Three Underdogs Who Could Make a Run at the 2025 NBA Championship

These Teams Have the Table Set to Shock the World by Upsetting the Favorites in the Playoffs.

NBA Playoffs Are Here

The 2024-25 NBA schedule is down to the nitty and the gritty, with the regular season ending this Sunday (April 13th). Then, the play-in tournament goes April 15th-18th, determining the final two seeds in both conferences. Next, it’s the playoffs beginning in earnest April 19th, with those 16 teams (eight East, eight West) in best-of-seven series en route to see who wins the title.

If you believe the board, there are just three teams with legitimate shots at hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy, and not surprisingly, these are the teams who’ve dominated during the regular season. The Oklahoma City Thunder are favored at +175, with the defending champion Boston Celtics at 2-1 (+200). Those Cleveland Cavaliers are priced at 11-2 (+550), while every other team is in double figures as of this last week of regular season writing.

This isn’t to suggest it’s a three-team race, Boston and Cleveland duking it out to see who draws the Thunder in the NBA Finals. There are other possibly dangerous districts, including the 11-1 (+1100) Golden State Warriors, the 22-1 (+2200) Denver Nuggets, and the 30-1 (+3000) New York Knickerbockers. 

While not the dynastic team of “old,” Golden State seems to be getting it together (6-1 in last seven) in the closing weeks.

Denver shocked everyone when it fired both its coach (Michael Malone) and general manager (Calvin Booth) in the past few days. Whether that lights a fire under the Nuggets (0-4 in April as of this writing) remains to be seen. However, any team with Nikola Jokic at this price is enticing.

As any Knick fan knows, it’s been 51 seasons and counting since the last title. Here’s the rub against them, however. New York has feasted on the patsies but roadkill against the elites.

Those might be three teams to consider at good odds when assessing the NBA playoffs.

Here’s a bit of a primer on the 2025 NBA Finals.

What Day Do the NBA Finals Start?

The NBA Finals are scheduled to begin June 5th; obviously at the team with the better record during the season. The last possible date of the best-of-seven series would be June 22nd.

What Are the Dates of the NBA Finals 2025?

Subject to change, the NBA Finals are…

• Game 1 - June 5th.

• Game 2 - June 8th.

• Game 3 - June 11th.

• Game 4 - June 13th.

• Game 5 - June 16th.

• Game 6 - June 19th.

• Game 7 - June 22nd.

(Note that Games 5,6, and 7 are, if necessary, and that all series find the better-record team hosting Games 1,2,5, and 7, the “worse-record” team hosting Games 3,4, and 6).

Who Is Favored to Win the NBA Finals 2025?

Looking at the 2024-25 NBA standings, it’s not stunning to find the Oklahoma City Thunder, Boston Celtics, and Cleveland Cavaliers as favorites to win the NBA title this season. As was mentioned, these are the only teams under double digits on the betting board, It’s been that way over the course of the season during the progression of NBA scores.

Any Final Thoughts?

As with other sporting events on the board, the odds to win the 2025 NBA championship are fluid, and as with all other sports events on the board, “do your NBA games homework” is the mantra before placing any wager. In some cases, teams may be getting more respect than they deserve based on past reputation, so don’t be afraid to take a shot with a lesser light at a price.