NBA Futures: Best Values to Win NBA Championship
The first two months of the NBA season are in the books, and the impromptu All-Star festivities are right around the corner. While bettors can have action on games every night, it’s worth checking in on the NBA futures market as well. As news and transactions unfold and teams rise and fall in the standings, the futures market’s movement can present some profitable betting opportunities.
The following explores the current NBA futures market to win the NBA championship. Read on for three NBA championship futures value bets to consider as the midway point of the regular season approaches. And check out our consensus NBA Championship Futures Odds here.
NBA Championship Futures Betting Odds
All odds courtesy of BetMGM
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NBA Championship Futures Value Bets
Brooklyn Nets (+400)
No team has seen their championship futures odds move further from the start of the season to now than the Nets. That’s the kind of betting market respect that is to be expected when you pull off a blockbuster trade and land a star like James Harden. Alongside Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving, Harden completes the NBA’s latest “big three†and has Brooklyn fans everywhere hopeful of winning a title. At the time of writing, the Nets’ record of 18-12 has them sitting second in the Eastern Conference.
While the Nets undoubtedly have three of the best players in today’s NBA, there are still concerns when one dives into the roster. The main weakness is in the frontcourt. The Nets traded away Jarrett Allen as part of the Harden deal. Needless to say, DeAndre Jordan and Jeff Green aren’t quite the caliber of big men that the promising Allen is at this stage in their respective careers. Can the Nets pull off another trade before the deadline to address this issue? Whether they do or not, Brooklyn will need to up the intensity on the defensive end if they hope to contend for a championship. The Nets basically undo their NBA best 121.7 points per game by allowing an average of 117.9 to their opponents.
Brooklyn’s 4-1 odds to win the NBA championship are the second shortest on the board behind only the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers (+250). The Nets clearly have the stars and the scoring talent to compete with the NBA’s top teams. It will take an upset for them not to win the Eastern Conference. Assuming they do manage to reach the NBA Finals, having a 4-1 ticket on Kevin Durant in a seven-game series is not a bad thing at all.
Utah Jazz (+900)
With a record of 24-5, Utah is the best team in both the Western Conference and the entire NBA at the time of writing. They are also by far the NBA’s hottest team. After starting the year 4-4, the Jazz have won 20 of their 21 games played since January 6th and look every bit like a true NBA championship contender.
Arguably no team plays better together than Quin Snyder’s Jazz. Donovan Mitchell is the alpha of the group, averaging 22.8 points per game. Even so, neither Mitchell nor any other Jazz player are really getting a sniff when it comes to the futures market for the NBA MVP award. Mike Conley, Rudy Gobert, Joe Ingles, Bojan Bogdanovic, Jordan Clarkson, and Royce O’Neale all play vital roles in Utah’s overall team success. The Jazz rank third in scoring defense and fourth in scoring offense, suggesting that they are far from a one-dimensional team. They also are shooting 39.3% from 3-point range, the fourth-best mark in the league.
If not for the presence of the Lakers and Nets, it’s impossible to fathom the best team in the league having lengthy 9-1 championship odds. That is exactly what bettors can get with a Jazz futures ticket. The number is moving fast, down from as high as 12-1 just a week or so ago. Utah is well worth a look when placing NBA championship wagers.
Philadelphia 76ers (+1200)
The 76ers currently sit atop the Eastern Conference standings at the time of writing with a record of 19-10. It’s clear that Doc Rivers has made positive adjustments that Brett Brown wasn’t capable of doing in his time as Sixers head coach. Philadelphia has proven to be one of the more balanced teams in the NBA. They rank ninth in scoring offense and 12th in scoring defense. Philadelphia’s strong first two months become even more impressive when you consider the virus issues that the team has had to overcome. There was a week-long stretch back in January where the 76ers had the bare minimum amount of players even eligible to play!
Of course, when praising the 76ers play through the first two months, it’s impossible not to mention Joel Embiid by name. The center is having easily his best season as a pro, averaging a double-double with 29.7 points and 10.8 rebounds per game. He is firmly in contention for the NBA MVP award, currently situated behind only LeBron James and Nikola Jokic with the third-shortest odds at +450. The Sixers have also been getting nightly contributions from Tobias Harris and Ben Simmons, and the presence of sharpshooters Seth Curry and Danny Green has helped with floor spacing.
Can Philadelphia finally put it together when it matters most in the NBA postseason? The 76ers have been building towards contending for a championship for a few seasons now. It’s hard to make a strong case that they are inferior to any Eastern Conference team. I like the Sixers’ chances of reaching the NBA Finals. From there, anything can happen, making their 12-1 championship odds worthy of a shot.
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Henry John is a featured writer at BettingPros. For more from Henry, check out his archive and follow him @HankTimeSports.