NBA Finals 2016: Predictions, Championship Odds for Remaining Teams
The 2016 NBA Finals outlook and title odds out of Las Vegas received an interesting jolt over the weekend.
Said jolt was the Toronto Raptors waking up from a slumber in Game 3 for the home crowd and stealing a victory from the Cleveland Cavaliers, making the Eastern Conference showdown a 2-1 affair.
Still, more interesting is the gridlocked encounter between the Golden State Warriors and Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference. That series is seemingly destined to need seven games to crown a winner.
While the battles rage, let's take a look at the bracket and how Las Vegas feels about the matter with the Finals slated to start June 2.
2016 NBA Conference Finals Schedule and Results
| Game | Date | Time (ET) | TV |
| Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers | CLE 115-84 | ||
| Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers | CLE 108-89 | ||
| Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Toronto Raptors | TOR 99-84 | ||
| 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 | OKC 108-102 | ||
| Oklahoma City vs. Golden State | GS 118-91 | ||
| 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 |
Championship Odds
| Golden State Warriors | -125 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | +150 |
| Oklahoma City Thunder | +700 |
| Toronto Raptors | +25000 |
Finals Predictions
The globe will get its Cleveland-Golden State showdown.
It's the only encounter that onlookers have talked about this year, as surprise seasons from teams such as the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics and a whopping 67 wins from San Antonio went unnoticed.
A status report of the teams left in the playoffs would read like this—Golden State (climbing), Oklahoma City (peaked), Cleveland (peaked), Toronto (injured).
Toronto isn't beating Cleveland while boasting such a status. Jonas Valanciunas just missed another game. The only saving grace was Bismack Biyombo exploding for 26 rebounds, helping the Raptors to win the battle on the glass for the first time in the series.
But the Raptors cannot count on the 23-year-old Biyombo for such consistent output. Neither will Kyrie Irving always shoot 3-of-19 from the field. Toronto got the pride win at home, but now LeBron James and Co. will adjust and steamroll, wanting to be as rested as possible for the Finals.
“I think it’s good for them,” James said, according to ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin. “It’s good for them. First little adversity, first individually in a long time, and I think it’s good for them. I think they’ll be much better, obviously, on Monday, but it’s good for them."
In the Western Conference, one can see how the series continues to swing back and forth with a slant favoring the Warriors.
Game 1 went to the Thunder in 108-102 fashion, but Game 2 was a 118-91 rout in favor of the Warriors. Golden State kept bigger bodies on the floor longer to win the battle on the glass and sent two or more guys after Kevin Durant on almost every possession, holding him to six points in the second half.
Other than Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City doesn't have anyone on the roster who can take on the load when Durant hits a dry patch. He might continue to slog through the rest of the series now that Golden State seems to have figured out the necessary formula.
This is the sort of series where the favorite continues to improve the longer it drags on, which is bad news for the Thunder, given Stephen Curry and Co. started to hit their normal uptick in Game 2.
For now, opinions seem split on what a Golden State-Cleveland encounter in the Finals would look like.
Bleacher Report's Andy Bailey painted the picture well:
It's not fun to put a team down for level of competition. Until Saturday, the Cavaliers had taken care of business in dominant fashion, but doing so against an inexperienced Detroit Pistons team and mediocre Atlanta Hawks squad doesn't scream impressive.
Impressive is watching Golden State roll through the Portland Trail Blazers while Curry recovered from injury.
Golden State is back to its usual self now. Cleveland couldn't keep pace with the Warriors in two regular-season encounters, losing 89-83 and 132-98. Now Curry and the rest of the league's best team have shown the ability to adapt, and Cleveland just lost a chance at a sweep that would have allowed it to stay well rested.
That larger margin of victory for the Warriors in the regular season stands as a strong indicator of what the Warriors can do. Like what happened to Durant in the second half of Game 2, the 132-98 Warriors win saw the team hold James to 16 points and limit Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love to 11 points combined.
The difference is Cleveland has players capable of shouldering the load. Whether they will—and anywhere close to consistently—is a different conversation.
In the Finals, look for Golden State to validate the lines out of Las Vegas by having the rematch go in their favor.
Prediction: Warriors beat Cavaliers in six games.
All stats and info via ESPN.com unless otherwise specified. Odds via Odds Shark.
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