
There has finally been some movement at the top of the NBA futures betting market after several weeks of stalemate.
Sportsbooks are generally slow to make adjustments to NBA playoff odds due to the nature of having a series to get things going, but the play-in tournament has changed the dynamic. It is specifically impacting the Lakers, who are currently in line to finish seventh in the Western Conference.
They are one game behind Portland for the No. 6 seed and are currently without LeBron James, who is hoping to return to the court tomorrow or Wednesday. DraftKings has moved the Lakers’ title price from +350 to +400. If Los Angeles can go 4-0 to finish the regular season and the Trail Blazers go 2-2, the Lakers would avoid the play-in tournament.
Anthony Davis scored a season-high 42 points to lead the way in a 123-110 win over Phoenix on Sunday.
“It’s been fun, to be honest,” Davis said Sunday. “We were a great team last year, and this is the first time since I’ve been here that we ran into a challenge. This is a different challenge for us.”
Los Angeles has games against New York, Houston, Indiana and New Orleans coming up this week. The Trail Blazers play Houston, Utah, Phoenix and Denver.
DraftKings also adjusted Brooklyn’s odds. The Nets, who have been the ‘chalk’ to win the NBA Finals since acquiring James Harden, have moved from +240 to +200. They are a half-game ahead of Milwaukee for the No. 2-seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Clippers have moved from +500 to +550, while Utah (+700) and Milwaukee (+750) have not seen a change in their price over the last week. Philadelphia jumped from 12/1 to +750 and Phoenix shifted from 16/1 to 14/1.
The 76ers are three games ahead of Brooklyn for the No. 1 seed and can lock up that spot as early as Tuesday. Milwaukee holds the tiebreaker over the Nets, so it will be hoping to avoid a potential series against the Heat, who could finish sixth.
As for NBA player awards, Nikola Jokic has moved from -1000 to -2000 to win the MVP. LaMelo Ball’s Rookie of the Year odds adjusted from -500 to -715. Julius Randle is a lock to win the Most Improved Player award, going from -2000 to -5000 over the past week.
Phoenix head coach Monty Williams went from -177 to -305 to win Coach of the Year. Quin Snyder (+200) and Tom Thibodeau (+200) are also in the mix.