Philadelphia 76ers: What're the Odds of Winning 2020 NBA Finals?
Pro basketball is back! Well, it's sort of back at the moment. As of Thursday, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver proposed a return-to-play plan for the league to get back into action on July 31st. After 29 teams voted 'yes' on the proposal, it became evident that the Philadelphia 76ers' 2019-2020 season will end with better closure.
Before the NBA suspended operations on March 11th, the Sixers were ranked sixth in the Eastern Conference. Based on the fact that the head coach Brett Brown teased his team as the number one contender during the offseason, Philly's current status as the sixth-best team in the East was quite disappointing.
But the NBA Playoffs could be redemption. While a disappointing regular season isn't ideal -- the postseason is a new beginning and is when wins and losses matter the most. For a moment, it seemed the Sixers were going to end the 2019-2020 season on a bad note since they've disappointed fans many times throughout the year. Fortunately, that won't be the case -- not yet at least.
The NBA will conclude the season by crowning a champion this fall. Based on what we've seen in the past, what are the Sixers' chances of being named the winners of the 2019-2020 NBA season?
What're the Odds?
Considering the 76ers are the sixth-best team in the Eastern Conference, you won't be shocked to know they are not a bookie's number one selection in the odds game. Instead, LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers come in hot with a 4/1 chance of winning the suspended season.
To no surprise, the Milwaukee Bucks come in second with 9/2 odds. When it comes to Eastern Conference teams, the Philadelphia 76ers place third (sixth overall) in the odds game with a 15/1 chance of winning it all. If teams were to play home games in their own arenas with fans in attendance, the 76ers odds might've placed them as a top-three favorite. Unfortunately for them though, that's not the case.
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In the Orlando bubble city, the Sixers will play on a neutral court with no fans in the stands. Since they've only picked up ten wins on the road this year, the Sixers might be the most mysterious team in the NBA at the moment. On their home court, they were the best in the league. Away from South Philly, they were average-to-below. Now the most crucial question is: how well can they perform in a practice-like setting? This summer, we'll find out when the NBA is back in action.
*All Odds above are provided by SportsBettingDime.com.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_
