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2008/09 Odds To Win NBA Championship

Who Will Challenge Celtics, and the Lakers for the title contender for this years 2008/09 NBA championship. We preview the current odds to win the NBA 2008/09 Championship…

NBA Basketball Props Betting – Who Will Challenge Celtics, Lakers?

Well, we are almost finished with one quarter of the NBA sports betting season, and maybe it’s time to look at where we are in terms of championship contenders and who may have emerged to improve their standing over the last time we talked, which was on the eve of the season opener.

Here are the current odds to win the NBA title, as they are posted at BetUS Sportsbook:

To Win NBA Championship

Atlanta Hawks +3500
Boston Celtics +350
Charlotte Bobcats +15000
Chicago Bulls +6000
Cleveland Cavaliers +700
Dallas Mavericks +3500
Denver Nuggets +5000
Detroit Pistons +1000
Golden State Warriors +15000
Houston Rockets +900
Indiana Pacers +10000
Los Angeles Clippers +10000
Los Angeles Lakers +200
Memphis Grizzlies +25000
Miami Heat +4000
Milwaukee Bucks +20000
Minnesota Timberwolves +20000
New Jersey Nets +15000
New Orleans Hornets +1000
New York Knicks +10000
Orlando Magic +2500
Philadelphia 76ers +3500
Phoenix Suns +2000
Portland Trail Blazers +4000
Sacramento Kings +25000
San Antonio Spurs +2000
Oklahoma City Thunder +25000
Toronto Raptors +3300
Utah Jazz +1200
Washington Wizards +10000

Since this is not a proposition about “surprise” teams or making the playoffs, but actually WINNING the NBA title, it is useful to identify who the real contenders are. As far as I’m concerned, those teams are: Boston, the L.A. Lakers, Cleveland, New Orleans, and San Antonio (yes, I’ll explain in a moment). The “maybes” are Utah, Detroit, Houston and Phoenix. The “longshots” that are worth taking a look at are Toronto, Portland and Denver.

Everyone else you can pretty much throw out right now.

The LOS ANGELES LAKERS (+200 at BetUS) are winning a lot of games, and in fact are 14-1 as of this writing, and you have to respect the fact that players like Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum are capable of producing even better than they have already. Part of the key for the Lakers is that young players like Trevor Ariza and Jordan Farmar have stepped up with their production off the bench.

Of course, the Lakers’ path to the title will have to go through a team like, perhaps the BOSTON CELTICS (+350 at BetUS), who are sitting with the Eastern Conference’s best record at 16-2. Boston’s “Big Three” is still in place, but Rajon Rondo has become a better complimentary player in the starting lineup. Rondo is hitting 51% of his shots, which is great for a point guard, and he’s got 6.9 assists per game with just 1.9 turnovers. Defense still prevails in Boston, where the Celtics allow the least points and the lowest field goal percentage in the league. They’re the best until they get dethroned.

With the CLEVELAND CAVALIERS (+700 at BetUS), a lot of the talk has been about getting offensive support for LeBron James, and that has started to happen. What’s impressive about Cleveland, which won 14 of its first 17 games this season, is that they have a deep roster, with a lot of guys who can play. When you have the availability of someone like Wally Szczerbiak off the bench, who can score in bunches, you have a great luxury. The Cavs will be there if Boston falters.

I talked about the NEW ORLEANS HORNETS (+1000 at BetUS) at the start of the season as a team that might offer some value. They are not especially deep, so the key here is to stay healthy. Adding James Posey was something they hope will help get them over the top, and although it is unlikely that they will overtake the Lakers for the best record in the West, they certainly can win their division. The playoff experience against San Antonio last year was beneficial, for sure.

And speaking of SAN ANTONIO, the SPURS (+2000 at BetUS) started slowly, but have started to come on a bit because more offensive options have stepped up to the plate. One of them is Roger Mason, who has averaged almost 15 points a game. Another is George Hill, a surprise rookie who has, for the most part, produced offensively when he’s been in the lineup. Manu Ginobili is back, and now that Tony Parker (23.9 ppg) has returned, we’ll start to really see what these guys can do. The Spurs deserve consideration simply because of what they’ve done in the past.

But do the DETROIT PISTONS (+1000 at BetUS)? The Pistons will probably wind up with the third or fourth seed in the East, but one can see a real chemistry problem developing here. You’ve got to wonder if they really needed to add someone like Allen Iverson to the lineup, thus putting a team on the court without a real point guard. The Pistons, with rookie head coach Michael Curry, are still an iffy proposition for us.

The UTAH JAZZ (+1200 at BetUS) is a team that has had a hard time getting all its best players on the court at once, mostly because Deron Williams has missed a lot of games. But even when completely healthy, the Jazz of the Jerry Sloan era has been good enough to be a contender, but never formidable enough to win a title. There appears to be no reason that won;t be the case again this season, even with the prospect of seven players averaging in double figures (when Williams gets going).

The HOUSTON ROCKETS (+900 at BetUS) are a team of great promise, and the fact that they are a team of defensive culture would appear to bode well for them. Yes, there are defenders. And that has been fortified with the addition of Shane Battier. yes, there is scoring balance as well. But the question of team chemistry hasn’t been fully answered. We’ll see.

The PHOENIX SUNS (+2000 at BetUS) have slowed things down, though this club is still shooting very well (50.3%, to lead the league). Shaquille O’Neal is hitting 60% of his shots and averages 8.5 rebounds. But it’s a little disconcerting to hear Steve Nash bellyache about the over-emphasis on getting the ball to Shaq. And remember that in a power-packed Western Conference that has Portland in the mix as well, the Suns may find themselves fighting for that last playoff spot.

The PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS (+4000 at BetUS) are certainly a team on the rise. And this is a true ensemble, with a lot of youngsters who can play. But they are youngsters, and maybe not mature enough as a group to challenge seriously for a title. It’s going to be real interesting to see how much more of a factor Greg Oden is going to be as the season progresses. This team could stay in a battle with Denver and Utah for the Northwest Division crown.

Isn’t it nice how we segue? The DENVER NUGGETS (+5000 at BetUS) made the definitive move of their season when they traded Allen Iverson in order to bring in Chauncey Billups, who is averaging almost 19 points and has an assist-turnover ratio of better than 4-to-1. Billups brings a true point guard to the table and also supplies more of a defensive “answer” (if you pardon the Iverson pun). Denver is 11-3 with him in the lineup. That alone makes them a team to watch.

The TORONTO RAPTORS (+3300 at BetUS) have the capacity to get on a roll. Chris Bosh is scoring almost 27 points and over 10 rebounds, and he has gotten support underneath from Jermaine O’Neal, who has averages of 8.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks. Jose Calderon has a great assist-turnover ratio (over 5-to-1). A decent ensemble of players, but they’ll need a lot of luck to get where they want to go.

By Cappers Picks

Articles on CappersPicks.com are written by Q (the Head Honcho) at Cappers Picks or by our resident "in house" handicapper Razor Ray Monohan! Enjoy the free picks folks! "Pad that bankroll one day at a time!"