2018-19 NBA Title Odds: Latest Lines After Reported Kawhi Leonard Raptors Trade
July 18, 2018
The Golden State Warriors remain the definitive favorite to win the 2019 NBA championship after Wednesday's reported blockbuster trade sending Kawhi Leonard to the Toronto Raptors and DeMar DeRozan to the San Antonio Spurs.
OddsShark provided updated futures betting lines for all 30 teams to win next year's title after Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com revealed the Spurs are sending Leonard and Danny Green to the Raptors in exchange for DeRozan, Jakob Poeltl and a top-20 protected 2019 first-round pick:
OddsShark @OddsSharkUpdated #NBA futures (5Dimes): GSW -168 BOS +670 LAL +825 HOU +925 PHI +1600 TOR +2650 OKC +8500 SAS/NO/UTA +12500 WSH/MIL +15000 POR +17500 IND +25000 MIN/DAL/DEN +40000 DET +60000 LAC +90000 CHA/CHI/CLE/MIA/ORL +100000 PHX/MEM +125000 NYK +150000 SAC/BKN/ATL +200000
Toronto is listed as the third choice in the Eastern Conference behind the Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers following the deal.
It's been an offseason of change for the Raptors, who fired head coach Dwane Casey in May after the Cleveland Cavaliers eliminated them from the playoffs. He was later named NBA Coach of the Year and hired by the Detroit Pistons in June.
Trading for Leonard, who played just nine games last season because of a lingering quad injury, is an all-in move. He can decline a player option in his contract after the 2018-19 campaign to become an unrestricted free agent. It give Toronto a sense of urgency to win the title this year.
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Meanwhile, the Spurs are tied for the fifth-best odds in the Western Conference. The star-studded Warriors, Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers and Oklahoma City Thunder are all listed ahead of San Antonio.
A core of DeRozan, LaMarcus Aldridge and Dejounte Murray probably won't be enough to make a championship push in next year's playoffs, especially given the West's strength.
That said, the Raptors, Spurs and the rest of the NBA are still chasing the two-time defending champion Warriors, who bolstered a loaded roster by signing DeMarcus Cousins earlier in the offseason.
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