With only a handful of games left, where do the Nuggets stand in terms of odds to win the NBA Finals?
Denver Nuggets
+800 to win the NBA Championship according to DraftKings Sportsbook; fourth in the league and second in the Western Conference
Despite Denver having arguably the most impressive regular season showing in their franchise history, they still are fourth overall in odds to win the NBA title according to DraftKings Sportsbook. They even sit second overall in the Western Conference behind the Phoenix Suns. Despite their success, many need to see more before believing in them; specifically on the defensive end of the floor.
No one doubts their ability to score in all manner of ways, but can the Nuggets put together seven games of high level defense against the best teams in the league under the brightest lights? Will they stay healthy? So far, the answer to those questions in their playoff appearances have been largely no, but despite their recent malaise — which includes losing five of their last six games — the Nuggets look primed for their most important playoff run in franchise history.
They have arguably the best basketball player on earth in Nikola Jokic and he is surrounded by a starting lineup that has the potential to be the. most potent in the postseason. In terms of roster construction, there are still questions about their depth, but that becomes less pressing as rotations get shorter in the playoffs.
The Nuggets still have a lot to prove, but they will have their chance once the playoffs arrive which makes their fourth-best odds to win the title understandable.
Phoenix Suns
+475 to win NBA Championship according to DraftKings Sportsbook; third in the league and first in the Western Conference
There is no team more difficult to quantify than the Suns, who currently are a complete unknown since acquiring Kevin Durant, having him for just three games before getting hurt, and then being sidelined since.
In those three games, Durant played 98 minutes with the Suns and averaged 26.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.7 assists per game and Phoenix went 3-0. Everything went as smoothly as possible outside of Durant’s slip in warmups that has him on the injury report.
Can the Suns mesh quick enough to truly contend for the title this season with Durant highly likely to play less than 10 games with his new team? That is a tall order; one without precedent. But if any team was going to pull off such a feat, this Suns team seems like a good bet which is why they sit just above the Nuggets in odds to win the title.
Boston Celtics
+330 to win NBA Championship according to DraftKings Sportsbook; first in the league and first in the Eastern Conference
The Eastern Conference has been viewed as the conference that will lead to the eventual NBA title winner and one of the two teams who have led the way for the conference is without a doubt the Celtics, who lost to the Warriors in the Finals last season.
Boston has been the odds-on favorite for virtually the entire season, but due to their own late-season malaise in the same vein as the Nuggets, their odds sit just barely ahead of the Bucks who now own the best record in the league and are the only team to reach 50-wins at the time of this writing.
Still, the last two weeks of Celtics basketball does not supersede the 50+ game that preceded it. This group is formidable, playoff tested, and ready for their shot to reclaim the title they lost last season.
Milwaukee Bucks
+340 to win NBA Championship according to DraftKings Sportsbook; second in the league and second in the Eastern Conference
All season long, the Bucks have been overlooked despite continuing their dominant ways.
All they did was continue to win games despite whatever injuries, struggles, or hurdles stood in their way. They survived until Kris Middleton was back, scored their way through a swamp-like offense for much of the season, and continually tinkered until they found the best version of themselves over the past month or so.
Now, they look like the title contenders they always were despite some questioning their process. They are not flashy. The Bucks do not play a beautiful brand of basketball. Despite that, they know how to win at every level and have one of the three legitimate MVP candidates in the NBA in Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Maybe they were not billed as a top-flight threat from the start of the season and maybe the struggles they had earlier in the season were overblown, but the Bucks are more ready to take home the trophy than arguably any team in the league which is why their odds to win it all are so close to best overall.
This is a good lesson to all; never count out the Antetokounmpo-led Bucks.