We’ve gone the full 82, and now the real fun begins.
The NBA Play-In Tournament will tip this week as an appetizer to the NBA Playoffs this weekend.
On Tuesday, the Hornets host the Heat in Charlotte in an elimination game, while the Trail Blazers and Suns meet with the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference on the line. On Wednesday, the Magic and 76ers battle for the No. 7 seed in the East while the Warriors and Clippers face off for their elimination game.
On Friday, the winner of Heat vs. Hornets will face the loser of Magic vs. Sixers for No. 8 in the East and the winner of Warriors vs. Clippers will face the loser of Suns vs. Blazers for No. 8 in the West.
At this moment, 20 teams have a shot at the Larry O’Brien trophy. Here’s a look at every team’s NBA championship odds with the regular season in the rearview.
NBA Championship Odds
| Teams | Championship odds |
|---|---|
| Thunder | +115 |
| Spurs | +550 |
| Celtics | +550 |
| Nuggets | +900 |
| Cavaliers | 14/1 |
| Knicks | 18/1 |
| Pistons | 20/1 |
| Rockets | 60/1 |
| Timberwolves | 80/1 |
| Hawks | 125/1 |
| Hornets | 150/1 |
| 76ers | 175/1 |
| Lakers | 200/1 |
| Magic | 250/1 |
| Raptors | 250/1 |
| Suns | 600/1 |
| Clippers | 600/1 |
| Warriors | 600/1 |
| Heat | 600/1 |
| Trail Blazers | 1500/1 |
The championship odds for some teams shifted ever so slightly after Sunday’s games. Oddsmakers put more distance between the Thunder and Spurs at the top of the board, the Rockets and Hawks moved up and the Lakers and 76ers moved down.
Contenders
The Thunder have been favorites all season and have the No. 1 overall seed in the field, which gives them home-court in any NBA Finals matchup. The title favorite entering the playoffs have won back-to-back championships after a five-year drought dating back to 2019.
Assuming the Thunder win their first round matchup, they would draw the winner of Lakers vs. Rockets in Round 2 and avoid potential matchups with the Spurs and Nuggets until the Western Conference finals.
The Spurs will open the postseason with either the Suns or Trail Blazers, two teams with some veteran presence but mostly young stars at their core. They seem to be on a collision course with the Nuggets in Round 2, which could be one of the best series in the entire playoffs.
In the East, the Pistons have the home-court advantage through the Conference finals after winning 60 games. It seems that oddsmakers are skeptical of the Pistons, though. They have 20-1 odds to win it all, which would be the longest odds for a title team entering Round 1 for an eventual champion, according to data from Sports Odds History.
Challengers
The Nuggets, Knicks and Cavaliers all fall into this category. The Nuggets finished the season strong with the No. 3 seed in the West after falling back as far as sixth post All-Star break. Nikola Jokic, who missed significant time with a hyperextended knee looks to be back to MVP level while the rest of the Nuggets are finally healthy entering the postseason.
The Knicks looked to be hitting their stride beating the Hawks and Celtics to clinch the No. 3 in the East. They’ll face a scrappy Hawks team in Round 1 and potentially matchup with the Celtics in Round 2 if both teams advance.
The Cavaliers could be the team in the best position to play spoiler in the East. They face the Raptors in Round 1, arguably the most vulnerable team in the top six, and could face their division rival Pistons in Round 2. The Cavs and Pistons split their season series, but haven’t both played at full strength since James Harden was traded to Cleveland. Still both of their games after the deadline were down to the wire wins.
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Longshots
There are few teams with a realistic chance to shake things up in this field. The Lakers would need two medical miracles for Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves to return during the first round and they would still need to get past the Thunder.
The Rockets should be able to get past the Lakers and have a defensive lineup that can grapple with the Thunder, but late-game offense is their Achilles heel.
The Hornets, everyone’s favorite play-in team, need to win two games just to get into the dance and would draw the Pistons in Round 1, a team they have some bad blood with.
The one team that could be flying under the radar is the Timberwolves. They have been Western Conference finalists for two years running and have the profile of a team that should be able to hang with the elite teams in the West.
Getting the Nuggets in Round 1 is a tough draw, but they have defeated Jokic and Denver in the past and Anthony Edwards will go into any series thinking he’s the best player on the floor. At 60-1, they could be a dangerous team once the ball is tipped next Saturday.
Why Trust New York Post Betting
Malik Smith has been immersed in the sports betting industry since 2017. He’s a data nerd with a particular focus on the NBA and combat sports. He spends his weeknights in the winter looking for edges on plus-money NBA player props.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
