NBA season is fast approaching with most franchises locking in the majority of their rosters. A number of books have put up markets for division and conference winners, but there are no season win total markets up yet (that I'm aware of).
Would be good to get a bit of discussion going regarding some futures bets.
Southwest division - Spurs at $1.83 (Bet365)
Houston got worse, losing their main bench pieces in Asik and Lin, along with the departure of Parsons. They've added Ariza but overall it looks like they've clearly regressed from a personnel point. Memphis lost their outside shooter in Miller and replaced him with VC. The Grizz had the 3rd best record in the West once they got Gasol back from injury. Chances are they'll grind out another 50+ win season by pounding the ball into the post, but they still look to be lacking floor spacers and their offense can grind to a halt. People seem to be talking up Dallas but personally I don't see it. Dirk is another year older and an absolute turnstile on D, Chandler has missed a lot of time through injury recently and it remains to be seen if Monta Ellis can back up his best season to date. They Mavs have a lot of above average solid rotational players without any clear stars. Pelicans could be the surprise in the division, Asik and Davis will be a beastly duo and if their guards can get on the court and stay healthy they could surprise a lot. But can't see how anyone else will win the 60 odd games it'll take to knock the Spurs off. Even with a few guys having delayed starts to the season with lingering injuries, Spurs should win this division. 1.83 looks a gift.
Southeast division - Heat at $3 (Bet365)
Yes they lost LeBron, but they've replaced him with mr marathon Luol Deng who plays both sides of the ball. Bosh gets the chance to be the number 1 man and prove that the criticism he copped over the last 3 years was unfair. McBob adds some more floor spacing and is a good glue guy, while it will be interesting to see if Danny Granger's corpse can add anything. If d-wade manages to remain relatively healthy and plays 60-70 games then the Heat should be too good. Not convinced by Washington yet because wall and beal can both still be very inconsistent. Nene misses a lot of games too. Nene and Gortat ate the bulls alive in the playoffs but over the course of a 82 game season I think the wiz are still too up and down to win it. Charlotte are also value at 4.50 but I think miami wins this based mainly on the experience of their roster.
Pacific division - Clippers at 1.62 (Sportsbet)
Warriors were a disappointment last season, Bogut misses a lot of time plus they have a new coach. Clips despite missing Paul for a large chunk still won the div comfortably which was impressive. Griffen took his game to another level as did deandre. Bringing back all their major pieces plus adding Hawes gives them a lot of extra spacing. Had one of the best home records in the league, coached by one of the best as well. 1.58 is short but they should get the W and end up top 3 in the west.
Northwest division - Blazers at $4 (Bet365)
What started as one of the deepest divisions last year now is one of the shallowest. OKC are the clear favourite but at 1.28 are absolutely no value. Blazers at $4 are overs if they can remain healthy. Only a slight chance of winning but if Durant or Ibaka miss a chunk then OKC might lose some extra games. Blazers roster improved with the addition of Kaman and they should get natural development out of Lillard, Batum, McCollum and Barton. Their schedule is friendlier this year and they have 20 games vs sides on a B2B. Comparatively, OKC only have 10 games vs opponents on the second night of a double. This is purely speculative but considering the teams were separated by only 5 wins last season, worth a little nibble in case injuries do hit OKC.
Atlantic division - Toronto at 2.25 (Bet365)
The celtics and 76ers are tanking. The knicks are shot to pieces and have a new coach. It's essentially a 2 horse race between Brooklyn and Toronto. Raptors have one of the best home court advantages in the NBA, and some of the most athletic wings, while the Nets are all suffering from rust. Pierce left, KG is a shadow of his former self, Deron stunk last year and in an interview said he doesn't like living in New York so isn't happy where he is. They've got a new coach and their best player Brook Lopez has missed a large chunk of the last few seasons. Raptors will be pushing for home court come the playoffs and could finish as high as 3rd seed. Valanciunas will be a beast, Ross and DDR are athletic freaks, lowry was great last year and they have great depth with guys like Amir Johnson, Lou Williams, Vasquez, Psycho T, Chuck Hayes and Fields coming off the bench. Trading rudy gay was the best thing they ever did.
Central division - Bulls at 2.70 (Bet365)
Yes Derrick Rose has missed 2 years. But some of his play at the world champs has shown his athleticism hasn't diminished. Both sides play 20 back to backs, but importantly Chicago plays 21 games against sides who are on the 2nd night of a back to back while Cleveland only plays 11 of these games. The cavs are also putting together a brand new side, and should face some teething problems like the heat did initially. Defensively, Chicago will sh!t all over cleveland, and if varejao goes down cleveland are in strife in the big man department. Waiters and Irving both have to adjust, and being guys that need the ball in their hand to be effective, will take time now that lebron is in town. The bulls are a cohesive unit who dump the ball into the post a lot, and adding Gasol will only help them. They've added some shooting which should help the spacing. The cavs are also relying on a few grandpas to come in and help them who might struggle on the B2B's (Mike Miller, James Jones, Marion, Haywood and Varejao). if rose stays healthy the bulls should get it done given their depth and Thibs penchant for pushing for the best record in the A.
