NBA Odds: How Bookmakers Opened Celtics-Nets First-Round Playoff Series
Brooklyn opened as the series favorite
The Boston Celtics may have earned the second seed in the Eastern Conference following a remarkable in-season turnaround, but oddsmakers seemingly can’t shake the superstar talent possessed by the seventh-seeded Brooklyn Nets.
And the potential of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving led bookmakers to open the Nets as a slight series favorite immediately after Brooklyn claimed a win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Play-In Tournament. With the win, the Nets earned the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference and thus the opportunity to take on the Celtics in a best-of-seven series.
It should make for an incredibly entertaining playoff series, as depicted by the betting prices.
DraftKings Sportsbook first opened the Nets as a -145 favorite to win the series with Boston getting plus-money at +115. Those prices quickly moved to Brooklyn -135 and Boston +105. But, again, the odds were tinkered to Nets -120 and Celtics -110. Those have remained the prices following what seemed to be a hectic frenzy.
For reference, a $110 bet on the Celtics would earn a total payout of $210 should Boston win the series. Similarly, a $120 bet on the Nets would result in a $220 take home.
Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s the same everywhere, which is why it’s best to shop around for the best price.
FanDuel Sportsbook has identical prices (Celtics -108, Nets -108) for both teams while Las Vegas bookmaker Jeff Sherman tweeted out prices that were quite different than either DraftKings or FanDuel — Celtics -150, Nets +130. Sherman and Westgate SuperBook view the Celtics as the favorite to advance.
The series odds, though, didn’t exactly correlate to the prices for Game 1. The Celtics, who will have home-court advantage in the series and thus host Game 1 at TD Garden, opened as the betting favorite entering Sunday’s opener. Both DraftKings and FanDuel currently have Boston as a 3-point favorite for Game 1.
