Jul 18, 2018
Raptors' betting odds improve after trade
While the impact Kawhi Leonard will ultimately have on the Toronto Raptors ability to win the NBA title won’t be known for a while, Wednesday’s trade has already vastly improved their betting odds to lift the Larry O'Brien trophy.
TSN.ca Staff
While the impact Kawhi Leonard will ultimately have on the Toronto Raptors ability to win the NBA title won’t be known for a while, Wednesday’s trade has already vastly improved their betting odds to lift the Larry O'Brien trophy.
According to Bodog, the Raptors are currently 18/1* to capture their first franchise title in 2018-19, an improvement from 30/1, which they were listed at before the deal was made official.
The site has the Raptors listed as sixth-most likely to win the title, behind the Golden State Warriors (4/7), Boston Celtics (11/2), Los Angeles Lakers (7/1), Houston Rockets (15/2) and Philadelphia 76ers (16/1).
The San Antonio Spurs' odds did not change through Wednesday’s acquisition of DeMar DeRozan and Jakob Poeltl. Gregg Popovich's club remains at 66/1, two spots below the Raptors.
Two other teams that were also linked to Leonard had their odds impacted by the deal.
The Lakers fell from 13/2 to 7/1 and the 76ers were initially at 15/1 and are now 16/1 to win the championship.
The Raptors actually saw their odds start to improve once they started being mentioned in the Leonard sweepstakes, as they were as high as 60/1 on July 2.
The Celtics currently have the best odds to win the Eastern Conference at 10/13 with the 76ers second at 3/1 and the Raptors third at 9/2.
*All odds are current as of July 18