NBA Championship Odds Revealed After 2025-26 Schedule Release
There hasn't been a back-to-back champion in the NBA since the Golden State Warriors accomplished the feat in 2017 and 2018, but that might change in 2025-26 if the odds are to be believed.
The NBA released its schedule for the upcoming campaign on Thursday, and the Oklahoma City Thunder are favorites to navigate the new slate and take home the Larry O'Brien Trophy for a second consecutive season.
According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the Thunder check in at +230 (bet $100 to win $230).
They are followed by the Cleveland Cavaliers (+750), New York Knicks (+800), Denver Nuggets (+850) and Houston Rockets (+850) in the top five. That group is followed by the Minnesota Timberwolves, Orlando Magic and Los Angeles Lakers, all at +1700.
It is no surprise the Thunder are the favorites. After all, they finished with the best record in the NBA last season at 68-14 and then parlayed that No. 1 seed into a championship. They are now battle-tested and know what it takes to win in those key postseason moments and bring back much of the same core that just lifted the trophy.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the clear-cut leader as the reigning league MVP, NBA Finals MVP and scoring champion. It is difficult to imagine him having a better season than his last one, but he is still just 27 years old and presumably just entering the peak of his career.
Throw in Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren as the secondary options and the supporting cast of Luguentz Dort, Alex Caruso, Isaiah Hartenstein and more, and the Thunder are filled with the same familiar names who just conquered the NBA landscape.
But they will have their challengers.
The Houston Rockets' odds stand out after they finished with the second-best record in the Western Conference last season and added an all-time great in Kevin Durant. They were largely missing someone who could take over games in crunch time during their first-round loss to the Warriors, and Durant is one of the best scorers in league history who can do just that.
OKC also needed the full seven games to eliminate the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the playoffs, and that was before Denver addressed its depth concerns with a number of notable moves this offseason.
It landed Cam Johnson in a trade for Michael Porter Jr. and also brought in Bruce Brown, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Jonas Valančiūnas. Having more quality pieces around Nikola Jokić will help keep the three-time MVP fresher for the playoffs and ready for a potential rematch against the reigning champions.
As for the Eastern Conference, it is relatively wide open thanks in large part to injuries to presumed contenders.
The Indiana Pacers will be without Tyrese Haliburton for the 2025-26 campaign because of the torn Achilles he suffered during the NBA Finals loss to the Thunder, while the Boston Celtics will be without Jayson Tatum for at least a significant part of the season as he recovers from his own Achilles injury.
Boston also traded away Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porziņģis this offseason.
What's more, Damian Lillard is no longer on the Milwaukee Bucks and dealing with an Achilles setback, which seemingly clears the way for the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks to battle for conference supremacy.
Cleveland had the best record in the East last season before losing to the Pacers in the playoffs, while the Knicks advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals before also losing to Indiana. Both teams bring back the majority of their key pieces and could be on a collision course for the Eastern Conference Finals.
It comes as no surprise then that they have the lowest championship odds in the East even if they and everyone else are looking up at the Thunder.
