From preseason favourites to NBA champions, the Boston Celtics did what was expected of them in the 2023-24 season. But can they do it again? Check out our latest NBA Finals odds.
The latest: Boston went 16-3 in the 2024 postseason to win the franchise's 18th NBA championship. All of the Celtics' most important players will be back, and the team is well ahead of the pack for next year's NBA Finals odds.
Check out the latest NBA Finals odds for the 2024-25 season.
NBA Finals odds
Check out the latest odds to win the NBA Finals. Click linked odds to add selection to your betslip.
Best NBA Finals odds
The favourites: Boston Celtics (+300)
It's okay to want to poke holes in the Celtics' 2023-24 championship season, as one Eastern Conference star after another got injured and lessened Boston's path of resistance.
But Boston had been knocking at the championship door for a while, reaching the conference finals or further in six of the past eight seasons. Finally, the Celtics proved they had the depth to go all the way.
Given that all the starters and key role players are under contract for 2024-25, it wouldn't be a surprise to see them do it again.
Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown are the co-headliners, but Derrick White and Jrue Holiday make for one of the best two-way backcourts in the league. When healthy, Kristaps Porzingis fits in nicely — and Al Horford still has something to add in the twilight of his career.
Even though Boston clearly has the pieces to win another title, its odds relative to the rest of the league are somewhat of a surprise.
The Celtics' odds are more than twice as short as the next closest contender. And only one other team in the East is inside of 13-to-1 odds.
Raptors NBA Finals odds
Toronto Raptors (+50,000)
The Raptors are long, long shots to win the title, and rightfully so. En route to a 25-win season — their worst in 12 years — the Raps gave their roster rebuilding facelift.
Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby and Dennis Schroder finished the season on other teams. This is Scottie Barnes' team now, with R.J. Barrett and Immanuel Quickley at his side (though Quickley, a restricted free agent, is owed a new deal first).
A Barnes, Barrett and Quickley trio isn't a terrible place to start, but it's far from a championship-calibre Big Three.
Toronto should be more focused on how it uses its four first-round picks over the next three years more than anything else.
NBA Finals betting notes
- Many people thought the Nuggets would rise from a crowded Western Conference field to meet the Celtics in the NBA Finals. Denver ran out of gas against Minnesota and an ascending Anthony Edwards, but it would be unwise to count the Nuggets out next year. Barring Kentavious Caldwell-Pope's decision on a player option, Denver's entire starting five will be back.
- How deep is the Western Conference? Preseason title odds have four West teams with 10-to-1 odds or shorter (Nuggets, Thunder, Timberwolves, Mavericks). The East only has two teams in that bucket (Celtics, Bucks).
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led a young, deep Thunder squad to the No. 1 seed in the West ... but then the team ran into a Luka Doncic-sized buzzsaw in the second round. OKC already began retooling its roster by swapping out Josh Giddey for Alex Caruso, but acquiring a veteran big this offseason would really put the team in an interesting spot.
- With NBA free agency looming, there are plenty of big players who could be on the move this summer. Paul George, LeBron James and OG Anunoby all have player options to stay put, but that doesn't mean they will (especially George). The splashiest UFA options include James Harden, DeMar DeRozan and Klay Thompson.
