When one pro basketball season ends, betting on the next NBA Championship begins. If the excitement of the 2023 NBA Finals — won by the Denver Nuggets in five games over the Miami Heat — has you looking forward to next season, it’s time to check out who 2024 NBA Championship odds favor winning the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy next year.
Opening 2024 NBA futures odds favor the usual suspects, with the Nuggets sitting atop betting boards. But the competition is not far behind.
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Opening NBA Futures Odds for 2024 Championship
These NBA Finals odds are current as of June 13 at four of the top sportsbook apps in the country:
| Team | FanDuel | BetRivers | Caesars | BetMGM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Celtics | +470 | +500 | +500 | +500 |
| Denver Nuggets | +480 | +450 | +450 | +475 |
| Milwaukee Bucks | +550 | +550 | +700 | +700 |
| Phoenix Suns | +600 | +600 | +600 | +600 |
| Miami Heat | +1000 | +800 | +1100 | +900 |
| Golden State Warriors | +1400 | +1200 | +1300 | +1200 |
| Los Angeles Lakers | +1500 | +1200 | +1300 | +1100 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | +1700 | +1800 | +1400 | +1600 |
| Los Angeles Clippers | +1900 | +1600 | +1800 | +1800 |
| Dallas Mavericks | +2300 | +2500 | +2500 | +2000 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | +2500 | +2500 | +2000 | +2500 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | +3000 | +2500 | +2500 | +2500 |
| New Orleans Pelicans | +4300 | +5000 | +3300 | +4000 |
| Sacramento Kings | +4500 | +4000 | +3300 | +3000 |
| New York Knicks | +5500 | +5000 | +4000 | +4000 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | +7500 | +8000 | +7500 | +6600 |
| Atlanta Hawks | +7500 | +8000 | +7500 | +8000 |
| Toronto Raptors | +10000 | +10000 | +10000 | +8000 |
| Brooklyn Nets | +10000 | +8000 | +10000 | +8000 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder | +10000 | +10000 | +7500 | +10000 |
| Chicago Bulls | +13000 | +15000 | +12500 | +12500 |
| Portland Trail Blazers | +25000 | +15000 | +20000 | +25000 |
| San Antonio Spurs | +25000 | +15000 | +15000 | +15000 |
| Utah Jazz | +25000 | +25000 | +20000 | +25000 |
| Orlando Magic | +35000 | +25000 | +17500 | +25000 |
| Houston Rockets | +35000 | +25000 | +25000 | +25000 |
| Indiana Pacers | +35000 | +25000 | +25000 | +25000 |
| Detroit Pistons | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 |
| Washington Wizards | +50000 | +50000 | +60000 | +50000 |
| Charlotte Hornets | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 | +50000 |
It is not unusual to see teams that play deep into the postseason at or near the top of NBA Finals odds boards when betting opens. For example, the Warriors and Celtics, the two teams in the 2022 NBA Finals, opened as the favorites to win this year’s championship. It is not surprising to see the Nuggets favored to repeat in 2024.
In addition to tying up your money with a sportsbook for a year, the challenge with putting money down on a team’s championship odds now is not knowing how the offseason will play out.
Will LeBron James stay in Los Angeles or head to Dallas to play with Kyrie Irving again? Does Kyrie stay in Dallas? What about Russell Westbrook, Khris Middleton, Kristaps Porzingas, or D’Angelo Russell?
Suppose Kevin Durant decides he wants out of Phoenix. Or what if the Clippers decide to move on from Kawhi Leonard and/or Paul George before they walk next offseason?
Betting Favorites to Win 2024 NBA Title
Defending champs often open as the betting favorite for the following season. But whether the Nuggets repeat as champions depends on how they fill out the rest of the roster, with eight players scheduled to become free agents.
Other than the Nuggets, these are the favorites to win the NBA championship next season:
Boston Celtics +575 (Caesars)
They do not have to worry about losing any of their core players to free agency this offseason. But after making it to the Eastern Conference Finals in five of the last seven years and making it to the NBA Finals just once, it is fair to wonder if a change is needed. If so, in what fashion?
As long as they do not lose Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, Marcus Smart, or Al Horford during the offseason, they’ll be contenders for the NBA championship in 2024.
Milwaukee Bucks +700 (Caesars)
For some teams, having a first-year head coach would be enough to take them out of the NBA championship conversation, but not the Bucks. They’ll be a contender as long as Giannis Antetokounmpo is on the roster. Of course, whether they can win it all next season depends on the roster choices they make.
But just having Antetokounmpo makes them a contender.
Phoenix Suns +1000 (BetRivers)
Because of all the capital the team traded away to acquire Kevin Durant, it will be difficult for the Suns to improve the roster during the offseason. While the team has decided to release Chris Paul, Frank Vogel did a solid job with a relatively healthy Lakers roster. He could do the same with the Suns
That is, if Durant, Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, and stay healthy.
Longshots/Value Picks to Win 2024 NBA Title
There have not been too many surprises regarding who wins the NBA Finals. Only four of the last 12 champs entered the season with odds north of +1000. Just two champions — the Warriors in 2015 at +2800 and the Mavericks in 2011 at +2000 — entered the season with odds of 20-to-1 or longer, at least as far back as 1984-85, per Sports Odds History.
But just because longshots rarely pay off does not mean you shouldn’t take a chance on one.
The trick is finding one with enough value to warrant putting some money down. But since no champion has had odds longer than +2800 since 1985, our picks have odds shorter than +3000. So, here are some of our favorite longshots/value picks.
Dallas Mavericks +2500 (BetRivers)
The Kyrie Irving/Luka Doncic pairing should have been more productive than it was this past season. But if Irving stays with the Mavs, maybe he and Doncic work out the kinks. While counting on LeBron James or any other superstar joining the roster is a mistake, James and Kyrie have had conversations about it.
That possibility makes the +2500 odds offered at BetRivers worth taking a flyer on.
Miami Heat +2000 (BetMGM)
Why the Heat? Did you watch the NBA Playoffs? The talent is there, and head coach Eric Spoelstra is one of the best in the business. Yes, they were not a great team during the 2022-23 regular season, but when it mattered most, they played like a team that could win a championship.
With how free agency could impact certain teams (i.e., 76ers), they must be left off this list (for now).
Memphis needs to be left off, with Ja Morant likely facing a suspension.
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