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2018 NBA Eastern Conference Betting Predictions

2018 NBA Eastern Conference Betting Predictions

Written by on October 16, 2018

NBA News and Rumors
Did you know that the last eight NBA Eastern Conference teams in the Finals all had LeBron James on them? That streak will end this year, barring a surprising trade at the deadline, now that King James is on the roster of the Los Angeles Lakers. That opens the door for teams such as Boston, Philadelphia, Milwaukee and especially Toronto, who should have beaten the Cavs the last two postseasons but didn’t win as much as a single game against them in two series, to make it to the league Finals next June. All of a sudden, there are a lot of good teams in the East, several of whom have excellent shots at coming out of the conference in the postseason. Here’s a closer look on NBA future odds to win the NBA Eastern Conference.

2018 NBA Eastern Conference Betting Predictions

Philadelphia wins the Atlantic Division

Toronto, Philadelphia and Boston are probably the best three teams in the conference — and they are all in the same division. Toronto made a big step by picking up Kawhi Leonard and Danny Green from San Antonio. In return, they shipped DeMar DeRozan to the Lone Star State. The Raptors won 59 games in 2017-18, and the exchange of Leonard for DeRozan makes their offense more multidimensional, while Green can play shutdown defense and has a championship ring, making him a valuable contributor in their locker room. Boston gets Gordon Hayward and Kyrie Irving back, giving them a pair of stellar scorers that they didn’t have last year — and that team eliminated Philadelphia in the second round and then almost took down Cleveland in the conference finals. With those two back, Boston has the pieces in place for their first title since 2008. With all that said… Philadelphia has Joel Embiid, an inside talent with no peer in the Eastern Conference. They also have Ben Simmons, who can’t shoot (or at least couldn’t last year) but can distribute with anyone. Markelle Fultz showed a terrific mid-range shot last year when he came back from the disabled list. Even with Boston’s star-studded roster and Toronto’s additions, the ceiling on Philadelphia’s youth movement is higher than the other two, and I see them rising to meet it this season.

Cleveland will miss the postseason

The Cavaliers have an NBA title from 2016, and four straight trips to the NBA Finals (the other three, of course, ending in losses to Golden State). Yes, Cleveland picked up rookie point guard Collin Sexton in the draft, and Kevin Love signed an extension in the summer to give the team some security. But if you take LeBron off the floor for that team, you basically have a group of players who are decent parts without a transcendent leader, and yes, that includes Love. Miami will shoot up past Cleveland, and Milwaukee, Indiana and Washington will finish ahead of them, and so could Detroit, Brooklyn or Charlotte.

Milwaukee wins the Central Division

It helps that there aren’t a lot of other tough teams in the Central, but Detroit and Indiana will push the Bucks. Giannis Antetokounmpo is the best player in the division, and he has a solid cast of players around him — and a coach who can lead the group when times get difficult.

Washington wins the Southeast Division

The Hawks aren’t ready to contend in the Southeast, especially not against a backcourt as solid as the combination of John Wall and Bradley Beal. Miami will push the Wizards hard over the course of the season, but they don’t yet have the offensive consistency to win.

Philadelphia wins the NBA Eastern Conference Finals

I see this series taking place between the 76ers and the Celtics, and what was a five-game meltdown by Philadelphia last year will turn into a seven-game classic — with the Sixers winning the clincher.
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