Image via USA TODAY Sports/Bob Donnan
No corny intro. Let's get that money.
The NBA Finals are upon us and you're going to be watching so why don't you throw a few dollars on a wager or two? The Warriors opened as 5.5-point favorites in Game 1, but since this is the pinnacle of the NBA season, the offerings from your average book are at an all-time high. So we've waded through the props to identify those that present the best value. As always, please remember to use these for illegal betting purposes only.
Series Price
The majority of people are on the Warriors, and for good reason. Defending champs, Steph Curry, Splash Brothers, blah, blah, blah. But you sure you want to lay down -225 on the Warriors against LeBron and a healthy cast of characters that aren't complete scrubs, you know, unlike last year? Don't forget LeBron came pretty damn close to lifting the Cavs to the title all by himself last June. The pick: Cavs +175 because I'm not laying down $225 to win $100 unless it's Jordan in his prime.
How Many Games?
Five, six, or seven? Right now the money appears to be on a seven-games series since that has the lowest odds on the board at +120. Six games has the best value at +135 based on the fact that last year's series went six and if one team steals a game here or there and we don't have any no-show performances, can't you someone closing it out before an epic Game 7?
Game 4 +570
Game 5 +150
Game 6 +135
Game 7 +120
The Pick: Six games at +135.
Game 1 and Series Result
Four combinations.
Cavs win Game 1 and win series +300
Cavs win Game 1 and lose series +450
Warriors win Game 1 and win series -200
Warriors win Game 1 and lose series +350
The Pick: Give me the Cavs to win Game 1 and the series at +300 to do what the Thunder should have done in the Western Conference Finals.
Correct Series Score
A sweep ain't happening. So that's fool's gold. And the Warriors winning 4-1 is just disrespectful to LeBron and surprisingly low at 2-1.
Cavs 4-0 +1800
Cavs 4-1 +900
Cavs 4-2 +400
Cavs 4-3 +700
Warriors 4-0 +800
Warriors 4-1 +200
Warriors 4-2 +350
Warriors 4-3 +200
The Pick: Cavs taking it in six at +400? There's your winner.
Top Series Scorer
Tricky here with so many sharpshooters/scorers to choose from.
Steph Curry -150
LeBron James +200
Klay Thompson +370
Kyrie Irving +700
Kevin Love +1500
Draymond Green +4000
JR Smith +4000
Andre Iguodala +4000
LeBron and Kyrie are basically neck and neck, totaling 344 and 340 points, respectively, through the playoffs. While we all know how LeBron averaged 35.8 points per game during last year's finals he probably doesn't need to do that with more help this time around so don't expect a repeat performance. Kevin Love trails his teammates by roughyl 100 points and J.R. Smith is a distant fourth on the Cavs' playoff scoring list. So logically, you have two choices from the Cavs, but LeBron doesn't present a ton of value at +200. Kyrie absolutely does at +700.
As for the Warriors, are you taking Steph or are you taking Klay? Thompson had a phenomenal Western Conference Finals, topped off by arguably the greatest shooting performance in playoff history in Game 6. They're both averaging 26 points per game, give or take a decimal point or two, but Klay has been more consistent, knocking down 44.8 percent of his threes compared to 40.7 for Curry. The only other Warrior averaging double figures throughout the playoffs is Green at 15.1 points per game so throw him out.
The Pick: Thompson at +370.
Finals MVP
LeBron should have been the MVP last year, but Iguodala pulled off the major upset with the lucky few who put money on the reserve at—depending on the book—odds of 125-1.
Andre Iguodala +1500
Draymond Green +700
J.R. Smith +2000
Kevin Love +700
Klay Thompson +400
Kyrie Irving +700
LeBron James +150
Steph Curry -150
Tristan Thompson +2500
Field +700
The value here? Klay Thompson at +400 or Kyrie Irving at +700. But I'm already on the record as liking the Cavs and unless LeBron has his leg amputated how does he not win it if he brings Cleveland its long lost championship?
The Pick: It's boring , but it's LeBron at +150.