With the 2015 NFL season winding down and NBA hoops lovers everywhere are starting to turn their full attention to the sport that James Naismith created. In this expert online sportsbook betting breakdown on the latest odds to win the 2015-16 NBA championship, I’m going to identify the best picks to actually hoist this season’s Larry O’Brien trophy while separating the pretenders from the legitimate contenders. Analysis: Look, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that, barring a quartet of miraculous collapses – one of the four teams in my ‘favorites’ group is going to win this year’s NBA championship. To be blunt about it, I’ve been saying since about 20 games into the season that I just don’t believe any team can beat either Golden State or San Antonio in a seven-game series, more or less, the NBA Finals.Golden State (44-4 SU) has won seven straight and eight of their last 10 games overall and shows no signs of slowing down while also ranking second in the league in the ATS standings (29-18-1 ATS).The Cleveland Cavaliers (35-12 SU) have gone 5-1 since assistant Tyron Lue took over as head coach, but you need to know that LeBron James and company are ranked 22nd in the ATS standings (21-23-3 ATS).The San Antonio Spurs have managed to win eight of their last 10 games despite missing Tim Duncan for the last four games and five of the last six overall. Oh, and if you didn’t know, the Spurs also ranks first in the ATS standings (31-17 ATS), mostly because they’re outscoring the opposition by a league-leading 13.3 points per game.In the case of the Oklahoma City (37-13 SU), the Thunder have plenty of talent, starting with all-stars Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook first and foremost. Unfortunately, they’ve been miserable in covering the spread this season (20-30 ATS) and will undoubtedly face an uphill battle in getting past the Spurs or Warriors in the Western Conference. Still, Durant and company are 9-1 SU over their last 10 games and rank third in the league to the Spurs and Warriors in scoring differential (8.1 ppg).
Updated 2016 NBA Championship Odds
The Favorites To Take It All
- Golden State Warriors 7/5
- Cleveland Cavaliers 5/2
- San Antonio Spurs 3/1
- Oklahoma City Thunder 20/1
Legitimate Contenders – Odds
- Los Angeles Clippers 30/1
- Chicago Bulls 40/1
- Toronto Raptors 40/1
- Atlanta Hawks 65/1
- Indiana Pacers 65/1
- Miami Heat 75/1
Not Gonna’ Happen Odds
- Boston Celtics 75/1
- Houston Rockets 125/1
- Memphis Grizzlies 125/1
- Washington Wizards 125/1
- Detroit Pistons 300/1
- New York Knicks 300/1
- Charlotte Hornets 500/1
- Dallas Mavericks 500/1
- Sacramento Kings 500/1
- Utah Jazz 500/1
- New Orleans Pelicans 600/1
- Portland Blazers 750/1
- Milwaukee Bucks 1250/1
- Orlando Magic 2000/1
- Brooklyn Nets 9999/1
- Denver Nuggets 9999/1
- Minnesota Timberwolves 9999/1
- Phoenix Suns 9999/1