Would be great to hear some other peoples thoughts!
Would be good to get a bit of discussion going regarding some futures bets.
Southwest division - Spurs at $1.83 (Bet365)
Houston got worse, losing their main bench pieces in Asik and Lin, along with the departure of Parsons. They've added Ariza but overall it looks like they've clearly regressed from a personnel point. Memphis lost their outside shooter in Miller and replaced him with VC. The Grizz had the 3rd best record in the West once they got Gasol back from injury. Chances are they'll grind out another 50+ win season by pounding the ball into the post, but they still look to be lacking floor spacers and their offense can grind to a halt. People seem to be talking up Dallas but personally I don't see it. Dirk is another year older and an absolute turnstile on D, Chandler has missed a lot of time through injury recently and it remains to be seen if Monta Ellis can back up his best season to date. They Mavs have a lot of above average solid rotational players without any clear stars. Pelicans could be the surprise in the division, Asik and Davis will be a beastly duo and if their guards can get on the court and stay healthy they could surprise a lot. But can't see how anyone else will win the 60 odd games it'll take to knock the Spurs off. Even with a few guys having delayed starts to the season with lingering injuries, Spurs should win this division. 1.83 looks a gift.
Southeast division - Heat at $3 (Bet365)
Yes they lost LeBron, but they've replaced him with mr marathon Luol Deng who plays both sides of the ball. Bosh gets the chance to be the number 1 man and prove that the criticism he copped over the last 3 years was unfair. McBob adds some more floor spacing and is a good glue guy, while it will be interesting to see if Danny Granger's corpse can add anything. If d-wade manages to remain relatively healthy and plays 60-70 games then the Heat should be too good. Not convinced by Washington yet because wall and beal can both still be very inconsistent. Nene misses a lot of games too. Nene and Gortat ate the bulls alive in the playoffs but over the course of a 82 game season I think the wiz are still too up and down to win it. Charlotte are also value at 4.50 but I think miami wins this based mainly on the experience of their roster.
Pacific division - Clippers at 1.62 (Sportsbet)
Warriors were a disappointment last season, Bogut misses a lot of time plus they have a new coach. Clips despite missing Paul for a large chunk still won the div comfortably which was impressive. Griffen took his game to another level as did deandre. Bringing back all their major pieces plus adding Hawes gives them a lot of extra spacing. Had one of the best home records in the league, coached by one of the best as well. 1.58 is short but they should get the W and end up top 3 in the west.
Northwest division - Blazers at $4 (Bet365)
What started as one of the deepest divisions last year now is one of the shallowest. OKC are the clear favourite but at 1.28 are absolutely no value. Blazers at $4 are overs if they can remain healthy. Only a slight chance of winning but if Durant or Ibaka miss a chunk then OKC might lose some extra games. Blazers roster improved with the addition of Kaman and they should get natural development out of Lillard, Batum, McCollum and Barton. Their schedule is friendlier this year and they have 20 games vs sides on a B2B. Comparatively, OKC only have 10 games vs opponents on the second night of a double. This is purely speculative but considering the teams were separated by only 5 wins last season, worth a little nibble in case injuries do hit OKC.
Atlantic division - Toronto at 2.25 (Bet365)
The celtics and 76ers are tanking. The knicks are shot to pieces and have a new coach. It's essentially a 2 horse race between Brooklyn and Toronto. Raptors have one of the best home court advantages in the NBA, and some of the most athletic wings, while the Nets are all suffering from rust. Pierce left, KG is a shadow of his former self, Deron stunk last year and in an interview said he doesn't like living in New York so isn't happy where he is. They've got a new coach and their best player Brook Lopez has missed a large chunk of the last few seasons. Raptors will be pushing for home court come the playoffs and could finish as high as 3rd seed. Valanciunas will be a beast, Ross and DDR are athletic freaks, lowry was great last year and they have great depth with guys like Amir Johnson, Lou Williams, Vasquez, Psycho T, Chuck Hayes and Fields coming off the bench. Trading rudy gay was the best thing they ever did.
Central division - Bulls at 2.70 (Bet365)
Yes Derrick Rose has missed 2 years. But some of his play at the world champs has shown his athleticism hasn't diminished. Both sides play 20 back to backs, but importantly Chicago plays 21 games against sides who are on the 2nd night of a back to back while Cleveland only plays 11 of these games. The cavs are also putting together a brand new side, and should face some teething problems like the heat did initially. Defensively, Chicago will sh!t all over cleveland, and if varejao goes down cleveland are in strife in the big man department. Waiters and Irving both have to adjust, and being guys that need the ball in their hand to be effective, will take time now that lebron is in town. The bulls are a cohesive unit who dump the ball into the post a lot, and adding Gasol will only help them. They've added some shooting which should help the spacing. The cavs are also relying on a few grandpas to come in and help them who might struggle on the B2B's (Mike Miller, James Jones, Marion, Haywood and Varejao). if rose stays healthy the bulls should get it done given their depth and Thibs penchant for pushing for the best record in the A.
Would be great to hear some other peoples thoughts!
