NBA betting, odds: Bucks, Celtics, Suns enter playoffs as betting favorites to win title

With the NBA regular season coming to a close on Sunday and the play-in tournament beginning on Tuesday, it’s a good time for a big-picture look at the playoffs from a betting perspective.

The Milwaukee Bucks are the betting favorites to win the title over at BetMGM, but not by much. The Bucks, the No. 1 seed in the East, are listed at +275. That’s just ahead of the Boston Celtics, who have +350 odds to win it all. The Celtics are the East’s No. 2 seed and coming off a loss in the NBA Finals to the Golden State Warriors last year.

The Phoenix Suns lost in the NBA Finals to the Bucks in 2021 before being upset in the Western Conference semifinals to the Dallas Mavericks last year. This time around, the Suns are the West’s No. 4 seed but have a revamped roster with Kevin Durant in tow. Despite being a No. 4 seed, the Suns have the third-best odds to win the title (+500) ahead of their Round 1 matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers.

After the Bucks, Celtics and Suns, there’s a bit of a gap on the odds board. The East’s No. 3 seed, the Philadelphia 76ers, are next at +900. The 76ers are led by MVP favorite Joel Embiid but have not advanced past the Eastern Conference semifinals since 2001 back in the Allen Iverson days. Can Embiid and James Harden change Philly’s postseason fortunes? The team’s quest for a title begins with a first-round matchup with the No. 6 seed Brooklyn Nets.

The Denver Nuggets earned the West’s top seed but are down at +1000 to win it all. The Nuggets are led by two-time MVP Nikola Jokic. He will have Jamal Murray at his side in the postseason this time around. Last year, Murray was sidelined with a knee injury as the Nuggets were eliminated in the first round by the Warriors.

Speaking of the Warriors, they avoided the play-in tournament by landing the No. 6 seed and a first-round matchup with the Sacramento Kings. This is the first postseason appearance for the Kings since 2006, and they are heavy series underdogs (+230) against the defending league champions. The Warriors have +1000 odds to repeat.

Next in line are LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers and Ja Morant and the Memphis Grizzlies at +1600. The Lakers are the No. 7 seed, meaning they have to get past the play-in round while the Grizzlies are the No. 2 seed. If the Lakers beat the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night, a Lakers-Grizzlies first-round series will be set.

Full NBA title odds (via BetMGM)

• Milwaukee Bucks: +275

• Boston Celtics: +350

• Phoenix Suns: +500

• Philadelphia 76ers: +900

• Denver Nuggets: +1000

• Golden State Warriors: +1000

• Los Angeles Lakers: +1600

• Memphis Grizzlies: +1600

• Los Angeles Clippers: +2500

• Cleveland Cavaliers: +3500

• Sacramento Kings: +6600

• New York Knicks: +10000

• Miami Heat: +15000

• Minnesota Timberwolves: +15000

• New Orleans Pelicans: +15000

• Atlanta Hawks: +20000

• Toronto Raptors: +20000

• Brooklyn Nets: +50000

• Chicago Bulls: +50000

• Oklahoma City Thunder: +50000

Eastern Conference title odds

• Bucks: +120

• Celtics: +175

• 76ers: +400

• Cavaliers: +1600

• Knicks: +3500

• Heat: +5000

• Raptors: +8000

• Hawks: +10000

• Nets: +15000

• Bulls: +25000

Western Conference title odds

• Suns: +200

• Nuggets: +340

• Warriors: +500

• Grizzlies: +600

• Lakers: +700

• Clippers: +1100

• Kings: +2200

• Pelicans: +6600

• Timberwolves: +8000

• Thunder: +25000