Oddsmakers list surprising team as favorite to win NBA title

Apr 4, 2023; Salt Lake City, Utah, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James (6) reacts to being called for a foul against the Utah Jazz in the last minute of the fourth quarter at Vivint Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

There are officially four teams remaining in the NBA playoffs, and you may be surprised to hear which one is favored to capture the Larry O’Brien Trophy.

The Boston Celtics will take on the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are facing two-time MVP Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Finals. Of those four, most oddsmakers list the Celtics as a heavy favorite to win it all.

As of Monday morning, SportsBetting.ag listed the Celtics with +105 odds to win the NBA Finals. The Nuggets were next at +225, followed by the Lakers at +290 and the Heat a distant +1700.

The odds at other sportsbooks and gambling sites all looked similar:

Some people were surprised to see the Celtics ahead of the Nuggets, who were the top seed in the West. Denver also made fairly easy work of the Phoenix Suns, while Boston needed seven games and looked inconsistent against the Philadelphia 76ers.

Of course, Denver has to get through LeBron and Anthony Davis to even reach the Finals. That is probably one of the biggest reasons the Celtics are considered the title favorites.

Another reason Boston is getting so much respect could be that Jayson Tatum is back to playing at an MVP level. He exploded for 16 points in the fourth quarter of Game 6 of the Western Conference semfinals to help the Celtics force Game 7. He then put together a record-setting performance in Game 7.