NBA championship odds continue to evolve, with a dramatic shift after the defending champs' stunning meltdown on Monday night.
The Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics opened their respective semifinal series with decisive wins over the Dallas Mavericks and Cleveland Cavaliers.
Will the second round deliver more upheaval to this futures market? Let's check out the latest NBA odds to win the title in 2024.
NBA Championship odds (live display)
2024 NBA title odds favorites
Boston Celtics (-115 to +100)
The Boston Celtics losing at home to the very team that knocked them out last year — without Jimmy Butler — was always going to stir concern among NBA fans. But the C's were able to shut out the noise and soundly dismiss the Heat in a five-game series with a dominant 17.0 net rating, avenging last year's ECF defeat.
No Kristaps Porzingis, no problem. As the forward recovers from a strained calf, the Celtics opened their second-round series against the Cleveland Cavaliers with a 120-95 victory at the TD Garden. Jaylen Brown (32) and Derrick White (25) led the way in scoring while Jayson Tatum gobbled up 11 rebounds with five assists and three blocks.
As a result, the best number we're seeing on Wednesday morning is even money on Boston to win the NBA Championship for the first time since 2007-08.
Minnesota Timberwolves (+275 to +320)
Most basketball analysts predicted this would be a close series, with the Minnesota Timberwolves giving the Nuggets a good run for their money. Despite little doubt in their ability after sweeping the Suns in Round 2, just about nobody gave the Wolves credit for coming out and doing the same to the defending champs.
Monday night's 106-80 ass-whupping (on Denver's home floor, no less) was punctuated by defensive backbone Rudy Gobert's absence, with insult to injury perhaps awaiting the Nugs in the form of suspension after Jamal Murray threw heat pad on the floor during the second-quarter collapse.
Either way, the Nuggets' title defense prospects are now grim, because the Timberwolves' defense is completely smothering them. Even then, Anthony Edwards is making those MJ comparisons look not too outlandish. The Wolves are confirmed not messing around.
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NBA Finals odds over time
Here's a look at how NBA championship odds stack up league-wide this season. We'll be updating throughout the playoffs to show how the odds race evolves.
Covers NBA Finals betting tools
NBA Finalists 2023-24 odds
Want more NBA playoffs odds? Check out these props for which teams will face off in the NBA Finals.
| Matchup |  |
|---|---|
 Boston Celtics vs.  Minnesota Timberwolves |
+150 |
Boston Celtics vs.  Oklahoma City Thunder |
+310 |
 New York Knicks vs. Minnesota Timberwolves |
+700 |
Boston Celtics vs.  Dallas Mavericks |
+800 |
Boston Celtics vs.  Denver Nuggets |
+1,000 |
Odds as of 5-8-2024.
NBA Finals exact result odds
Bettors can even get more specific and pick the NBA Finals' exact result. Series props for "Team X in Y Games" (ie, Celtics in 6, Nuggets in 7) will become available when the Finals matchup is set.
| Matchup | |
|---|---|
| Boston Celtics to beat Minnesota Timberwolves |
+280 |
| Boston Celtics to beat Oklahoma City Thunder |
+490 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves to beat Boston Celtics |
+550 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves to beat New York Knicks |
+1,000 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder to beat Boston Celtics |
+1,100 |
Odds as of 5-8-2024.
Understanding NBA Finals futures, point spreads and lines
Sportsbooks will post NBA Finals futures as soon as the previous season concludes, and some even sooner. These betting boards are constantly adjusted throughout the summer and ensuing season as players get hurt or are traded. Once the regular season begins, NBA Finals odds will change daily as teams win and lose games, and as more players are injured or traded. Sportsbooks will also adjust the NBA title odds based on handle and liability to certain teams.
NBA Championship odds will usually look like this:
- Milwaukee Bucks +240
This means that on a $100 bet, you'll stand to win $240 if the Bucks win the NBA title. If it's close to the end of the season or the NBA has a very dominant team, you could see a minus sign (-) ahead of a team's odds.
- Golden State Warriors -150
This means that if you bet on the Golden State Warriors during the 2018-2019 NBA season you would have needed to bet $150 to profit $100 if the Warriors won the championship.
Above we have posted the American odds for the NBA championship. However, these are easy to convert to decimal odds or fractional odds with our odds converter tool.
