Golden State Heavy First Round Favorites over Clippers as NBA Playoffs Start Saturday

Posted on: April 13, 2019, 07:14h. 

Last updated on: April 13, 2019, 07:14h.

Steve Bittenbender Read More
Expertise: Legislation, Sports Betting, Horse Racing.

There is never really such a thing as a sure bet, but oddsmakers think the Golden State Warriors advancing out of the first round of the National Basketball Association playoffs is close to it.

Over the past two seasons, the Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors have been No. 1 in the NBA. Curry and the Warriors have an excellent shot for a three-peat this year. (Image: NBA.com)

The Warriors, the two-time defending world champions and this year’s top seed in the Western Conference, aren’t just heavy favorites to beat the Los Angeles Clippers.

They’re obese. Morbidly obese favorites in a series that starts Saturday night.

The Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas lists the Warriors as -50000 in the best-of-seven series. That means a bettor needs to put up $50,000 to win $100. For those seeking the Warriors as a value opportunity, the FanDuel Sportsbook lists Golden State at -20000. A $100 bet through FanDuel wins 50 cents.

The Warriors are used to having ridiculously low odds.

Conversely, the SuperBook gives Los Angeles +10000 odds to win four games over the Warriors. That means a $100 bet would win $10,000. FanDuel gives the Clips +5500.

Of course, upsets can happen, and the NBA has seen its share of eight seeds knocking off a top seed in the first round. Most notably was when the Denver Nuggets knocked off the Seattle Supersonics 25 years ago. Oddsmakers pegged the Sonics as -2000 favorites in that series, according to SportsOddsHistory.com.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters that he like the way the Clippers organization built their team, an approach that made them better down the stretch.

They’re the young upstarts now,” Kerr said. “We’re the veteran team. We have a ton of respect for them, and what they’ve done.”

Other Western Conference Matchups

Oddsmakers aren’t going by seedings in determining lines for the other best-of-seven series out west.

At the SuperBook, sixth-seeded Oklahoma City is a -150 favorite over Portland in their first-round series, which starts on Sunday. That’s primarily due to the fact the Thunder beat Portland (+130) in all four of their regular season matchups. In addition, the Trail Blazers will play without center Jusuf Nurkic. The starter is out for the season after suffering a compound fracture in his left leg in a game last month.

FanDuel offers the Thunder at -172 and the Blazers at +140.

Elsewhere, fourth-seeded Houston has -400 odds at the SuperBook and -300 odds at FanDuel over fifth-seeded Utah (+300/+230). Their series starts Sunday.

Denver, the second seed, is -200 at the SuperBook and -240 at FanDuel over San Antonio (+170/+190) in the series that starts Saturday night.

NBA Eastern Conference

The sportsbooks see the Eastern Conference matchups as pretty much cut and dried.

The top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks are a -10000 selection at the SuperBook over the Detroit Pistons in the first round. FanDuel gives the Bucks, led by Most Valuable Player candidate Giannis Antetokounmpo, -4000 odds.

Antetokounmpo, nicknamed the “Greek Freak,” averaged 30 points and 12.2 rebounds a game over March and April to help the Bucks earn home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. While Milwaukee hasn’t won a playoff series in 18 years, their superstar said the team isn’t putting any additional pressure on itself.

“As a team, we know what our goal is,” Antetokounmpo told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. “We haven’t recently been out of the first round. We have to take it step by step.”

Milwaukee-Detroit (+2000/+1650) starts on Sunday evening.

In other Eastern Conference matchups:

The Toronto Raptors, the second seed, hold -1400 odds at the SuperBook and -1200 at FanDuel over the Orlando Magic (+800/+710) in a series that starts on Saturday.

The third-seeded Philadelphia 76ers are -800 favorites at the SuperBook and -550 through FanDuel over the Brooklyn Nets (+550/+390) in a series that starts on Saturday afternoon.

The Boston Celtics are -700 favorites at the SuperBook over the fifth-seeded Indiana Pacers (+500/+330). FanDuel offers the Celtics at -460. That series starts Sunday afternoon.