Warriors heavy odds-on favorites to capture NBA championship
With former NBA Most Valuable Player Kevin Durant now a part of a team already bolstering three All-Stars and coming off a league record 73-win season, it's no wonder the Golden State Warriors are such big odds-on favorites to capture the 2016-17 championship.
Currently with odds at around -150, those who bet money on the Bay Area squad to hoist the Larry O'Brien trophy would actually not be making a very wise bet, having to risk $150 to win just $100.
The number also suggests that Golden State's odds are better than even, which is very rare.
The head NBA oddsmaker at Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas, Jeff Sherman, told ESPN's David Purdum that he remembers the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls as having similar odds at -125 after winning 72 games the year before, while the LeBron James-led Miami Heat were also in the same territory in 2013 and 2014.
The average bet for the Warriors at MGM's sportsbook hovers around the $160 mark, with Johnny Avello - the executive director at the Wynn sportsbook - saying he recently took a $28,000 bet.
Even with little to potentially gain, plenty of people are still putting money down on the stacked Warriors roster to make some noise - more bets have been placed on Golden State and twice as much money than all 29 other teams at William Hill's Nevada sportsbook.
The reigning Western Conference champions are also in a position to make history with point spreads. Sherman adds that unless injuries occur, Golden State will be favored in all 82 of their games, including what would be a monumental 24.5-point favorite against the Brooklyn Nets on Feb. 25.