NBA Futures: Best Bets to Win Eastern Conference (2022)
With around 20 games remaining for almost every team in the league, the sprint is on for final seeding in both conferences. In the East, the top is as turbulent as the Nets (+270) and 76ers (+380) will have much different looking rosters than they did to start their season.
Let’s take a look at the lay of land and two teams I have my eyes on as things wind down in the Eastern Conference.
Check out our consensus and the odds at each sportsbook for NBA Champion >>
Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.
Milwaukee Bucks (+270)
The reigning champs look poised to make another deep run this postseason, as Giannis Antetokounmpo is starting to round into MVP form once again. To start 2022, Antetokounmpo is averaging 32.2 points and 11 rebounds per game, as he shoots 57% from the field. Currently #5 in the league in offensive efficiency (1.101), the Bucks will likely turn things on from a defensive standpoint as they look to surge up the Eastern Conference standings as the season winds down.
With largely the same team from last season, there’s no team in the East (and few in the West) with as much built-in chemistry as this Bucks team. While the Nets and 76ers get all the headlines, I expect the Bucks to make light work of much of the Eastern Conference before meeting one of them in the Eastern Conference Finals where they’ll likely be favored.
Atlanta Hawks (+4800)
I’ve been trying to sell this Hawks team to anyone who will listen over the past month, and think there’s a ton of value in this number. Like the Bucks, the Hawks return almost the entire team that pushed those Bucks to 2-2 in the Eastern Conference Finals just a season ago.
Following a slow start in which they dug themselves in quite the hole, the Hawks have stormed back, winning 9 of their final 16 games prior to the break to find themselves firmly in the play-in tournament. With John Collins expected back after the All-Star break, I expect a rejuvenated effort from this Hawks team and for Trae Young to engage in playoff mode early.
If the Hawks can sneak into the field of 8, they’re a dangerous team for anyone given their ability to shoot the lights out on any given night.
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