Updated NBA Finals Picks
With the All-Star Game in the past, the attention now turns to the NBA Finals. Which team will end up coming away with the championship this year? Here’s our current predictions.
According to oddsmakers at YouWager, the Golden State Warriors are -180 favorites to win another title while the Houston Rockets are listed at +350, the Cleveland Cavaliers are at +600 and the Toronto Raptors are at +2200. Here are three teams to consider waging on.
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors remain the favorite as they have won two of the last three championships and have appeared in three straight NBA Finals. Despite not having their best first half of the season, The Warriors still average the most points in the NBA and have the best road record in the league. The biggest challenge for the Warriors right now is staying healthy and motivation. After two titles in three years and the NBA record for wins in a season, will Golden State be able to stay hungry for another title as the teams around them continue to improve.
Cleveland Cavaliers
The three-time defending Eastern Conference champions looked lost just a few weeks ago, but the massive amount of trades before the deadline have changed the outlook for them. More importantly, LeBron James seems to have found the bounce in his step again. Cleveland currently sits third in the East, 6.5 games out of first, but that didn’t matter last year as they managed to reach the NBA Finals as the 2 seed. With LeBron motivated and hungry, he can carry most teams. Now that he has some younger, hungrier support around him, Cleveland has become a legit threat to win the title now.
San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs aren’t being considered too strongly to win the NBA Finals, as they currently have +4500 odds. I think that is really good value if you are looking to an upset bid with a big payout. San Antonio posed a problem for the Warriors in last year’s postseason before Kawhi Leonard was injured. Leonard has been battling injuries all season but is expected to return before the postseason. Without him, San Antonio has still managed to post a 35-24 record to sit at third in the West. They also still have a defense that is allowing just 98.5 points per game. As Leonard heals up, the Spurs can develop other players to be comfortable stepping up in the postseason to compliment their star. The Spurs still have a lot of talent and a great coach.