And then there were eight.
The stage is set for the second round of the NBA playoffs after the Golden State Warriors defeated the Houston Rockets in Game 7 on Sunday, and one series in the second round has already kicked off and altered the odds to win the NBA Finals.
Tyrese Haliburton and the Indiana Pacers pulled off a road win against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 1 as eight-point underdogs, taking control of home court in the series. Cleveland, which was without Darius Garland (toe) in Game 1, struggled shooting the ball from downtown in the loss.
Oddsmakers have not dropped the Cavs from the top three in the odds to win the title, but there has been a lot of movement following that matchup.
In the Western Conference, the second round begins on Monday night with the Denver Nuggets taking on the Oklahoma City Thunder. Yesterday, I covered Denver’s surge up the odds board after winning Game 7 against the Los Angeles Clippers.
However, the same can’t be said for the Golden State Warriors, who were once +1600 to win the title after taking a 3-1 series lead over the Houston Rockets. After just getting past by winning Game 7, Golden State has slipped in the latest odds.
Here’s a breakdown of this market as the second round gets into full swing this week.
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
While they still have the second-worst odds to win the title this season, the Pacers have jumped to +4500 to win it all after beating the Cavs in Game 1 behind a strong overall offensive showing.
With Garland’s status still up in the air — although he did tell TNT’s Jared Greenberg that he believes he will play in Game 2 — the Pacers are in the driver’s seat in this series.
Even though Indiana won 50 games in the regular season and made the Eastern Conference Finals last season, it has been undervalued a bit in these playoffs. The Pacers rolled through the first round, posting an elite offensive rating against the Milwaukee Bucks, and they held Donovan Mitchell in check (13-for-30 from the field) in Game 1.
Cleveland dropped from +550 to +650 to win the title with the Game 1 loss, and the Cavs need to win Game 2 to avoid another slip in the odds. Cleveland is a 9.5-point favorite in the opening odds for Tuesday’s matchup.
At one point this postseason, the Warriors were the No. 4 choice to win the title at +1600 odds. However, after losing two closeout games (Game 5 and Game 6) to the Houston Rockets, oddsmakers have adjusted the Warriors’ price in the market.
Ahead of its second-round series with the feisty Minnesota Timberwolves, Golden State is just +2500 to win the NBA Finals. The Timberwolves, on the other hand, are +1300 to win the title and -175 to win the series.
Minnesota made quick work of the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round, winning in five games, and now it has home court against Golden State in Round 2. The Warriors have shown some really impressive highs with their veteran squad, but there have been offensive and rebounding struggles as well.
With such a quick turnaround from Game 7 to Game 1, it appears that oddsmakers expect Golden State to get out to a slow start in this series. The Wolves are six-point favorites at home in Game 1.
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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Find Peter Dewey’s NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.
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