NBA Playoffs 2016: Updated Championship Odds and Conference Finals Preview
The Oklahoma City Thunder and Toronto Raptors will square off against the favorites in the conference finals of the 2016 NBA playoffs.
Just like everyone expected.
Kevin Durant and the Thunder did the borderline unthinkable and bounced the San Antonio Spurs from the postseason to earn a date with the Golden State Warriors. Kyle Lowry and the Raptors survived the Miami Heat to square off with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
This is what the playoffs are about in the Association. Before each series gets underway, let's take a look at how Las Vegas feels about each team's title odds.
2016 NBA Conference Finals Schedule and Results
| Game | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
| Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers | Tue, May 17 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers | Thu, May 19 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Toronto Raptors | Sat, May 21 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Toronto Raptors | Mon, May 23 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers | Wed, May 25 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Toronto Raptors | Fri, May 27 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers | Sun, May 29 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN |
| Game | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
| Oklahoma City vs. Golden State | Mon, May 16 | 9 p.m. | TNT |
| Oklahoma City vs. Golden State | Wed, May 18 | 9 p.m. | TNT |
| Golden State vs. Oklahoma City | Sun, May 22 | 9 p.m. | TNT |
| Golden State vs. Oklahoma City | Tue, May 24 | 9 p.m. | TNT |
| Oklahoma City vs. Golden State | Thu, May 26 | 9 p.m. | TNT |
| Golden State vs. Oklahoma City | Sat, May 28 | 9 p.m. | TNT |
| Oklahoma City vs. Golden State | Mon, May 30 | 9 p.m. | TNT |
Updated Championship Odds
| Golden State | 5-8 |
| Cleveland | 23-10 |
| Oklahoma City | 6-1 |
| Toronto | 33-1 |
(1) Golden State Warriors vs. (3) Oklahoma City Thunder
It's almost fitting the Thunder have advanced to take on the Warriors—it seemed everyone was talking about this showdown, with most choosing to overlook the fact the Spurs won 67 games in the first place.
Such an oversight seems justified now. The Thunder took an ugly loss to start the series against the Spurs and then after two close games wound up winning three in a row to close out the series.
In the closeout game, Durant and Russell Westbrook combined for a silly 65 points in a 113-99 victory. No one on San Antonio scored more than 22 points.
Oklahoma City's big upset somewhat overshadowed what the Warriors were able to accomplish because the series against the Portland Trail Blazers was so ho-hum. The Warriors managed to win two games without Stephen Curry, but he returned to help close out the final two games of the series.
The journey sets up a juggernaut of a matchup, especially when one pairs it with the regular-season outcomes, as ESPN's John Buccigross detailed:
It doesn't get much better than this. Klay Thompson has to stop Westbrook, somebody has to man up on Durant, and the Thunder have to find a way to cool Curry's shooting.
"The last three years against them it's been pretty entertaining games, most of the time going down to the wire, so you can only imagine what it will be like in the playoffs," Curry said, according to ESPN.com. "Every possession's going to be key."
The matchup everyone expected is here, and it could wind up being better than the Finals.
(1) Cleveland Cavaliers vs. (2) Toronto Raptors
On paper, this looks like a routine affair for LeBron James and his Cavaliers.
Cleveland hasn't had any problems thus far, steamrolling the Detroit Pistons and the Atlanta Hawks as quickly as possible. Even better, James got some serious help in the finale against the Hawks, with Kevin Love erupting for 27 points and 13 boards.
It's not all good news for the Raptors, regardless of their advancing. Toronto needed all seven games to move past a Heat team that was missing Chris Bosh. And while the Raptors were without Jonas Valanciunas for a few games, going a full series before an encounter with the well-rested Cavaliers isn't a great scenario.
The aforementioned Lowry finally awoke from a shooting slump to score 36 and 35 points over the last two games of the series. But he and most everyone else on the roster have been shaky at best in the consistency department.
And as Josh Lewenberg of TSN Sports pointed out, the Raptors haven't been offering much in the way of updates on Valanciunas:
For shame, too, because Toronto could use a dominant force in the paint to help slow Love and control the pace of games.
It's not all doom and gloom for the Raptors. The team with a reputation of not making it out of the first round has defied logic, besting two respectable teams and even doing so while hobbled.
If the Cavaliers come out flat after a long batch of rest and the Raptors can shoot the ball well at a consistent clip, this series has surprise potential.
All stats and info via ESPN.com unless otherwise specified. Odds via Odds Shark.
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