A new favorite to win the 2023 NBA Finals has emerged as the regular season is set to tip off. The Milwaukee Bucks have the best odds to win the championship, moving ahead of the Boston Celtics on Opening Night.
After the Golden State Warriors defeated the Celtics in the 2022 Finals, both teams spent time as the championship favorites during the offseason. Milwaukee now leads the way with +550 odds to win the title, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
The Celtics are just behind the Bucks with +600 odds. The Warriors have +700 odds to successfully repeat as champions. The Los Angeles Clippers also have +700 odds to win the 2023 Finals.
Milwaukee won the championship 15 months ago. Giannis Antetokounmpo capped off his Finals MVP performance with 50 points and 14 rebounds in the clincher, seemingly establishing himself as the league’s best player. The Bucks’ bid for a second straight title ended in Game 2 of their second-round playoff series against the Celtics, all of which Khris Middleton missed because of a knee injury.
Boston took a 2-1 series lead over Golden State before losing three straight games. The Celtics have a new head coach in light of Ime Udoka’s one-year suspension.
Golden State is looking to win its fifth ring since 2015. The Warriors have only failed to win the West twice with Steve Kerr as the head coach.
Most of the top championship contenders reside in the Eastern Conference.
The Brooklyn Nets have +900 championship odds. Those chances could improve if Kevin Durant, Ben Simmons and Kyrie Irving all remain on the court. The Philadelphia 76ers are seventh in the league at +1300. Joel Embiid and James Harden will play a full season as teammates for the first time. The Miami Heat have +1600 odds, coming off a loss in Game 7 of the conference finals.
The Phoenix Suns are third in the West and sixth in the league with +1000 championship odds. The Denver Nuggets have +2000 championship odds, putting them fourth in the conference. The Memphis Grizzlies (+2400) and Dallas Mavericks (+2700) are next on the list of contenders.
The Los Angeles Lakers (+2700) are unlikely to compete for a championship, according to the odds. Two seasons removed from winning the title in the bubble, the Lakers might be fortunate to win a playoff series.
The Lakers didn’t qualify for the 2022 play-in tournament due to injuries and poor overall production from a revamped roster. New head coach Darvin Ham is flirting with the idea of bringing guard Russell Westbrook off the bench in the upcoming season.
LeBron James has only played more than 56 games in one season in L.A. and star forward Anthony Davis has played 76 total games in the last two seasons.
The Minnesota Timberwolves (+3300), Cleveland Cavaliers (+3300) and Toronto Raptors (+4600) are the only other teams that enter Opening Night with better than 50/1 odds to win the Finals.
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