Who Will Win the 2017 NBA Title? Sportsbooks Pick the Early Favorites

Written by: sbnadmin This entry was posted on Friday, July 22nd, 2016

Yes, we’re still several months away from the 2016-2017 NBA season, but it surely won’t hurt to take an early glimpse at which teams currently appear the most poised to bring home the Larry O’Brien Trophy. And having that said, the Golden State Warriors are, as expected, atop of the bookmakers’ rankings right now, while the defending champions—Cleveland Cavaliers—and San Antonio Spurs are deemed to be the two main threats to the Dubs’ chances of winning it all next year.

Read on below as we take a quick look at these three contenders in the upcoming season. Meanwhile, you can also browse through our sportsbook review section and discover which sportsbooks give you the best sports betting opportunities.

Sportsbooks Declare Early 2016-2017 NBA Finals Favorites

Golden State Warriors (-160)

The Golden State Warriors lost a number of important pieces during this off-season. To name a few, both Harrison Barnes and Andrew Bogut are now in Dallas, Leandro Barbosa is headed back to Phoenix, Marreese Speights joined the Clippers and even backup center Festus Ezeli, who decided to sign with the Trail Blazers, is gone as well.

Well, despite all those losses, the Warriors are still in all smiles after hitting the jackpot: Kevin Durant. The former league MVP joins forces with two-time reigning MVP Stephen Curry, the sharp-shooting Klay Thompson, the relentless workhorse in Draymond Green and 2015 NBA Finals MVP Andre Iguodola, while also being guided by last season’s Coach of the Year in Steve Kerr.

Just by looking at all those mentioned names, it’s only right that the Dubs are the clear-cut favorites to bring home the title next year.

Cleveland Cavaliers (+275)

So, can the Cleveland Cavaliers repeat as champions? Of course they can! The Cavs, after all, remain to be the best team in the East despite having a relatively quiet off-season. Their vaunted Big Three in LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love are surely going to be even more pumped up and ready to defend their title next year. And James, in particular, should be in line for yet another spectacular season. The 2016 NBA Finals MVP, who’s undoubtedly the best player in the basketball world right now, racked up 25.3 points, 7.4 rebounds and 6.8 assists in the previous season.

However, the Cavs still have to fix some issues in their second unit, which lost a pair of reliable contributors in Timofey Mozagov (to the Lakers) and Matthew Dellavedova (to Milwaukee).

San Antonio Spurs (+900)

And as always, the San Antonio Spurs are in contention for the title as well. Yes, their best player in franchise history—Tim Duncan—will no longer be with them next season, but they are still going to be a force to deal with nonetheless.

The Spurs are going to be headlined by none other than their young, dynamic duo in Kawhi Leonard and LaMarcus Aldridge, while the trio of proven veteran stars in Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili and the newly-acquired Pau Gasol should provide some stability and more firepower to the team. Plus, calling the shots along the sidelines is a five-time NBA champion in head coach Gregg Popovich.

Create an account with our favorite NBA Futures sportsbook and make your own choice on who will win the 2017 NBA Finals.

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