cavs are not the top seed as the Toronto Raptors had the best record in the conference. While that’s the first time that’s happened in franchise history, few seem to be expecting this team to advance to the NBA Finals. Toronto has struggled in recent postseasons, under-performing each year in the Dwane Casey era. This is their teams, most complete team in years, though, and this is their best chance to make the finals since the Vince Carter era. We’ll see if they have what it takes to stop James and the Cavs.
If it’s not Toronto, it’s not likely to be the Boston Celtics. Once a promising team eyeing the NBA Championship, they’re without All-Stars Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward, which figures to be too much to overcome. Another team that could challenge in the East is the Philadelphia 76ers, who are the NBA’s hottest team entering the playoffs. They’ve won an incredible 16 straight. However, this is also one of the league’s youngest teams and is very short on playoff experience.
All of the action gets underway on Saturday. Here is a look at the futures to win the NBA Championship before the playoff games tip-off.
2017-18 NBA Finals Odds
Golden State Warriors +120
Houston Rockets +170
Cleveland Cavaliers +800
Toronto Raptors +1000
Philadelphia 76ers +2500
Oklahoma City Thunder +5000
Boston Celtics +5500
Portland Trail Blazers +6000
Utah Jazz +6000
San Antonio Spurs +7000
Washington Wizards +9000
Milwaukee Bucks +12500
Minnesota Timberwolves +15000
Indiana Pacers +20000
Miami Heat +20000
New Orleans Pelicans +25000
