The Knicks were the big winners of the NBA’s Trade Deadline on Thursday, according to Vegas oddsmakers.
After acquiring Alec Burks and Bojan Bogdanovic for Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier, Malachi Flynn, Ryan Arcidiacono and two second-round picks, the Knicks jumped from +2800 to +2000 to win the 2023-24 NBA title at DraftKings Sportsbook.
New York is now even with the Minnesota Timberwolves — who are in a three-way tie for the best record in the Western Conference heading into Thursday’s play — for the seventh-best odds to take home the Larry O’Brien Trophy this season.
Aside from the Knicks’ rise, little changed across the league in terms of championship odds landscape.
The title favorite Boston Celtics saw their chances rise slightly to +265 after trading for big man Xavier Tillman.
The Nuggets (+425), Clippers (+550) and Bucks (+600) all largely stood pat at the deadline and saw little movement in their title odds.
The Suns (+1200) added to their depth by acquiring Royce O’Neale, but that wasn’t enough to move the needle in oddsmakers’ eyes.
The 76ers (+1800), the only other team with better championship odds than the Knicks at DraftKings, didn’t see a change either despite trading for sharpshooter Buddy Hield with superstar Joel Embiid’s status for the rest of the season still up in the air.
The trades for Burks and Bogdanovic, and of course, OG Anunoby, have also helped the Knicks’ odds to come out of the Eastern Conference tremendously.
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After opening at +1600, Jalen Brunson and Co. are now +700 to win the East at BetMGM Sportsbook, behind only the Celtics (+125) and Bucks (+225).
In the West, the Nuggets remain the favorites (+190) followed by the Clippers (+240).
The Suns (+700), Timberwolves (+900) and Thunder are the only other teams in the West with odds better than 18-1 to come out of the conference.