Reading the NBA Finals moneyline odds
Betting the moneyline (ML) in the NBA means simply picking which team wins the game outright. Moneyline favorites have a negative value (-110), while moneyline underdogs have a positive value (+110). It's a two-way market, which means there are only two options to place a wager.
| Team | Moneyline Odds |
|---|---|
| Boston Celtics |
-130 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves |
+110 |
American odds are very straightforward. If a sportsbook has the Boston Celtics listed as -130 favorites, you would have to bet $130 to win $100. If you wagered $100 on the opposing underdog Minnesota Timberwolves at +110, you would get a $210 return, including your original stake.
Past NBA Finals winners
The Denver Nuggets hoisted the Larry O'Brien Trophy in 2023, toppling the eighth-seeded Miami Heat by a 4-1 tally.
Here are the last 10 NBA Finals winners, along with their opening odds.
| Season | NBA Finals Winner | Opening odds | Runner up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022-23 | Denver Nuggets |
+1,800 |  Miami Heat |
| 2021-22 |  Golden State Warriors |
+1,200 | Boston Celtics |
| 2020-21 |  Milwaukee Bucks |
+500 |  Phoenix Suns |
| 2019-20 |  Los Angeles Lakers |
+1,800 | Miami Heat |
| 2018-19 |  Toronto Raptors |
+6,600 | Golden State Warriors |
| 2017-18 | Golden State Warriors |
-168 |  Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2016-17 | Golden State Warriors |
+215 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2015-16 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
+300 | Golden State Warriors |
| 2014-15 | Golden State Warriors |
+2,500 | Cleveland Cavaliers |
| 2013-14 |  San Antonio Spurs |
+1,000 | Miami Heat |
Teams with the most NBA Championships
No team has ever enjoyed a longer stretch of dominance than the Celtics, who won eight straight championships from 1959 to 1966. The franchise's stunning superiority was due in large part to the spectacular play of Bill Russell, who won 11 titles in his 13 years in the league.
| Team | NBA championships |
|---|---|
| Los Angeles Lakers |
17 |
| Boston Celtics |
17 |
| Golden State Warriors |
7 |
 Chicago Bulls |
6 |
| San Antonio Spurs |
5 |
 Philadelphia 76ers |
3 |
 Detroit Pistons |
3 |
| Miami Heat |
3 |
| Milwaukee Bucks |
2 |
| New York Knicks |
2 |
 Houston Rockets |
2 |
| Toronto Raptors |
1 |
| Dallas Mavericks |
1 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers |
1 |
 Portland Trail Blazers |
1 |
| Denver Nuggets |
1 |
Best NBA Finals betting sites
If you're in a state that allows mobile, or online betting, make sure you know which sites are the best basketball betting sites. The best betting sites offer sharp odds, quick payouts and are safe and secure when it comes to depositing and withdrawing your money.
Popular NBA futures odds
NBA Championship odds trends
- The Western Conference has won 14 of the last 21 NBA Championships.
- A No. 1 seed has won the championship in 11 of the last 21 seasons.
- The last time a non-Top-3 seed won the championship was 1995 (Houston, No. 6).
- The Golden State Warriors have won four of the past eight NBA titles, and been Western Conference champions in two of those four seasons they didn't lift the Larry O.
How to bet NBA Finals odds
There are many strategies to consider when making an NBA futures bet on which team will win the championship. Obviously, you're looking to bet on who you think can navigate through the NBA playoffs and come out on top. So, just because a team is in first place at the NBA All-Star break, it doesn't mean that's the best roster to win in the postseason.
One thing to consider is the conference the teams play in because a team needs to win its conference before it can win the NBA title. The West has long been considered the better of the two conferences, but the East's depth of elite teams has recently become as impressive, if not more.
Also, consider how an injury may affect a futures bet. Let's say the Milwaukee Bucks are a heavy favorite to win the Eastern Conference and a short favorite to win the NBA title. But what happens if Giannis Antetokounmpo gets hurt? In that case, a ticket on a rival team to win becomes extremely valuable.
Other things to consider are strength of schedule, and even load management. Maybe a team is undervalued in the futures market because it has played the more difficult portion of its schedule early on. Or perhaps a team has more losses than it should because it has been sitting its best player on the second half of back-to-back games all season.
Check out more insight into how to bet on basketball.
NBA Championship Odds FAQs
The Boston Celtics are the favorites for the 2024 NBA title.
The Denver Nuggets won the 2023 NBA title, defeating the Miami Heat 4-1 in the NBA Finals.
NBA Championship odds above are in American format, meaning a $100 bet at odds of +250 would profit $250 if it wins.
Oddsmakers at sportsbooks create odds to win the NBA Championship based on the team's implied probability to win the title. The team with the lowest odds has the best chance to win the NBA Championship.
The Los Angeles Lakers are available at +4,500 to win the NBA title as of April 10.
