The defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets are a solid favorite to return to the NBA Finals. The journey this season will likely be more difficult should the Nuggets succeed with five teams posting at least 50 wins and all 10 teams that advanced beyond the regular season finishing a minimum of 10 games above .500. Denver and Oklahoma City had the best record in the conference winning 57 games with OKC having the tie-break advantage for the top seed. Minnesota survived the loss of Karl-Anthony Towns to finish in third one game back of the leaders.
The Los Angeles Lakers advanced to the Western Conference Final last season out of the play-in tournament. Just a few years ago the Lakers won the NBA title with LeBron James and Anthony Davis at the controls. The duo is back for another go, but the ride is tougher from a lower seed. Do the Golden State Warriors have another run in them? Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green were around during the dynastic years and all contributed this season. The Dubs finished 10th in the conference and will have to win on the road to advance. They boasted one of the best road records in the NBA during the regular season, so it’s possible.
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NBA Betting Lines at BookMaker.eu
NBA Odds To Win 2024 Western Conference
Denver Nuggets +132
Dallas Mavericks +644
Oklahoma City Thunder +650
Los Angeles Clippers +655
Minnesota Timberwolves +877
Phoenix Suns +905
Los Angeles Lakers +1345
New Orleans Pelicans +3647
Golden State Warriors +3675
Sacramento Kings +11074
It’s hard to look beyond the Nuggets, who followed up their first NBA title campaign by winning four more games this season. They boast a daunting starting five led by two-time MVP Nikola Jokic, who is back in the race for a third award in four seasons. Jokic can do it all and is a matchup nightmare. Jokic showed off his durability playing in 79 games averaging 26.4 points and finished fourth in the NBA with 12.4 rebounds and 9.0 assists per game. The Nuggets turned it on in last year’s playoffs going 16-4 and never trailed in any of their four series.
The next five teams on the odds board are tightly congested with odds ranging from 6/1 to 9/1. It’s indicative of the regular season standings with those clubs separated by just eight games. Oklahoma City earned the top seed with its rebuild well ahead of schedule. The Thunder closed the season with five straight wins and boasts a top-five offensive and defensive rating. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander emerged as a MVP candidate leading all five double-figure scoring starters with 30.1 per game.
With a veteran core of players the Clippers are built for the postseason. They had a stretch during the middle of the year going 26-5 to get into a top-four seed. Though they weren’t as strong over the last month, Tyronn Lue said his team’s health is more important than their seed. He was speaking about former Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, who missed the last few weeks of the season with issues about his surgically-repaired knee. And for guys like Paul George, James Harden and Russell Westbrook, this might be their best chance at winning a ring.
The Suns are an intriguing team as they look to make a championship run. They added Kevin Durant near the end of the 2022-23 season to make a push, which didn’t work out. Prior to this season the club dealt for Bradley Beal to team with KD and Devin Booker. The record wasn’t what the club expected and the trio seldom played at the same time during the first half. But they have a potential and a championship winning coach in Frank Vogel. The West is loaded with talented big men leaving Jusuf Nurkic as important piece of the Suns’ hopes. He led the club with 11.0 rebounds while chipping in 10.9 points per game.
It’s only been around for a few years, but no team has advanced from the play-in tournament to win the NBA title. The Lakers and Warriors have talented players with championship experience and if they get hot could make a run. LA has surprisingly short odds for a team that finished eighth in the conference.
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