While teams are still battling for the 2016 NBA championship, betting is already open on who will win the title in 2017.
The Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook has posted odds to win next season’s championship, installing the Golden State Warriors as heavy 3-to-2 favorites.
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The Cleveland Cavaliers, who have already booked passage to the 2016 Finals, are listed as the 5-to-2 second betting choice in Las Vegas. Oddsmakers foresee another relatively painless pass through the East for Cleveland, assigning the Cavs 1-to-2 odds of winning the conference for the third year in a row. The Heat, Celtics and Raptors all open at 8/1 to win the East.
Golden State again figures to meet more resistance in the West. While the Dubs are the odds-on favorites to get through to the Finals at a price of minus-110 (bet $110 to win $100), the Spurs and Thunder are 3/1 and 4/1, respectively.
While it’s fun to look at these odds, only the boldest or most clairvoyant of gamblers will bet on the 2017 Finals this far in advance. After all, we’re not even sure who’ll be playing where — will Kevin Durant, for example, be back in OKC or is he bound for another team?
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Because of this uncertainty, bookmakers tend to be conservative when they post numbers this early. In other words, they keep the potential payoffs relatively low to minimize their risk.
Nevertheless, here are your opening odds for the 2016-17 NBA season.
| Team | Opening odds |
|---|---|
| Golden State WARRIORS | 3/2 |
| Cleveland CAVALIERS | 5/2 |
| San Antonio SPURS | 6/1 |
| Oklahoma City THUNDER | 8/1 |
| Los Angeles CLIPPERS | 16/1 |
| Boston CELTICS | 20/1 |
| Toronto RAPTORS | 25/1 |
| Miami HEAT | 25/1 |
| Chicago BULLS | 40/1 |
| Atlanta HAWKS | 40/1 |
| Minnesota TIMBERWOLVES | 60/1 |
| New Orleans PELICANS | 60/1 |
| Houston ROCKETS | 60/1 |
| Portland TRAIL BLAZERS | 60/1 |
| Memphis GRIZZLIES | 80/1 |
| Utah JAZZ | 80/1 |
| Charlotte HORNETS | 80/1 |
| Washington WIZARDS | 100/1 |
| Indiana PACERS | 100/1 |
| Dallas MAVERICKS | 100/1 |
| Milwaukee BUCKS | 100/1 |
| Detroit PISTONS | 100/1 |
| Los Angeles LAKERS | 100/1 |
| New York KNICKS | 100/1 |
| Sacramento KINGS | 100/1 |
| Philadelphia 76ERS | 100/1 |
| Orlando MAGIC | 100/1 |
| Denver NUGGETS | 100/1 |
| Phoenix SUNS | 300/1 |
| Brooklyn NETS | 500/1 |
This is your time to shine, random Suns believers.