Early 2025 NBA Outright Winner Odds & Predictions

The Boston Celtics have won the 2024 NBA Championship, the 2024 NBA Draft is done, and the free agent market has pretty much been picked over… you know what that means? Time to start locking in NBA betting futures for the 2024-2025 NBA season. We’ve already covered the early NBA MVP race here, and now, we’ll dive into the early odds for next year’s champion in the outright winner markets.

All odds provided by Sports Interaction.

2025 NBA Outright Winner Betting Odds

Boston Celtics: +310 Odds

For years the Celtics were in the championship arena without showing the toughness and depth to get over the line. That all changed last year with the additions of Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis. Holiday, along with Derrick White, make up one of the best defensive backcourts in basketball, as both offer excellent size, strength, and athleticism as well as energy, which results in a lot of easy buckets and second-chance points.

Boston is the best three-point shooting team in the league during an era where the three-ball reigns supreme. However, if Porzingis can’t stay healthy, this is a whole different ball game, and with unreasonably short +310 odds from sports betting sites, they’re not worth the risk right now anyway. If they stay healthy, their odds will probably be similar in January, when it will be a much safer bet.

Oklahoma City Thunder: +750 Odds

Here’s a team that learned a thing or two from the 2024 playoffs. They saw what a big difference guys like Holiday and White made for Boston, so they went out and got themselves one of their own in Alex Caruso, though he’s not quite as good as those two offensively.

They also went out and got a guy who really impressed during the 2024 postseason in former Knicks center Isaiah Hartenstein. The big man was a vacuum on the offensive boards, which teams are learning is one of the keys to success in the spring and summer. Not only that, but the more stout Hartenstein can absorb a lot of the defensive heat in the paint, which allows the lanky Chet Holmgren to reduce his injury risk and stay fresh for the other end of the floor.

This team is athletic, skilled, full of dogs, and now they have some legit playoff experience. Not to mention they’re still young and energetic, and they’re only going to get better. On paper, this is definitely the best team in the West, and at +750 odds, they’re offering a lot of value right now.

New York Knicks: +900 Odds

Reunited, and it feels so good. It was a joke throughout the season that picked up steam in the playoffs, and then the Knicks actually went out and did it, trading their future for Mikal Bridges and reuniting Villanova’s fearsome foursome. Bridges’ exorbitant price aside, this is a great move for New York, who also locked down OG Anunoby.

Chemistry cannot be overstated, and this team has more than any one in the league right now. Not to mention the depth they have with playoff heroes Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo moving to the bench. They’ve got great size on the wings with Bridges and Anunoby, both of whom can guard 1-4 at an elite level.

How Julius Randle fits in here is the one drawback of this team. However, we believe that even Randle will learn to appreciate his place with the Villanova Four running the show. This team is tough and deep and built for the playoffs—as long as Tom Thibodeau doesn’t run them into the ground first. A Knicks-Celtics conference final would be a dream, and we think New York offers a lot more value there at +900 than Boston does at just +310.

Best of the Rest

• Dallas Mavericks: One of the things that sank the Mavericks in the Finals was the fact that their long-range shooting when directly in the crapper. Klay Thompson has had his stinkers in recent years, but in a reduced role with far less pressure in Dallas, he should offer the space and shooting they need. And we just can’t believe that Doncic won’t improve defensively, so at +1,100, we like Dallas to go deep again.
• Minnesota Timberwolves: The Timberwolves played the best defense in an NBA game we’ve ever seen in those first two games against Denver in the playoffs. They have exactly the type of team make-up to win a championship, they just needed to cut their teeth in the playoffs. At +1,100 odds, they’re offering a surprising amount of value.
• Memphis Grizzlies: This is the long shots of long shots, but if you take a look at this roster, it can go toe to toe with anyone in the league when it comes to size, athleticism, and defensive solidity. Ja Morant back and firing on all cylinders makes them a top five roster in the West, so +4,000 odds are worth a dart throw.