NBA Championship Future Odds Betting Advice: Warriors Lead Field but Mavericks Offer Value

The NBA conference championships are set!

In the Eastern Conference, the top-seeded Heat will face the No. 2 Celtics. Miami was the first team to advance, taking care of the 76ers in six games.

In the Western Conference, No. 3 Warriors will take on the no. 4 Mavericks. The Mavericks took care of business Sunday, ousting the No. 1 Suns in seven games.

Here’s where the futures stand today at SI Sportsbook:

Golden State Warriors +125
Boston Celtics +200
Miami Heat +400
Dallas Mavericks +550

I asked the team of betting experts at SI where they are placing their futures bets. Here’s where they are putting their money.

SI Betting’s Matt Ehalt:

I’m going to go for the bigger payout here and take the Heat. They earned the No. 1 seed in the East outright, and that is one tough team. The Warriors’ Game 5 implosion looms in my mind (how did they lose by so much) and perhaps the Celtics exerted so much to beat the Bucks that they could be a little exhausted. I’m just not sure the Mavericks will beat the Warriors and the East champion to back them at +600. I could see the Heat managing to beat the Celtics and Warriors/Mavericks.

BET: Heat (+400)

SI Fantasy’s Matt De Lima:

In early February, we answered this same question: Who's going to win it all? I took the Celtics at +4000 way back when and as they say, even a blind squirrel finds a nut as that bet has incredible value now that Boston is in the Eastern Conference Finals after ousting the Bucks in Game 7. However, is Boston your best bet right now at +200? I don’t believe so. The Mavericks just stuck it to the Phoenix Suns in an unprecedented Game 7 blowout. While it’s hard to root against Steph Curry and Golden State, I believe Luka Doncic is playing like a man possessed. He looks like the best player in the league. It’s as though he’s found yet another tier to superstardom and made it look effortless. Don’t mess with Texas.

BET: Mavericks (+550)

SI.com’s Robin Lundberg

Give me the Celtics. Boston has played like the best team in the league for a long stretch now and I do not take sweeping the Nets and besting Giannis and the champs in succession lightly. They would be my pick to win it all regardless of the odds. However, I’d also considering putting something down on the Mavs given the number. Dallas has played great D and have gotten enough supplemental scoring around Luka where they have a shot.

BET: Celtics (+200)

SI Betting and Fantasy’s Kyle Wood:

The Bucks were my Finals pick for months, so the natural pivot is to the team that sent them home in Game 7 on Sunday. Give me the Celtics. They have everything you want in a contender: three-point shooting, role players who can step up (ahem, Grant Williams), strong defense and a star in Jayson Tatum who can single-handedly take over a series. I’m tempted to pick Dallas, especially at those long odds, but I’m not sure they’re a good matchup for Golden State. Plenty of computer models were all the way in on Boston before the playoffs began and now they’re eight wins away from being proven correct. Through two rounds, the C’s have swept Kevin Durant’s Nets and knocked off the defending champs. That’s a good enough resume for me to back them.

BET: Celtics (+200)

SI Betting’s Frankie Taddeo

While all the attention will be garnered to Luka Doncic and Steph Curry in their upcoming showdown, a star player flying under the radar this postseason is an impending free agent who will land a max contract in the offseason. Jalen Brunson, who has a winning pedigree after earning two national championships with the Villanova Wildcats and a Naismith Award, has been sensational for the Dallas Mavericks in his fourth season with in the NBA. The talented point guard, who averaged a career-high 16.3 points per game (PPG) in the regular season, has taken his game to another level in the playoffs scoring 22.9 (PPG), 4.6 rebounds and 3.5 assists. The disrespect by oddsmakers is perplexing to say the least, but bettors should use it to their advantage. Make the Mavericks a double-pop target in the series market (+185) to win the West over Golden State combined with an investment in the championship offering at healthy odds of +550. Adding in the value of backing the best player in the sport right now in Doncic, makes this a pure value play.

BET: Mavericks (+550)

SI Betting and Fantasy’s Jennifer Piacenti

When I was a kid growing up in Dallas, my dad used to take me to Mavericks games all the time because the tickets were cheap. Why? Because they never won. Like. Ever. But, since they ousted the No. 1 seed Sunday, I’ve decided to buy a five and a half to one ticket for my nine-year-old self and my dad. Happy Father’s Day and let’s go Mavs!

Bet: Mavericks (+550)

Check the Latest Odds at SI Sportsbook

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