Miami Heat: Updated division and championship odds, awards and more
By Duncan Smith
The sportsbooks have done their monthly update and the Miami Heat feature prominently in these new odds. We’ll walk you through everything about the Heat in the offerings of one prominent book.
Betting season never ends, it only changes. That’s true in all sports, and the NBA is no different. In this case, the changes come in the form of updated odds, and the Miami Heat are big-time players in the most recent updated odds from The Action Network.
For starters, and most importantly, the Heat have the 10th-best odds to win the NBA championship this season at 25/1. This is improved from 33/1 as of the last update on December 2nd.
The Los Angeles Lakers lead the way at 3/1, followed by the LA Clippers at 7/2, and the Milwaukee Bucks come in third at 15/4. The Heat have the fourth best odds of any team in the Eastern Conference behind the Bucks, the Philadelphia 76ers at 8/1, and the Boston Celtics at 16/1.
As far as odds to win the Eastern Conference and go to the NBA Finals, the Miami Heat check in at 8/1. The Bucks are 5/4, the Sixers are 7/2 and the Celtics are 6/1 in front of them.
The Heat have the second-best odds to win their own division of any team in the NBA at 1/50. This means for every $50 you wager, you would win your wager back plus $1. Needless to say, the Orlando Magic, Charlotte Hornets, Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards clearly don’t strike fear into the hearts of odds makers.
The only team with better odds to win their division is the Milwaukee Bucks, who check in at 1/150. Yes, that means for every $150 you wager, you receive your wager back plus $1 if the Bucks win the Central Division.
As for the awards, Jimmy Butler is off the board for MVP, but Miami Heat feature prominently in the Rookie of the Year competition. After opening December at 20/1, now Kendrick Nunn is firmly in second place behind Ja Morant at 5/1. Thanks to winning the first two Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month awards, Nunn is working on making it a two-horse race with Morant, who is currently 1/2 to win.
Aside from Nunn, Tyler Herro is also in the Rookie of the Year discussion, tied for third with R.J. Barrett at 9/1.
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Finally, Jimmy Butler’s next shoe contract is a point of interest for bettors. New Balance has a solid lead at 10/11, followed by Li-Ning at 3/2. Adidas checks in at 4/1 and Puma rounds out the list at 5/1.