With the NBA season gearing up, the time for final hot takes and season-long predictions is running out. So, I've decided to look at the odds for outright NBA betting and offer you some of my favourite NBA outright predictions and a few of my hottest takes.
All odds in the article taken from Paddy Power and subject to change.
New York Knicks regular season wins – Over 53.5 wins @ 4/5
After reaching the Eastern Conference Semifinals for two seasons in a row, the Knicks look ready to take a step forward. The team has gone through some important changes this summer, trading for Mikal Bridges and Karl-Anthony Towns. Yes, they also lost some of the key players in the process, most notably Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenco, and even Isaiah Hartenstein, but it seems that overall they managed to upgrade their roster.
The main concern for the Knicks will be their depth and potential injuries, which decimated them during the playoffs and likely prevented them from getting to the Conference Finals. Still, we are talking about regular season here and we know that Tom Thibodeau has no problem playing his star players heavy minutes, no matter the opponent.
The Knicks had 50 wins last season and I can see them going well above that this time around. After all, they are arguably better and with the Eastern Conference having a good share of bad teams, the Knicks should get to at least 54 wins this season.
Portland Trail Blazers regular season wins – Under 20.5 wins @ 5/6
Last season the Blazers have just barely gone over this line, notching 21 wins. However, the team remains pretty much unchanged heading into the new season, while other bad teams in the West have all improved, particularly Grizzlies and Spurs.
On top of that, Shaedon Sharpe remains injured to start the season and Portland's overall quality all but guarantees that they'll finish the season at the very bottom of the Western Conference. I believe they will struggle to get to 20 wins.
Oklahoma City Thunder regular season wins – Under 57.5 wins @ 5/6
Yes, OKC Thunder are the main favourites to bet the top seed in the West and with a good reason. After all, they've done so last season and they have improved their roster with Alex Caruso and Isiah Hartenstein.
That being said, the West will be a bloodbath this season, even more than it was last season. Many of the teams have also improved and pretty much all of them but Spurs, Blazers, and Jazz have playoff hopes. OKC have finished last season with 57 wins and with the competition being fiercer this time around, I can see them falling short of 58 wins.
60+ Regular Season Wins – Boston Celtics @ 5/4
The Celtics finished last regular season as the top seed in the entire league, notching 64 wins in the process. They followed that up with a convincing playoff run on the road to their first title since 2008 and the Big-Three era.
The thing is, the Celtics are bound to be as good this season. Almost all of their key pieces are only entering their prime years and if they can keep Kristaps Porzingis healthy for at least a portion of the regular season, there's no reason why Boston can't reach 60+ wins again.
Detroit Pistons regular season wins – Over 25.5 wins @ 8/11
After ending last season with the worst record in the league (14-68), the Pistons are in for another rough season. However, I don't see them doing as poorly as they did last time around.
First of all, their young core will have a bit more experience and hopefully improve. On top of that, the Pistons have signed Tobias Harris and Tim Hardaway Jr, who are their only two players over 30, so they've added some much-needed experience and veteran guideship. Of course, I don't expect the Pistons to come anywhere close to the playoffs but in the relatively weak East, they can win more than 25 games.
An avid sports fan and bettor, with a soft spot for basketball, tennis, and football. New to the MFT's unique community and very glad to be here.
