The NBA Playoffs are just around the corner, and last night, the first team punched its ticket to the dance following a thrilling Play-In Tournament matchup. The Portland Trail Blazers emerged from that game with the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference, earning a date against the second-seeded San Antonio Spurs in the first round.
As opening odds go live for each playoff series on DraftKings Sportsbook, we get our first look at which side betting markets favor. Opening odds for this best-of-seven list the Spurs as a massive -2000 favorite to advance, with the Trail Blazers coming in at a very long +1000.
How’s that for a lopsided listing? There’s little doubt about which side will end up advancing to the Western Conference Semifinals by the time the dust settles; the question is instead whether this’ll even be a competitive affair.
The Spurs have a star trio of Victor Wembanyama, De’Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle. Those three will pose significant problems for an opposing defense, but the team’s two-way prowess is clear throughout the roster. San Antonio ranks third in scoring (119.7 PPG) and sits top five in both OFFRTG and DEFRTG, also amassing the second-best NETRTG in the NBA at +8.3. The squad is also second in rebounding as well, so there are strengths all around without any clear weaknesses.
While Deni Avdija has produced well in the first All-Star campaign of his career, the Trail Blazers simply don’t have the talent to keep up. They’re 17th in scoring with 115.5 PPG and 19th in NETRTG on the year at -0.3. While Portland did improve significantly on defense with the fourth-best DEFRTG after the All-Star break, there are still plenty of questions about whether that’ll hold up against a such a strong Spurs group. Beyond that, the Trail Blazers are the NBA’s most turnover-prone team.
The Spurs hold +500 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook to win the NBA Finals, second best of any team. The Trail Blazers are far, far behind at +80000, third lowest of the teams currently in the postseason field.
