Following the All-Star break, the 2023/24 NBA regular season is now moving into its closing stages with the 2024 Playoff picture already providing fans with plenty of marquee matchups featuring the very best in the league today.
There is a palpable amount of excitement that is building amongst basketball fans ahead of the much anticipated NBA playoffs as it remains unclear as to which team will claim championship gold at the conclusion of the 2023/24 season.
So far, plenty of teams have progressed ahead of their competitors and placed themselves firmly in title contention for the postseason, with these teams possessing some of the top names in the league.
Many sportsbooks have also provided their full listings for the latest NBA game odds, with fans now being able to put their predictions into play as to which team that they believe will lift the coveted Larry O’Brien championship trophy at the end of the season.
These are some of the top ranked contenders in the NBA this season according to the latest outright NBA odds:
- Boston Celtics (+225):
It may come as absolutely no surprise to anyone who is a regular NBA viewer that the Boston Celtics are widely regarded as the team to beat for any side that is staging a potential championship push.
The Celtics have always remained a regular contender for championship glory throughout their decorated history, with the C’s holding the joint most titles in NBA history with 17 different championship winning seasons.
This season the Celtics have held a firm grip over the Eastern conference one seed as they remain intent on returning back to the Finals this year following their six game defeat at the hands of the Golden State Warriors back in 2022.
Led by a core of superstar duo in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown as well as the blockbuster acquisitions of former All-Stars Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis, the Celtics are a prominent contender in the East.
They also possess one of the league’s deepest benches and several role players that bring their own impact to any game that they are playing.
Given the high expectations and prior history of success in Massachusetts, many fans are already labelling this team as the best in the league with this being a clear championship or ‘bust’ season as they aim to raise banner number 18 to the rafters of the TD Garden.
- Denver Nuggets (+400):
The Nuggets already entered the 2023/24 season as major contenders as they are aiming to repeat as championships following on from their title winning 2022/23 season.
Led by former two-time MVP, and potential front runner for the award this season in the form of Serbian Center Nikola Jokic, the Nuggets have kept their championship aspirations alive thanks to the generational play of their phenomenal franchise star.
Alongside Jokic remains a tremendous core of championship caliber talents such as SG Jamal Murray, PF Aaron Gordon, SF Michael Porter Jr., PG Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and backup G Christian Braun which has seemingly kept the Nuggets in title contention for the entire season.
Flanked by renowned head coach Michael Malone as well as bolstering some great depth on the bench, the Nuggets remain a serious contender to become one of the very few teams to repeat as champions in back to back seasons.
- LA Clippers (+500):
The city of Los Angeles has witnessed its fair share of success in basketball thanks to the dominance of the LA Lakers in prior seasons, however their rivalling inner city NBA franchise may also be more than capable of bringing some much needed success back to the city of Angels.
The Clippers have never truly risen to title contention during their many years of existence but now bolster one of the leagues most imposing rosters featuring several superstar talents.
Led by former finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and his All-Star teammate Paul George as well as two former MVPs in Russell Westbrook and a recently signed James Harden has put the Clippers into serious title contention.
With the Clippers now aiming to move out of the Crypto.com arena that they share with the Lakers into their own state-of-the-art home arena as well as introducing a much needed rebrand, the Clippers remain intent on carving their own successful stints into their franchises history books.
Some other honorable mentions that are highly ranked on the latest NBA lines include the Milwaukee Bucks (+700), Phoenix Suns (+1800) and the Oklahoma City Thunder (+2000).
There are also several other noteworthy contenders that may not be expected to challenge for the title this year but could still stage a deep playoff run that could potentially result in a shock Finals appearance.
With the 2023/24 NBA regular season now reaching its conclusion the hype is well and truly real for the playoffs which get underway as early as April 15th with the Play-In tournament before the opening round of action.
