The NBA Title Odds Table is Set and the Bucks Sit at the Head
The three teams that have dominated the discussion as legitimate title contenders include the Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Lakers and the LA Clippers. Despite their inconsistent play at times, the Clippers had led the pack since the beginning of the season. Would that continue to be the trend or would one of the other teams emerge as the frontrunner?
To answer this question, here’s a look at the updated title odds for each of these three teams based upon how they performed over the past week (Feb. 3 through Feb. 9).
NBA Futures – Championship 2020
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Third-Best NBA Title Odds: Los Angeles Clippers (+320). Last Week’s Odds (+300)
Even though their odds dipped somewhat, the LA Clippers had a pretty good week. After notching wins against the San Antonio Spurs and the Miami Heat, the Clippers were trounced by the Minnesota Timberwolves to the tune of 142-115. However, they got back on the right track with a convincing 133-92 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers, pushing their record to 3-1 over the past week.
The Clippers are tied for the second-best record in the Western Conference at 37-16, but for the first time all season, they are not the odds-on favorite to win it all. Let’s see if the trend continues down the stretch.
Second-Best NBA Title Odds: Los Angeles Lakers (+300 – No Change from Last Week)
The Lakers had somewhat of an up-and-down week. Following a 129-102 victory over the Sacramento Kings, they were defeated by the Houston Rockets 121-111. Fortunately, they concluded the week against an injury-depleted Golden State Warriors ball club. But even that proved to be a struggle, as the Lakers narrowly escaped with a 125-120 victory.
On the positive side, the Lakers improved to 39-12 on the season, which is the best record in the west and the second-best record in the NBA. The Lakers are also a top-four team in both offense and defense. They’ve been at the No. 2 spot for most of the season, but there’s still plenty of time for them to make a move.
Top NBA Title Odds: Milwaukee Bucks (+275) Last Week’s Odds (+320)
Let’s give a big round of applause to the Milwaukee Bucks for making the jump to the No. 1 spot on our list. How did the team with the best record in the league do this past week? Well, they posted double-digit wins against the New Orleans Pelicans, Philadelphia 76ers and the Orlando Magic. On the heels of a 3-0 week, the Bucks have won nine of their previous 10 games overall while pushing their league-leading record to 45-7.
But the story doesn’t end there for this team. Milwaukee also leads the league in scoring at 119.7 points per contest. They have the third-best offensive rating and the top defensive rating in the league. The Bucks are limiting opponents to just 40.9 percent shooting from the field, including just 37.8 percent over their last three outings. I’ve been saying for quite some time that this team deserves a little more love for how well they’ve played this season and it finally happened. The question is can they retain the top spot for the remainder of the season?
