Bucks Have Best Odds to Win NBA Finals
Plus, Brooks Koepka takes an early Round 2 lead at the Masters.
Three days remain in the NBA regular season and the league’s 30 teams all have either one or two games left. Playoff/play-in seeding has yet to be locked in and draft lottery position is also still in the balance.
Following Sunday’s season finale, the play-in tournament begins Tuesday and the playoffs tip off next Saturday, April 15.
Check in to see where championship and MVP odds stand as well as the current standings with the year winding down.
In today’s Winners Club you’ll find:
- NBA title odds and standings
- A look at the MVP race
- Live Masters leaderboard and odds
- Rookie tight end fantasy analysis
Bucks, Suns Favored to Meet Again in the Finals
Milwaukee is set to enter the playoffs as the Finals favorite, ahead of fellow Eastern Conference contenders, the Celtics and 76ers. In the West, Phoenix has the best odds to win it all, followed by the Nuggets and then the Warriors, the defending champions.
Plenty has been decided in the NBA landscape: The Bucks and Nuggets are locked into the No. 1 seeds in their respective conferences and 19 of the 20 play-in and playoff teams have clinched — the Thunder and Mavericks are fighting for the final spot. So far, only one first-round matchup is officially set: The No. 4 Cavaliers will play the No. 5 Knicks in the first round.
Beyond a few other teams that are locked into their current positions, everything else is essentially up in the air.
Below you’ll find the current standings heading into Friday’s slate with each team’s title odds, via SI Sportsbook, in parentheses.
Eastern Conference
1. Milwaukee Bucks: 58–22 (+275)
2. Boston Celtics: 55–25 (+320)
3. Philadelphia 76ers: 52–28 (+1000)
4. Cleveland Cavaliers: 51–30 (+4000)
5. New York Knicks: 47–33 (+8000)
6. Brooklyn Nets: 44–36 (+25000)
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7. Miami Heat: 43–37 (+8000)
8. Atlanta Hawks: 41–39 (+25000)
9. Toronto Raptors: 40–40 (+25000)
10: Chicago Bulls: 38–42 (+60000)
David Butler II/USA TODAY Sports
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Western Conference
1. Denver Nuggets: 52–28 (+750)
2. Memphis Grizzlies: 50–30 (+1400)
3. Sacramento Kings: 48–32 (+5000)
4. Phoenix Suns: 45–35 (+450)
5. Los Angeles Clippers: 42–38 (+1600)
6. Golden State Warriors: 42–38 (+1000)
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7. Los Angeles Lakers: 41–39 (+1400)
8. New Orleans Pelicans: 41–39 (+15000)
9. Minnesota Timberwolves: 40–40 (+15000)
10: Oklahoma City Thunder: 39–42 (+25000)
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11. Dallas Mavericks: 38–42 (+15000)
Bill Streicher/USA TODAY Sports
76ers big man Joel Embiid has separated himself from the pack and is a heavy favorite to win his first-ever MVP award. After he missed a game against back-to-back reigning MVP Nikola Jokić's Nuggets last week, Jokić briefly jumped him in the betting market. But Jokić has sat out four of five games since. Don’t count out Giannis Antetokounmpo, though. He has a solid case for his third MVP trophy.
Joel Embiid -1000
Nikola Jokić +900
Giannis Antetokounmpo +900
Brooks Koepka Leads the Masters Field
John Rahm, Viktor Hovland and Brooks Koepka were in a three-way tie for first (-7) after Round 1 at the Masters. But Koepka, who teed off early Friday morning, built a lead before his top competitors even took the course for Round 2 and is now 12 under. Jason Day (-8) has also pulled ahead of Rahm and Hovland early on.
Koepka is the betting favorite as of Friday afternoon. Keep up with SI Sportsbook for updated odds and visit SI.com/golf for the updated leaderboard. You can also find all the tee times for Round 2 here.
Brooks Koepka +210
Jon Rahm +333
Jason Day +550
Scottie Scheffler +850
Viktor Hovland +1100
Jordan Spieth +1500
Collin Morikawa +1800
(Odds subject to change.)
David J. Phillip/AP
Gary Van Sickle shared 10 things to remember from Day 1 of the Masters, including an update on Tiger Woods (+2). Woods has his work cut out for him to make the cut.
“Today was the opportune time to get the round under par, and I didn't do that today,” Woods said. “Most of the guys are going low. This was the day to do it. Hopefully tomorrow I'll be a little bit better, a little bit sharper, and kind of inch my way through it.’’
In Other News
Top Rookie Tight Ends for Fantasy Since 2000: Fantasy managers have been hard-pressed to find productive first-year tight ends, but between Michael Mayer and Dalton Kincaid, among others, this year’s class could make an impact.
Wiggins Will Not Return in Regular Season: Coach Steve Kerr said Andrew Wiggins, who has not played since Feb. 13 due to a personal matter, will not rejoin the team prior to the postseason. The Warriors have two games left.
Aliyah Boston Headlines 2023 WNBA Mock Draft: The three-round draft is set for Monday night in New York and the South Carolina star is projected to go first to the Indiana Fever. Find out how the rest of the first round might unfold.
Thanks for reading Winners Club! Enjoy your weekend. I’ll be back in your inbox Wednesday with the play-in tournament in full swing.