The Oklahoma City Thunder earned the No. 1 seed in a loaded Western Conference with the franchise’s best regular-season record (57-25) since 2013.
The young Thunder team made a great turnaround this season after three consecutive losing seasons. However, oddsmakers weren’t bullish on Oklahoma City’s NBA title chances heading into the postseason and that hasn’t changed much after the Thunder’s playoff opener.
Oklahoma City was the only home team that failed to cover in Game 1 of its first-round series. The Thunder were nearly a double-digit favorite against the New Orleans Pelicans in Game 1 Sunday but held on for a 94-92 win. As expected, the Thunder’s chances to run the table haven’t improved much.
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Thunder disrespected in latest odds to win NBA Championship
According to DraftKings Sportsbook, the Thunder are the fourth-favorite on the NBA Championship odds board at +1500 ($100 bet wins $1,500). Those odds carry an implied probability of just 6.25% that Oklahoma City will hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy in early June.
The Thunder might be the No. 1 seed in the west, but they are the third-favorite in the conference to win the NBA Finals. Per DraftKings, Oklahoma City is a pretty distant fourth-place behind the Los Angeles Clippers (+1100), which also have a 1-0 first-round series lead but have been without star Kawhi Leonard for the last nine games.
The Clippers are +500 to win the west and reach the NBA Finals. That’s slightly ahead of the third-place Thunder (+550), which will have home-court advantage throughout the postseason. That odds board is dominated by the defending-champion Denver Nuggets, which lead the Lakers 2-0 in the first round and are the clear-cut favorite at even money (+100) to reach the finals once again.
OKC a sizable favorite in Game 2
New Orleans' near-upset of the top-seeded Thunder in Game 1 has trimmed the Game 2 spread just a tad. According to DraftKings, Oklahoma City is a 7.5-point favorite over the Pelicans in Game 2 on Wednesday night.
The Pelicans are playing without star forward Zion Williamson. Oklahoma City has the fifth-best ATS mark as a home favorite (23-13) in the NBA this season. The Thunder are still monster favorites to advance to the second round. Per DraftKings, Oklahoma City is -1200 ($100 bet wins $8.33) to win the first-round series against New Orleans, which is an implied probability of 92.31%.
Game odds update periodically and are subject to change.