Both the Philadelphia 76ers and the Dallas Mavericks dug out of 2-0 holes in the conference semifinals, winning Games 3 and 4 at home to tie up their respective series against the Miami Heat and the Phoenix Suns. In Game 5, though, both Miami and Phoenix dealt out lessons to the lower seeds, as the Heat won by a combined 65 points. We have the updated NBA betting odds for each of the eight remaining teams to win their conferences, as well as some advice about a few of the contenders.
NBA News: Updated Conference Championship Odds
Eastern Conference
- Boston Celtics +140
- Miami Heat +170
- Milwaukee Bucks +325
- Philadelphia 76ers +1200
Western Conference
- Golden State Warriors -120
- Phoenix Suns +110
- Dallas Mavericks +1400
- Memphis Grizzlies +4000
Dallas will go as far as its bench takes them. Yes, they have Luka Doncic, a transcendent scorer and playmaker, but when opponents decide to focus their defense on him, the Mavericks have to have other players step forward. Jalen Brunson did this in Games 1 and 2 of the first round, when Doncic was out with a calf strain. The whole team did it in Games 5 and 6 against Utah and in Games 3 and 4 against the Suns, when the likes of Reggie Bullock and Dorian Finney-Smith delivered shutdown defense, and Davis Bertans, Finney-Smith and even Frank Ntilikina were knocking down three-balls left and right. When the shots aren’t falling, the Mavericks don’t stay close, and Dwight Powell and Maxi Kleber are not players who can dominate the paint, or even hang with the likes of Deandre Ayton. We’ll see if Dallas’ shooters return for Game 6.
Philadelphia looked to get a jolt out of the return of Joel Embiid, and he led the 76ers to wins in Games 3 and 4. In Game 5, the 76ers looked dreadful. They clanked 23 of their 32 three-point attempts, shooting just 28.1% from behind the arc. They did make 14 of 15 free throws (93.3%), but that was the only solid number on their team stat sheet. Georges Niang went 0 for 6 from behind the arc and was held scoreless in 16 minutes. He had more fouls (2) than he had rebounds (1) during his time on the floor. James Harden got shut down by P.J. Tucker, and Embiid was also mostly harmless. The effort needs to return for Game 6, or the 76ers will be going home early again.
Boston was a fraction of a second from turning a big fourth-quarter deficit into a Game 3 win, and they followed up that disappointment with a 116-108 victory in Milwaukee on Monday, so they have seized home court advantage back from the Bucks as the series returns to the TD Garden for Game 5. Al Horford continues to be a primary reason for the Celtics’ surge; he took over the game in the fourth quarter, including an emphatic dunk over Giannis after he ball-faked the Greek Freak and headed around him to the rim. Horford finished the night with 30 points after knocking down five three-pointers. Expect the Bucks to pay more attention to him in Game 5 – which will only give Jaylen Moore and Jayson Tatum more room to operate.
Memphis is home to one of the most bizarre news stories in these playoffs, as leading scorer Ja Morant is out indefinitely and is questionable for the remainder of the postseason. An MRI unveiled a bone bruise that should keep him on the shelf. This injury came in Game 3, which Memphis lost by 30 at Golden State. A video after the game showing Golden State guard Jordan Pool grabbing Moran’s knee made the claim that Poole made a dirty play, but a look at the video showed that Poole could not have caused the injury. Without Morant, the Grizzlies don’t have much chance against any of the other three teams left in the West.
NBA Betting Odds
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