At 5-to-1, that is exactly what the Hawks have done. They own the game’s second-best record (34-8), trailing only the Warriors (33-6 record, 6-to-1 odds) in that department, and have reeled off 13 straight wins and covers.
The Hawks (a.k.a. “Spurs East”) play a fundamentally sound, unselfish brand of basketball, ranking first in points allowed per game (96.6), sixth in points scored (103.3) and second in assists (25.8).
Meanwhile, the Cavs (6-to-1), barely above .500 at 21-20, continue to draw short prices at the Westgate. The offseason acquisitions of LeBron James and Kevin Love made them a sensible 5-to-2 NBA title favorite to open the season, but their play has not even lived up to preseason expectations.
Granted, Cleveland’s recent 1-7 stretch came sans James, but is that a reasonable excuse or an indictment on the supporting cast? Why lay the short price on Cleveland at this point when there are a number of better values on the board?
NBA CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS (last week’s prices in parentheses if changed) HAWKS 5-1 (12-1) SPURS 6-1 WARRIORS 6-1 CAVALIERS 6-1 (5-1) BULLS 7-1 (5-1) THUNDER 12-1 CLIPPERS 12-1 (10-1) MAVERICKS 12-1 BLAZERS 18-1 (20-1) GRIZZLIES 18-1 (20-1) RAPTORS 18-1 (15-1) WIZARDS 20-1 ROCKETS 25-1 (20-1) HEAT 100-1 (200-1) SUNS 100-1 PISTONS 100-1 (200-1) HORNETS 200-1 (300-1) PELICANS 200-1 (100-1) BUCKS 200-1 PACERS 300-1 NETS 300-1 (200-1) CELTICS 500-1 (300-1) NUGGETS 1000-1 (300-1) MAGIC 1000-1 KNICKS 9999-1 WOLVES 9999-1 JAZZ 9999-1 (5000-1) KINGS 9999-1 (2000-1) LAKERS 9999-1 (5000-1) 76ERS 9999-1
ODDS TO WIN 2014-2015 EASTERN CONFERENCE HAWKS 2-1 (4-1) CAVALIERS 12-5 (2-1) BULLS 13-5 (2-1) RAPTORS 7-1 (11-2) WIZARDS 8-1 HEAT 45-1 (80-1) PISTONS 45-1 (80-1) HORNETS 90-1 (120-1) BUCKS 90-1 (80-1) PACERS 135-1 (80-1) NETS 135-1 (80-1) CELTICS 225-1 (120-1) MAGIC 450-1 (400-1) 76ERS 4500-1 (4000-1) KNICKS 5000-1 (4000-1)
ODDS TO WIN 2014-2015 WESTERN CONFERENCE SPURS 3-1 WARRIORS 3-1 THUNDER 6-1 (13-2) MAVERICKS 6-1 (13-2) CLIPPERS 6-1 (11-2) BLAZERS 9-1 (11-1) GRIZZLIES 9-1 (11-1) ROCKETS 13-1 (11-1) SUNS 50-1 (60-1) PELICANS 100-1 (60-1) NUGGETS 500-1 (200-1) WOLVES 5000-1 (6000-1) LAKERS 5000-1 (3000-1) JAZZ 5000-1 (3000-1) KINGS 5000-1 (1200-1)
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