Even after the New York Knicks had a 2-0 series lead with two road wins against the Boston Celtics, the Celtics were favored to win the series. But that all changed Monday night. With New York now up 3-1 and Jayson Tatum injured, the Knicks are not only favored to get by the Celtics, but to win the Eastern Conference.
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The Knicks are nearly even money to make it to the NBA Finals at +120 on BetMGM. They are second behind only the Oklahoma City Thunder to win the NBA title. The Thunder are even money after Monday night’s action.
Three of the four second-round series have a team with a 3-1 lead. The Knicks are up 3-1 on Boston, the Minnesota Timberwolves have a 3-1 lead against the Golden State Warriors and the Indiana Pacers have a chance to close out the Cleveland Cavaliers Tuesday on the road.
NBA championship odds
The Thunder have been favored since before the playoffs started and haven’t budged from that standing. Even after going down 2-1 to Denver, the Thunder held onto the top spot. That’s in part due to all the upsets around the league this postseason.
As the Thunder were down 2-1, Boston, which was the second-favorite behind Oklahoma City, had its own series deficit to deal with. Cleveland, the top seed in the Eastern Conference, also lost twice at home to start its series against Indiana. Some confidence remained in those teams to advance, but that has lessened with what are now 3-1 holes.
After a 68-win regular season, Oklahoma City clearly has the most confidence from sportsbooks. With the other top contenders on the way out, the Thunder’s odds of winning it all have shortened, even in the midst of a tight series with a recent champion in Denver.
The Thunder’s only appearance in the NBA Finals (not counting the Seattle SuperSonics years) was in 2012, when LeBron James’ Miami Heat won the title. The Knicks last made the NBA Finals in 1999. Party like it’s 1999, New York.
The Knicks could face the Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals. The last two times the Knicks made the Finals (1994, 1999), the Pacers were the conference final opponent. However, the last time these teams met in that round, in 2000, the Pacers won. Last year, the Pacers took out the Knicks in seven games in the second round.
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Both New York and Indiana have to finish off teams that won more than 60 games in the regular season to get there, but Boston and Cleveland are dealing with injuries. Tatum’s injury, suffered on Monday, appeared to be serious, and Cavs guard Donovan Mitchell suffered an ankle injury in Game 4.
Elsewhere on the injury front, Golden State has been significantly hampered by the absence of Stephen Curry since early in Game 1 of their series against Minnesota. Even with the Warriors down 3-1 and heading back to Minnesota, it’s not clear if Curry will suit up for Game 5.
The Timberwolves are the biggest favorite of any of the four second-round series at -5000. As such a clear favorite to advance, Minnesota is third in odds to win the NBA championship at +600. The shorthanded Warriors are the longest shot to win it all at +15000.
Betting/odds links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
(Photo of Timothée Chalamet and Spike Lee: Elsa / Getty Images)
