- The Golden State Warriors have +260 odds to win the NBA Championship.
- The Boston Celtics have +300 odds to win the NBA Championship.
- The Celtics swept the Brooklyn Nets, while the Warriors are up 3-1 over the Denver Nuggets.
LAS VEGAS – The Boston Celtics and the Golden State Warriors are now the favorites to win the NBA Championship.
The Celtics swept the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs, making them the only team this year with a sweep under their belt.
This is made more impressive by the fact that the Nets were the preseason favorites to win the Eastern Conference at the major online sportsbooks.
The Celtics dominated on the defensive end, while Jayson Tatum was the focal point of their offense. They also did not need to overuse Robert Williams, who returned from injury during the series and was a starter before his injury.
This means that there’s a decent chance that the Celtics haven’t even peaked yet – Williams had the highest PER on their team at the time of his injury, and they beat the Nets with him missing two games and playing limited minutes in the other two.
The Warriors, meanwhile, are up 3-1 on the Denver Nuggets, and only a heroic 37-point, eight-rebound, six-assist game from Nikola Jokic was able to prevent that series from being a sweep.
The Warriors have been buoyed by the emergence of Jordan Poole as an honorary third splash brother, and Poole has contributed to their new Death Lineup as well, featuring Poole, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Andrew Wiggins.
2022 Championship Winner
- Golden State Warriors +260
- Boston Celtics +300
- Phoenix Suns +500
- Miami Heat +650
- Milwaukee Bucks +700
- Memphis Grizzlies +1200
- Dallas Mavericks +1600
- Philadelphia 76ers +1600
- Utah Jazz +7000
- New Orleans Pelicans +8000
- Toronto Raptors +12000
- Minnesota Timberwolves +15000
- Atlanta Hawks +50000
- Denver Nuggets +50000
- Chicago Bulls +80000
The Warriors are more favored than the Celtics are, which is intriguing considering that the third most favored team, the Phoenix Suns, are in the same conference as the Warriors.
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However, the Celtics still have to contend with – in the most likely case – the Miami Heat, the Milwaukee Bucks, and the Philadelphia 76ers.
All of these teams are seen as legit threats, especially the Heat and the Bucks. The East has three teams with less than +1000 odds to win the title, while the West only has two.
It is entirely possible that the Celtics end up facing both the Bucks and the Heat or the 76ers in a theoretical title run, and that would seemingly give them a much harder road than the Warriors.
The Warriors’ bracket is set such that their opponents’ next round will be either the Memphis Grizzlies or the Minnesota Timberwolves, two young teams without the playoff experience that the Dubs have.
Based on these odds, it seems clear that facing either Memphis or Minnesota is an easier route than facing Milwaukee, so unless the Chicago Bulls mount a spectacular 3-1 comeback, it’s likely that Boston will, in fact, have a harder road.
Of course, these NBA odds are influenced by the current state of play, and bettors will have a clearer picture as they continue to shake out.
For now, however, the Boston Celtics might be the favorite in the East, but they have a lot of amazing teams breathing down their neck.
Maxwell joined the USAOnlineSportsbooks team in 2019. He focuses on creating sports betting content that informs and educates. He focuses on the NBA, the NFL, College Football and Basketball, and whatever else comes across his desk.
