Trent Reinsmith
The 2023 NBA season has passed the halfway point. With the NBA entering Week 15 of the season, it’s time to revisit the picks and predictions for the 2023 NBA Championship.
There has been some substantial movements in the NBA Championship Futures odds for 2023. The opening night favorites, the Golden State Warriors, have tumbled thanks to their .500 record. Meanwhile the Boston Celtics have taken the top spot with their NBA-best 35-12 record. The Milwaukee Bucks and Brooklyn Nets also remain in the mix. The one surprise as the 2023 NBA season heads toward its home stretch is the Denver Nuggets. Denver has the best record in the NBA’s Western Conference. The Nuggets, who were +1600 on the opening night of the 2023 NBA campaign, have shortened their odds to +800.
With the end of the 2023 NBA season approaching and the NBA Finals in sight, it’s time to look at the picks, predictions and odds for the 2023 NBA Championship. But before we do that, check out our guide to betting on the 2023 NBA Finals and our tips for betting on the NBA.
2023 NBA Championship odds
Boston Celtics
One would have to look back to January 3 to find the last game the Boston Celtics lost. Since then, the team has won nine straight. Boston is now 4.5 games ahead of the Philadelphia 76ers in the Eastern Conference standings. The teams expected to give Boston trouble this year, Philly, the Milwaukee Bucks and the Brooklyn Nets, are a combined 0-4 against the Celtics on the season. That includes the game where the Celtics beat the Kevin Durant-less Nets by a score of 109-98 with two of their best players — Jaylen Brown and Al Horford — out of the Boston line-up.
Jayson Tatum is leading the team with 31.2 points per game. The team has also been getting help off the bench from Malcolm Brogdon, who is in his first year with Boston. Meanwhile, Brown is having a career year, averaging 26.9 points per game.
If the Celtics can remain healthy, they have an outstanding chance of winning the NBA title at the end of the 2023 season.
Brooklyn Nets
The Brooklyn Nets are still high on this list because the assumption is that the injured Kevin Durant will be back in the lineup and healthy for the team’s playoff run. But make no mistake about it; without Durant, the Nets will not win the 2023 NBA Championship. Durant last played on January 8. Without their leading scorer on the court, the Nets have a 1-4 record.
If Durant, Kyrie Irving and Nic Claxton are all healthy at the start of the 2023 NBA Playoffs, the Nets have a chance to win the NBA title. However, if Durant is not on the court, the Nets will be out of the mix. The Nets expect Durant back in early to mid-February.
Denver Nuggets
If you were one of the people who got a preseason bet down on the Denver Nuggets to win the 2023 NBA Title, you have to feel pretty good about that. When the 2023 NBA season opened, the Nuggets were +1600 to win the NBA Championship. Today, those odds are down to +800 and it would not be a surprise to see those odds fall even more as the 2023 NBA Playoffs approach.
Nikola Jokic is having an MVP-quality season for Denver. He leads the team in points (25.1), rebounds (11), assists (9.9), steals (1.4) and minutes (33.3). Outside of their superstar player, the team has six other players in double-digit scoring, including Jamal Murray who is having a solid season after missing 18 months of play after he tore his ACL in April 2021. Murray is second in team scoring on the 2023 season with 18.7 points per game.
Our pick
The Boston Celtics came very close to winning the NBA title in 2022. With the experience they picked up in their run to the NBA Finals and the way they are playing in 2023, the Boston Celtics are the best bet to hoist the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy at the end of the 2023 NBA Finals.
Pick: Boston Celtics to win the 2023 NBA Championship.
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