The Golden State Warriors covered as a 9-point favorite in a 19-point win over the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game 2 of the 2017 NBA Finals. It was the fifth straight cover for favorites of at least six points in an NBA Finals game.
Since then, it’s been a bloodbath, one the Boston Celtics are trying to avoid in Game 1.
After Game 2 of the 2017 NBA Finals, favorites of at least six points were 13-9 (.590) since 2005. They’re now 15-17 (.469), including 1-6 (.143) the last five years.
For context of the last five years, those favorites have covered 55% of games in the other postseason rounds and 50% of regular-season games.
It’s also been a struggle for big favorites to deliver returns on moneyline bets. While they’ve won seven of the 10 games since Game 2 seven years ago, that’s not nearly enough to generate a profit.
Five of the seven wins came when the favorite’s moneyline was at least -350, the returns for which barely cover one of the three losses and contribute to a -13.5% ROI.
As of Tuesday at the BetMGM online sportsbook, the Celtics are a 6.5-point spread favorite and -250 moneyline favorite. They went 32-24-4 (.571) against the spread and 50-7 (.877) overall when favored by at least six points in the regular season. And they’re 7-7 against the spread and 12-2 overall in those games this postseason.
If you’re in Massachusetts, check out updated Massachusetts sportsbook promos for a potential welcome offer to use with Game 1 odds. And visit the online sportsbook for more Celtics odds and other NBA betting opportunities.