2024-25 NBA Championship Odds: Can the Celtics Go Back-to-Back?

The 2023-24 season has officially ended. The Boston Celtics triumphed over the Dallas Mavericks in a five-game series to end a 16-year Championship drought. So, what better time than now to start looking forward to the 2024-25 NBA season?

Obviously, a lot can change between now and the start of the next season; dozens of top-notch players are headed towards free agency this offseason, and the entire NBA landscape could look completely different come October. But good teams have a tendency to stay good while bad teams often struggle to drag themselves up out of mediocrity.

So which teams have the best odds to win a title in the 2024-25 season? Let's check out the NBA Finals Betting Odds market on FanDuel Sportsbook and see how the market feels about the league after the final game of the 2023-24 campaign.

2024-25 NBA Championship Odds

If you don't see a team listed above, that's because their current odds are at +5000 or longer. That doesn't preclude them from taking down the NBA next year, but it does illustrate how much they'll have to exceed expectations by to mount a real push for a chip in 2024-25.

Boston Celtics (+300)

Unsurprisingly, this year's champs have the shortest odds to win again next year. The Celtics triumphed throughout the regular season, posting an NBA-best 64-18 record before stampeding through the Eastern Conference's playoff bracket and toppling the Mavs in the finals.

The core of Boston's roster are set to return for the 2024-25 season, positioning them well for another title run. However, with Jayson Tatum due for a supermax extension the team could need to make some uncomfortable decisions with players like Derrick White who are nearing the ends of their deals.

That said, Boston has fielded an extremely competitive lineup throughout the Jaylen Brown-Jayson Tatum era. They've made the finals in two of the last three seasons while appearing in four other conference finals matchups. They've been remarkably consistent year over year and finally broke through in 2024 so it's no surprise that early bettors like their odds of going back-to-back in 2024-25.

Denver Nuggets (+750)

The Denver Nuggets may not have represented their conference in the Finals this year, but the 2022-23 champs still have the second-shortest odds to win another title next year. Having three-time MVP Nikola Jokic back for another season has its perks.

The Nuggets finished tied for the best record in the hyper-competitive Western Conference this year, advancing to the second round to lose to the Minnesota Timberwolves in seven games. Like Boston, Denver has made the playoffs in each of the last six years, making it at least as far as the conference semifinals in all but one of those seasons. They've been consistently playing top-notch ball, so it's not a surprise to see early bettors taking a shine to them again for the upcoming season.

The Nuggets also don't have a ton of questions about returning talent for the upcoming year. Apart from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (player option), the rest of the starting lineup is pretty much guaranteed to return for the new season. That means their success will once again rely upon Aaron Gordon and Jamal Murray staying healthy to keep Jokic surrounded by high-quality play makers.

Minnesota Timberwolves (+850)

After a triumphant season that saw them finish one win shy of the best record in the West, the Minnesota Timberwolves iced out the Phoenix Suns in a dominant 4-0 series win in the opening round of the playoffs before sealing a seven-game series win over the reigning champ Nuggets in the conference semis. For a while there, it really looked like the Wolves were going to win their first championship in franchise history.

That was until they ran out of gas against the Mavericks in the Conference Finals. Still, Minnesota played some high-caliber basketball throughout the year, pairing an emergent Anthony Edwards with arguably the best defense in the league. After years of missing the playoffs entirely, it seems like they've turned the corner as a franchise.

If they want to seal the deal next year, they'll need to take yet another step forward as a team. That could be difficult, though, considering that they have the least projected cap space in the NBA heading into the season, according to Spotrac. Apart from Kyle Anderson, though, their core group of starters -- including Edwards, Karl-Anthony Towns, Rudy Gobert, Mike Conley and even Naz Reid -- are all under contract, meaning they'll have a chance to run it back in 2024-25.

If they keep the ball rolling, they could remain one of the most competitive teams in the NBA next year. If they can't, they could slide back toward the .500-caliber team they were in each of the previous two seasons.

Dallas Mavericks (+900)

Despite making the NBA Finals this year, the Mavs have just the fourth-shortest odds of winning the 'ship next season. And that makes sense; they need to do some work to surround Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving with additional playmakers.

The Mavs played their hearts out in the playoffs but couldn't topple the best the Eastern Conference had to offer after systematically winning their half of the bracket. The Celtics ruthlessly attacked Doncic on defense, leaving him winded when it came time to score points on the other end of the court. That's the kind of stuff that can happen when you rely so heavily on just one or two playmakers to win games.

The Mavericks could make some splashy moves in free agency this summer considering they project to have more cap space than any other team we've discussed so far today.

If they can put the right pieces around Doncic and Irving, this team could realistically take the next step this fall.

Oklahoma City Thunder (+1000)

The rebuild is complete, and the Oklahoma City Thunder look poised to hit the ground running for the 2024-25 season. After years of toil, they finished on top of the Western Conference during the regular season and made it to the conference semis in their first playoff appearance in four years. That's an enviable place to be when you have the second-youngest roster and the fifth-most projected cap space entering the offseason.

Between their regular season record and numberFire's schedule-adjusted metrics, the Thunder looked like the second-best team in the NBA last season. They finished third in points per game with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (30.1) trailing only Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo in personal points per game while their defense allowed the fourth-fewest points per 100 possessions on the year. They were truly a well-balanced team in Mark Daigneault's third year as their leader.

As their playoff series with the Mavs illustrated, the Thunder still have room for improvement, but their young core will remain intact for years to come and could have extra free agent help on the way, positioning them well for another strong season in 2024-25.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author’s advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.