The resumption of the NBA’s 2019-20 season is only a few days away, and much of the late betting money is on the side of the Houston Rockets.
According to Tuesday’s update from popular betting affiliate Oddschecker, 15% of all wagers placed within the last day have backed the Rockets to win the 2020 NBA title, with odds as friendly as +1600.
Only the Los Angeles Lakers — currently the +270 favorites to win — have accounted for more bets during the same time period.
“Given that the Rockets odds of +1600 imply just a 5.88% chance of winning, the betting trends clearly demonstrate that bettors believe that Rockets are great value and have confidence that their small-ball style could cause serious problems for the biggest teams in the league,” said Pete Watt, spokesperson for Oddschecker. “Given that a current wager would be increased sixteen-fold in the event of a successful Rockets’ challenge, it’s easy to see why they’re proving so popular.”
Led by an All-Star backcourt of former NBA MVPs James Harden and Russell Westbrook, the Rockets currently have the fourth-best championship odds of any NBA team heading into the restart. As of Tuesday, the only teams ahead of Houston were the Lakers (+270), the Milwaukee Bucks (+280), and the Los Angeles Clippers (+340).
Just behind the Rockets are the Boston Celtics (+2000), the defending champion Toronto Raptors (+2400), and the Philadelphia 76ers (+2700).
Oddschecker determines its lines by examining the current odds for each team across 10 leading sportsbooks, including BetMGM. They then highlight the most friendly number available to bettors.
For example, at some sportsbooks, Houston’s title odds are as low as +1200. But Oddschecker uses +1600 as the official figure for the Rockets, since anyone backing them would be incentivized to search for the longest odds, and thus the highest potential payout.
Houston resumes its 2019-20 regular season on Friday versus Dallas (40-27), with the playoffs set to begin in mid-August from the NBA “bubble” in Florida. The Rockets (40-24), who are tied for the No. 5 spot in the Western Conference, have already clinched a playoff spot and can finish anywhere between No. 2 and No. 7 in the final West standings.
