LAS VEGAS, NV (The Spread) – Following back-to-back dominant performances in Miami, the Spurs are now massive favorites to finish off the Heat in the 2014 NBA Finals.
According to oddsmakers from online sports book Bovada.lv, the Spurs are now 1/18 favorites to win the 2014 NBA Championship, while the Heat are 9/1 long shots. The odds shifted dramatically following San Antonio’s 107-86 victory in Miami on Thursday night. Kawhi Leonard was outstanding, scoring 20 points and adding 14 rebounds as the Spurs offense was firing on all cylinders for a second straight game. Miami simply doesn’t have an answer for San Antonio’s depth.
Meanwhile, what will happen before the start of the 2014-2015 NBA season if the Spurs win the title? Will Gregg Popovich and/or Tim Duncan retire? The odds are currently 4/1 that Popovich retires, while the odds that Duncan retires are sitting at 7/4. The odds that both retire are 9/4 and the odds that neither retire are 2/1.
Duncan seems like the one most likely to retire, which the odds illustrate. But the 38-year-old is also averaging 16.4 points per game this postseason and hasn’t played his age. If he’s healthy, and it looks like he is, then there’s no reason to believe that he’ll hang ‘em up soon. In fact, he’s avoided answering the retirement question when it’s been posed to him in interview sessions this postseason.
Finally, will the Heat sign Carmelo Anthony before the 2014-15 season? The odds that they will are 3/1 and the odds that they won’t are 1/5. That rumor popped up a few days ago and it seems unlikely that Miami would pull off an acquisition like that in the offseason. It simply doesn’t make much financial or logical sense, especially when you consider that Anthony would have to take less money to play with the “Big Three” in Miami.
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