NBA Eastern Conference Title Odds
- MIAMI HEAT: 1-2
- NEW JERSEY NETS: 1-1
- NEW YORK KNICKS: 7-2
- CHICAGO BULLSÂ Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â : 7-1
- BOSTON CELTICS: 10-1
- BROOKLYN NETS: 20-1
- INDIANA PACERS: 20-1
- ATLANTA HAWKS: 25-1
- MILWAUKEE BUCKS: 45-1
- PHILADELPHIA 76ERS: 45-1
- WASHINGTON WIZARDS: 75-1
- CHARLOTTE BOBCATS: 75-1
- DETROIT PISTONS: 75-1
- TORONTO RAPTORS: 75-1
- CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: 75-1
- ORLANDO MAGIC: 75-1
As you can tell from looking at the current Eastern Conference Championship odds above, the East isn’t nearly as wide open as the West. However, savvy bettors can still find value in the odds. Let’s take a look at some of the most intriguing odds of teams winning the Eastern Conference and advancing to the NBA title.
Miami Heat: 1-2
They are the heavy favorites, and why not? Barring a major injury to Lebron James or Dwayne Wade, they seem virtual locks to make it back (at least) to the championship game. They’re 22-9 right now, and as much as you can pick apart some of their lackadaisical regular season performances, the Heat know how to turn it on when it counts. Several of these veteran teams in the East (like the Celtics, who I’ll get to in a moment) have played long enough to know how to flip their switches from “regular season, coasting mode†to “killer instinct playoff mode.†The Heat can do that, and you can bank on them to as soon as they sniff the first round of the playoffs.
Yes, they have weaknesses: they still can’t rebound, as was evidenced by Carlos Boozer’s 11-board performance against them in a 96-89 Bulls win on Friday. “Everybody in both locker rooms understands what the overwhelming key to the game was,” Miami coach Erik Spoelstra said after the loss. “They were throwing it up there and playing volleyball against us.”
The Heat are well aware of their rebounding issue, though they’re counting on the same small ball formula that they rode to the Finals last year to work again in the playoffs, and there’s no reason it can’t: there are only a few teams in the East that can give them real trouble on the boards. Still, it is disconcerting, especially when the best player on your team (and the planet) is saying things like this after losses:  “It’s a recurrence — we got smashed on the boards,”Lebron James said. “You’re not going to win many basketball games like that. It’s not like we’re losing multiple games with one- or two-rebound [deficits]. It’s been by 15. Tonight was 20.” Still, I like the Heat to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, and that’s all you as a gambler should be looking for. They have as good an opportunity to win the whole thing as anyone.
Atlanta Hawks: 25-1
Yes, the 20-11 Atlanta Hawks. The Heat are the favorite, and thus a smart bet. However, there is such a thing as a value bet as well. Value bets are when you think you’re getting such good odds on a team that you just can’t pass it up. The Hawks present that opportunity. Under coach Larry Drew, Josh Smith and the gang are playing vastly improved defense and highly efficient offense, ranked 12th in points per game and third in assists. They are seventh in the league in points allowed, but as they sit only two games behind Miami in the East currently, they’re a smart, under-the-radar bet for an Eastern Conference title.
