- The Portland Trail Blazers have +8000 odds to win the NBA Finals.
- The New Orleans Pelicans have +4000 odds to win the Western Conference.
- The Spurs, Trail Blazers, and Pelicans are all three or more games behind the eighth-place Memphis Grizzlies in the playoff race.
NEW ORLEANS – The race for the Western Conference’s eighth seed and a final playoff spot is heating up as the final stretch of the NBA regular season approaches.
The final playoff spot currently belongs to the Memphis Grizzlies who have a 28-26 record. The Grizzlies are a young team and could be a losing streak away from being stripped of a playoff berth.
The three teams that are the biggest threat to Memphis lie under them in the Western Conference playoff picture right now and those teams are the San Antonio Spurs, New Orleans Pelicans, and Portland Trail Blazers.
Below is a breakdown for each team’s playoff chances at this point in the season.
New Orleans Pelicans (23-32) -11th place in the Western Conference
- Odds to Win NBA Championship: +8000
- Odds to Win the Western Conference Finals: +4000
The New Orleans Pelicans are a young team that just got back their No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson. With Williamson back in the fold after missing the beginning of the season, New Orleans might be able to make a late season push for the playoffs.
The team has the longest climb up the standings of any team on this list and
U.S. sportsbooks have the Pelicans at -260 odds to miss the NBA Playoffs for the first time since 2018. If a bettor wants to roll the dice on the Pelicans playoff odds, they offer a nice return at +220.
Winner: Miss the Playoffs (-260)
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Portland Trail Blazers (25-31) – 9th place in the Western Conference
- Odds to Win NBA Championship: +8000
- Odds to Win the Western Conference Finals: +3300
The Portland Trail Blazers are the biggest threat to snatching the eighth seed from the Memphis Grizzlies and it’s not because they are just in ninth place either. The Trail Blazers have added the right pieces around guards Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum including forward Carmelo Anthony as well as center Hassan Whiteside.
The online sportsbook BetOnline has the Trail Blazers on the outside looking in on the playoffs with +200 odds to make the playoffs. The odds for Portland to miss the playoffs are much better at -240. If there is any team that can get hot down the stretch it’s the Trail Blazers, take the +200 odds on Portland to make the playoffs.
San Antonio Spurs (23-31) – 10th place in the Western Conference
- Odds to Win NBA Championship: +15000
- Odds to Win the Western Conference Finals: +10000
It’s almost taboo to see the San Antonio Spurs outside of the top eight seeds in the Western Conference but that’s the reality we live in today despite the team having Demar Derozan and LaMarcus Aldridge as a veteran presence in the locker room.
Gregg Popovich is still the head coach, so the Spurs have the coaching to get back in the playoffs, but do they have enough talent on the roster to compete with the top teams in the Western Conference?
The answer is no. Sportsbooks feel the same way giving the Spurs the longest odds out of the three teams to make the playoffs at +450, while the odds for San Antonio to miss the playoffs sit at -600 odds. Avoid betting on San Antonio on these props as they are unlikely to get any momentum going.
As a professional sports writer, Robert has written for outlets such as the FAMUAN and other sports-centric platforms. He focuses mainly on NFL and NBA betting, though he keeps tabs on every major sport.
