It’s that time of year again! After an exciting off-season that included a bunch of player movement as well as the FIBA World Cup, the NBA returns on Wednesday, the 23rd of October! The season is set to be an exciting one and Before You Bet will have you covered with three in depth previews for the big slates each week.
Today, however, we will be taking a look at the season as a whole and giving our best future tips and props for the season below!
2019-20 NBA Season Preview & Betting Tips
Conferences & Divisions
West
The Western Conference was already the stronger of the two conferences but after some key player moves in the off-season it got even stronger. Reigning finals MVP Kawhi Leonard made the move from Toronto to the Los Angeles Clippers while Pelicans star Anthony Davis was dealt to the Lakers. Both of the LA teams should be back in contention this season, adding to a Western Conference that already boasts title contenders in the likes of the Rockets, Jazz, Nuggets, Blazers, Warriors and Spurs.
The Houston Rockets parted ways with starting point guard Chris Paul, trading for Oklahoma City Thunder star Russel Westbrook while the Utah Jazz also improved their line-up in the offseason, trading for Grizzlies point guard Mike Conley.
In what should be an incredibly tough conference to call, we like the look of the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clippers might get off to a bit of a rocky start, with injuries currently hindering both stars in Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, however, their roster on paper looks capable of matching it with anyone in the playoffs. Pairing Leonard and George with Patrick Beverley in the starting line-up gives you arguably three of the best perimeter defenders in the game and there is plenty of depth off the bench in Lou Williams, Maurice Harkless and Montrezl Harrell.
Clippers to win West Conf.
$3.00
The other team we find really appealing in the West is the Houston Rockets. The Rockets have been stifled by the Golden State Warriors for the last three seasons in a row and with many believing the Warriors are out of the race after the loss of Kevin Durant, it could finally be the Rockets time. They will bring back a very similar team to the new season, besides the glaring substitution of Russel Westbrook for Chris Paul. We think the move makes them better and continuity in the line-up will go a long way.
Rockets to win West Conf.
$6.00
Denver to win Northwest Division - $2.30 at Sportsbet
Clippers to win Pacific Division - $1.62 at Sportsbet
Rockets to win Southwest Division - $1.33 at Sportsbet
East
While there are at least four or five genuine contenders in the Western Conference, many are predicting the East to be a two horse race this season. The Bucks will enter the season as the slight favourites to take out the conference after bringing back a very similar team to the one that accumulated the best record in the league last season.
On the other hand is the Philadelphia 76ers. The 76ers were heartbreakingly beaten by the Raptors in the conference finals last season and made some big moves in the offseason, trading for the Miami Heat’s Josh Richardson and signing all-star Al Horford from the Celtics. They have one of the biggest starting line-ups in NBA history and should be competitive with anyone over a seven game series. Their bench, however, looks a little thin to stand the test of a gruelling 82 game season.
We think it’s likely that the Bucks finish the regular season with the best record in the Eastern Conference, and both sides make it to the conference finals. From there, it’s really an issue of the health of 76ers big man Joel Embiid. If he can stay fit and play important minutes in the playoffs, we can see Philly advancing to the Finals for the first time since 2000-01.
76ers to win East. Conf.
$3.25
Bucks to win Central Division - $1.14 at Sportsbet
76ers to win Atlantic Division - $1.62 at Sportsbet
Magic to win Southeast Division - $2.25 at Sportsbet
Season Props
We are going to steer clear of the championship market for now and opt to feel the season out a little bit more before we make our official selection. There are, however, some season long props that tickle our fancy, most notably, the player award markets.
MVP
The Most Valuable Player market is arguably the most intriguing of the player award markets. Defending champion Giannis Antetokounmpo starts as a $3.80 favourite over the likes of Stephen Curry, Anthony Davis and James Harden. We are looking a little further down the list for some value, however, targeting a couple of big men in Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic.
Both lead their teams and they are the premier centres in the competition. Jokic never misses games through injuries and the Nuggets should have one of the best records in the Western Conference once again this season.
Embiid is a little bit more of a tossup due to his run with injuries over the last few seasons, however, we think if he can play 70+ games this year, there is no reason why he can’t lead his team to a high finish in the East and average 27/12.
Rookie of the Year
How can you look past one of the most polarizing draft picks of the century for the Rookie of the Year this season. The No.1 pick, Zion Williamson is yet to even play in an NBA game but has already taken the league by storm. There is no doubt that he will slot straight into the starting line-up for the Pelicans and play 30+ minutes from night one of the season. Barring a serious injury to the star rookie, there’s nothing more certain than Zion winning the ROY.
Zion Williamson ROY
$1.62 at Sportsbet
