Reports from Dallas indicate that star point guard Luka Doncic will return for the Mavericks’ series with the Utah Jazz, either in Game 3 or Game 4, with both games set for Salt Lake City. Doncic suffered a calf strain in the regular season finale, a home win over San Antonio that was rendered meaningless by a Golden State win the same day, as far as playoff seeding was concerned. Doncic had been supposed to miss the game for getting his 16th technical foul of the season against Portland, but the NBA ended up rescinding the technical, making Doncic eligible. Ironically, playing that game has led to him missing the first two postseason games. The Mavericks and Jazz have split the first two games, but the Mavericks’ comeback in Game 1 would doubtless have been helped even further with their top scorer’s presence. Check out the updated NBA betting odds for each team to win their respective conference, along with some observations about some of the playoff teams.
NBA News: Updated Championship Odds
Eastern Conference
| Milwaukee Bucks | +180 |
| Boston Celtics | +360 |
| Miami Heat | +400 |
| Brooklyn Nets | +500 |
| Philadelphia 76ers | +550 |
| Toronto Raptors | +10000 |
| Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls | +12500 |
Western Conference
| Phoenix Suns | -145 |
| Golden State Warriors | +240 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | +1000 |
| Utah Jazz | +1600 |
| Dallas Mavericks | +2800 |
| Minnesota Timberwolves | +3500 |
| Denver Nuggets | +6600 |
| New Orleans Pelicans | +12500 |
Milwaukee struggled after a strong first quarter in Game 1 against Chicago, running out to a 16-point lead before the Bulls came back to keep the game within reach for most of the night. The Bulls even took a lead near the end of the third quarter and held it into the fourth. With 30 seconds remaining, Milwaukee was only up by three before Giannis Antetokounmpo nailed a pair of key free throws to lock down the win. Antetokounmpo had 27 points and 16 boards, and Brook Lopez added 18 points and five boards, but the Bucks only mustered 93 points as a team. They will need more consistent offense to make a deep run.
Minnesota has gotten all kinds of energy out of Patrick Beverley, whose antics played a role in the Timberwolves’ win over the Clippers in their play-in game, and that energy has passed on to a young team led by Karl-Anthony Towns. Anthony Edwards put up 36 points in Game 1 against Memphis to key a 130-117 win, but now the Timberwolves need to deal with the reality check they got in Game 2 if they want to keep this a competitive series as the games move north.
Brooklyn does not have the same betting odds as the other play-in teams on this list, because they should not have finished the season as far down the East standings as they did. They knocked out Cleveland to snag the seventh seed, and now it looks like Kyrie Irving is interested in basketball, with 39 points and six assists in a 115-114 Game 1 loss. Kevin Durant was held to 23 points, but the Nets were still right there at the end. This series could easily go seven games, especially if the Nets can get the road split on Wednesday night.
Dallas got 41 points from Jalen Brunson in Game 2, and contributions from Maxi Kleber, Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith showed that the Mavericks do have a supporting cast that can win. The key is a commitment to defensive intensity that has marked the Jason Kidd era, a change from the last decade under Rick Carlisle, who apparently lost the room in that effort after the team won its lone title in 2011. Kleber drained three eight-pointers in Game 2, and with other sharpshooters like Finney-Smith, Davis Bertans and (on occasion) Dinwiddie launching threes, the Utah Jazz’s tendency to give up late comebacks will continue to haunt them in this first-round series.
NBA Betting Odds
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