The Toronto Raptors won their first NBA title in franchise history on Thursday when they defeated the Golden State Warriors in six games.
With the 2018-19 season officially in the books, the Westgate Superbook has released their championship odds for next season. In their initial odds for the 2019-20 season, the Los Angeles Lakers are forecasted to have the best chance of winning an NBA title with the Los Angeles Clippers and Milwaukee Bucks right behind them.
One of the most interesting sets of odds belongs to the Golden State Warriors, who have the sixth-best odds at 14/1. However, prior to Klay Thompson tearing his ACL in Game 6 of the NBA Finals, the Westgate Superbook had the Warriors as the favorites to win it all during the 2019-20 campaign.
Even if Kevin Durant and Thompson end up re-signing with the Warriors, the team will likely have to play the entire season without Durant while Thompson likely won’t be able to play until February or March at the earliest, depending on how his recovery goes. The pressure will certainly be on Stephen Curry to carry the scoring load if Thompson misses the majority of the season.
The Lakers missed the playoffs this past season, but this was a team that had the fourth-best record in the Western Conference around Christmas time. However, LeBron James suffered a groin injury on Christmas Day and missed the next 17 games which is when the Purple and Gold went into a downward spiral. James ended up being shut down for the final six games of the year.
Los Angeles is expected to be very active this offseason and continue to be linked to New Orleans Pelicans star center Anthony Davis. In fact, the two teams are reportedly in talks on a trade involving Davis.
The Bucks fell at the hands of the Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals, but figure to have a similar team back next season. Giannis Antetokounmpo continues to blossom into one of the league’s most exciting stars and the roster may be just a tweak or two away from reaching the NBA Finals.
In addition, the Clippers figure to be very active in free agency this summer and could be interested in Kawhi Leonard seeing as the Raptors forward is from Los Angeles. If the Clippers add a superstar or two to their roster this summer, they’ll certainly be a force to be reckoned with in the West next season.
