And then there were two.
After Miami’s 103-84 Game 7 win over Boston Monday night, Denver finally learned its opponent in the NBA Finals. And if oddsmakers are to be believed, the Nuggets are the favorites to bring home their first-ever Larry O’Brien trophy.
Denver has -380 odds — meaning a $380 bet would win $100 — to win the series, according to Caesars Sportsbook.
The odds point even more in the Nuggets’ favor at -400, according to BetMGM and DraftKings Sportsbook, and Fanduel Sportsbook has Denver at -480. Miami, meanwhile, has odds ranging from +300 to +330 to win the championship.
While he didn’t win his third-straight regular season MVP award, Nuggets center Nikola Jokic is the early favorite to receive the Finals MVP with odds ranging from -320 to -360. Miami star Jimmy Butler is universally ranked second at +330 to +350. Denver guard Jamal Murray is third with +800 to +1,700 odds. Other Nuggets listed include Michael Porter Jr. (+10,000 to +20,000), Aaron Gordon (+15,000 to +27,000), Bruce Brown (+20,000 to +30,000), Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (+30,000 to +50,000) and Jeff Green (+50,000, according to Caesars).
How long will the series last? BetMGM places the best odds that it will end in five games (+190), followed by six or seven (+240). A sweep (+425) is the worst odds. DraftKings, however, has a seven-game series as the best odds at +220, followed by five or six (+240) and four (+450).
BetMGM (+225), DraftKings (+265) and Fanduel (+210) have the best odds that the series will end with the Nuggets winning 4-1. A 4-3 Denver series victory is next at +325 to +370. The worst odds belong to a Heat sweep at +3,500 to +4,800.
Game 1 takes place at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Ball Arena. The Nuggets are 8.5-point favorites (9 by Fanduel) to beat the Heat.
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