In what has become a rollercoaster series on both sides, the Boston Celtics and Miami Heat appear to be back at square one.
The C's looked to be dead in the water following a Game 3 stinker against the Heat at Kaseya Center, falling into an 0-3 hole and setting the stage for either a wholly disappointing season-ending effort or a historic comeback. And wouldn't you know, they're about half way toward making history, as the Celtics railed off back-to-back wins and sent things back to Miami for another do-or-die Game 6.
That all came after Boston entered the Eastern Conference finals as the heavy favorite, which is where things appear to be headed back to if it can send things to a deciding Game 7.
Miami held -1200 odds to win the Eastern Conference crown after building a 3-0 lead, but have seen things dip considerably following each loss, according to BetMGM data analyst John Ewing. The Heat dropped down to -250 following their Game 4 loss, with the Celtics improving from +750 to +200. Things continued to shift after Boston's dominant Game 5, where it dropped down to +120 odds and Miami fell to -145. In the time since the Celtics went down 0-3, 77% of all bets at BetMGM are on the C's.
Boston still isn't a great bet across the board, however. The Celtics' odds to win the NBA Finals have dropped considerably from their all-time high (+1600) following Game 3. The Game 4 win saw them move all the way to +450, while Game 5 was enough for them to jump the Heat (+550) and move to +270.
In what has only been about a week, the Green have gone from dead in the water to America's sweethearts when it comes to betting circles. That much is especially evident in the Game 6 odds.
The folks over at BetMGM have made the Celtics a 2.5-point favorite for the game down in Miami, with 62% of bets and 81% of money on Boston, according to Ewing. If the series does end up going to Game 7, you can expect all of the love to roll in on the Celtics.
