2018 NBA Championship Odds Update: Warriors Clear Betting Favorites on Futures

The NBA regular season ends in 43 days and it's hard to imagine any team challenging the Golden State Warriors. With -170 futures (wager $170 to win $100), they remain the favorite to defend their title according to the NBA championship odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.

However, the Houston Rockets have definitely closed the gap.

Winners of 14 straight and up a half-game on their conference rival, Houston has watched its NBA title futures improve from +400 just before the All-Star break to +325 with six weeks to go. James Harden has created some distance between himself and LeBron James in the MVP race, and with the offseason addition of Chris Paul, the Rockets are proving their two-man game can compete with the elite teams.

After posting a paltry 6-8 January record and losing to the Rockets by 32 and Orlando Magic by 18 to start February, it appeared the Cleveland Cavaliers were a lost cause. However, after a revitalized roster following the NBA trade deadline, Cleveland has reasserted itself as the favorite to come out of the Eastern Conference.

Their top two threats, the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors, aren't sniffing the Cavs' championship odds. In addition to the impact Jordan Clarkson, George Hill, Rodney Hood and Larry Nance Jr. have had since joining the team, LeBron James averaged a triple-double at 27.0 points, 10.5 rebounds and 10.5 assists per game for the first time in a calendar month and remains the reason why Cleveland is +500 to win it all.

The Raptors, 9-1 over their last 10 games, possess the best Eastern Conference record at 43-17, boast the best home record in the NBA at 25-5, average the most points per game in the East at 112.3. Yet with +1600 NBA championship futures, oddsmakers view The North as little to no threat to the Cavs' conference crown.

After losing four of five, the Celtics have feasted on some of the league's bottom-feeders to win four straight and climb within a half-game of Toronto. Like the Raptors, oddsmakers aren't sweating the Celtics, even with Kyrie Irving, as a threat to Cleveland, pegging them at +1400 at sports betting sites.

On top of Kawhi Leonard's absence, the San Antonio Spurs were dealt another blow this week when LaMarcus Aldridge suffered a sprained ankle, with no return timetable available. After opening the season at +1500, San Antonio has faded back to +4000 on the title odds.

For more odds info, picks and a breakdown of this week's top sports betting news check out the OddsShark podcast with Jon Campbell and Andrew Avery. Subscribe on iTunes, or check it out at OddsShark.libsyn.com.