The major moves of the NBA offseason have been made and there has been plenty of shuffling. New names are in new places, but one thing has remained the same and that is the Golden State Warriors are still the best team in the Association. The NBA season is around a month and a half away, but fans and punters alike are getting excited about the new year.
Golden State once again proved it is the best of the best last season, despite being second-best in the regular season. This year will see new challengers to Golden State’s Western Conference dominance. LeBron James will make the Los Angeles Lakers far better than they were last season. Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets have added to their already stacked lineup and will be tough to beat.
With not long to go until the NBA preseason tips off, the question is, will the Golden State Warriors three-peat?
Which teams could end the Golden State Warriors’ dominance?
Los Angeles Lakers +1100
The new-look Lakers have been given the fourth best futures betting odds courtesy of top sportsbooks. James’ arrival in La-La Land has completely changed the outlook of the franchise. James joins Luol Deng, Lonzo Ball, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in Los Angeles to help turnaround the team. The Lakers have missed the NBA Playoffs in each of the last five seasons. This year it could come to an end as James has led teams lacking talent to the postseason before. Just look at last year’s Cleveland Cavaliers. The Lakers will need to make a trade or two once the season begins to improve further.
Houston Rockets +900
The Rockets were the best team in the NBA last season. Unfortunately, the team just couldn’t win in the Western Conference Finals against Golden State. Carmelo Anthony has been signed and Mike D’Antoni will hope the veteran has something left in the tank. Chris Paul re-signed with the Rockets and now the team’s possible big three of Paul, Anthony, and James Harden could get the team over the hump in the playoffs. D’Antoni may have difficulty getting the best out of Harden once more with Anthony possibly taking shots away from him. Harden is the reigning NBA Most Valuable Player and last season’s leading scorer. He can do it again, but Anthony may negatively affect the Rockets.
Boston Celtics +550
The Boston Celtics have suddenly moved up in the estimation of leading sportsbooks. The Celtics showed flashes of brilliance last season, but the injuries to Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward were too much. James and the Cavs’ playoff resilience led to Boston’s playoff demise. Now, James is gone from the Eastern Conference and the Celtics are far healthier than they were last season. The Celtics are the favourites to win the Eastern Conference. Health will be important in Beantown as another star player’s injury could negatively affect the Celtics’ push for a title.
One leading sportsbook is offering a wager on the Golden State Warriors versus the rest of the NBA. The Warriors are -175 to win the NBA Finals while the remainder of the Association is +125 to win the championship. Whether than wager on one team outside of the Warriors, punters may find betting on the rest of the NBA’s teams as a whole to be more valuable.
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