The day after the Warriors won their fourth championship in eight seasons, our partners at PointsBet deemed them co-favorites to defend their title in 2022-23.
The Warriors, Boston Celtics and LA Clippers were all given +600 odds to win the NBA finals next season, meaning a $100 bet would win you $600.
However, now that the NBA draft is over and we’re a week into free agency, the Warriors no longer are considered title favorites.
PointsBet now gives Golden State the fourth-highest odds at +650, with the Celtics leading the pack at +550. The Milwaukee Bucks and Phoenix Suns are tied for second at +600, with the Clippers right behind the Warriors at +700.
While the Warriors were able to retain Kevon Looney and agree to a deal with Donte DiVincenzo in free agency, they lost a bunch of their key role players from last season. Gary Payton II, Otto Porter Jr., Nemanja Bjelica, Juan Toscano-Anderson and Damion Lee all have found new homes this summer. While Payton and Porter’s losses will be felt the most, that's a lot of veteran presence that the Warriors lost from their locker room that could be difficult to make up.
Conversely, the Celtics reportedly added Malcolm Brogdon in a trade with the Indiana Pacers and agreed to a deal with Danilo Gallinari, all while not losing anyone from their rotation that made it to the NBA Finals.
The Bucks re-signed Bobby Portis and Serge Ibaka to keep the core of their team intact, which looked ready to potentially defend their 2021 title until Khris Middleton got injured in the playoffs.
And the Suns, coming off an NBA-best 64-win season, also are the frontrunners to land Kevin Durant in a blockbuster trade, although all Durant trade talk appears to have slowed recently.
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The Warriors certainly will have their work cut out for them if they want to win a fifth championship since 2015, and the oddsmakers believe the offseason so far has not done them any favors.
But being doubted certainly helped motivate Golden State this past season, so you can surely expect the Warriors to relish anything that could make them feel like underdogs once again.
Editor's note: All odds are provided by our partner, PointsBet. PointsBet is our Official Sports Betting Partner and we may receive compensation if you place a bet on PointsBet for the first time after clicking our links.
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Warriors no longer 2023 NBA title favorites after first free agency week - NBC Sports
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