Betting: 2023 NBA Title Futures
Jared Quay gives his favorite picks for who he thinks will win the 2023 NBA Championship.
Video Transcript
JARED QUAY: Jared Quay here at Yahoo Sportsbook. The 2022 NBA season is over with the Warriors as the champion. But the odds for the 2023 season are here, and I'm here to give you some early predictions on who I think might be carrying that hardware at the end of the season.
My first pick is the New Orleans Pelicans at 35 to 1 to win the championship. Yes, these are long odds because it doesn't seem possible. But last year, people didn't expect this team to make the playoffs. They went and pushed the Suns to a really good series. They did that without arguably their best player in Zion Williamson.
But they traded for CJ McCollum. He'll have a full year with the team. Obviously, Brandon Ingram is a young stud. And Valanciunas in the center position. This team will be a lot stronger this year. If they don't win it all, they'll at least push to go further in the playoffs. I think it's a solid bet at 35 to 1.
My next team is an even bigger long shot as I got the Cleveland Cavaliers at 100 to 1 to win the championship. Yes, this team doesn't have LeBron James. Yes, they lost Collin Sexton, who was their best player. But they are young and studs. They still got Darius Garland, who I think should have been Most Improved Player. You got Caris LeVert, who can sometimes be amazing, sometimes be all right. And then they got three 7-footers they keep on the court as they switch and rotate with Mobley, Jarrett Allen, and Markkanen.
With that being the case, I just think this team has too much potential to not be at least recognized. 100 to 1 is way too good of odds to not at least put $10 down. It'd make good money doing that. I don't know if they're going to win a championship this year, but the future is very, very bright for them. So why not start now?
And as a bonus pick, just because I'm using my heart instead of my brain, I think the Lakers at 14 to 1 is still a great pick. You can't count out LeBron. Obviously, the Lakers are a big attraction for free agents. And even Russell has a lot of redemption in him, so you never know. I want to see LeBron get one more. Throw $20 on them for me.
Obviously, these picks may not even matter because the Warriors just won a championship without James Wiseman and Kuminga. So at plus 500, it's obviously a good bet to pick the Warriors too. But to recap, I'm going for long shots with long odds. I like the Pelicans at 35 to 1. I like the Cavs at 100 to 1. And if you want to just throw away money sometimes, the Lakers at 14 to 1 may be a good bet.
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