Despite Injuries, Warriors Advance to NBA Finals, Favored to Win Third Straight Title

Posted on: May 21, 2019, 08:37h. 

Last updated on: May 21, 2019, 08:37h.

Steve Bittenbender Read More
Expertise: Legislation, Sports Betting, Horse Racing.

The Golden State Warriors are once again going to the NBA Finals. The Warriors earned their fifth straight trip to the championship series by beating Portland 119-117 in overtime Monday night to sweep the best-of-seven Western Conference Final.

Golden State’s Draymond Green goes up for a shot against the Trail Blazers Monday night. Both he and Steph Curry became the first teammates to post a triple-double in the same playoff game. (Image: Sam Forencich/NBAE via Getty Images)

Steph Curry scored 37 points while posting 13 rebounds and 11 assists to lead the Warriors, and Draymond Green added 18 points, 14 rebounds, and 11 assists in the win. They became the first teammates in NBA playoff history to post triple-doubles in the same game.

While the Warriors won four straight over the Trail Blazers, very little went easy for Golden State. In three of the wins, including both at Portland, the Warriors needed to overcome deficits of at least 17 points to win. They also played the entire series without Kevin Durant, who suffered a right calf strain in the Houston series, and missed Andre Iguodala, who missed Monday’s game with tightness in his left calf.

Everybody knew what that challenge was, and every game we hit the reset button and knew it was going to be a dog fight,” Curry said.

Still, Golden State, which entered the conference final as a -580 favorite, entered Monday’s game as a two-point favorite thanks to the news finally surfacing about Damian Lillard’s rib injury, which the Portland guard suffered in Game 2 last week. The Blazers were -2.5 favorites in Saturday’s Game 3, but Lillard struggled and confirmed he played through a rib separation.

NBA Finals Odds

Even before Game 4 tipped off, oddsmakers began posting series odds for the Warriors, the league’s two-time defending champs, in the next series. The Westgate Superbook listed the Warriors as -140 favorites over Milwaukee, which received +120 odds.

The Bucks still must beat Toronto in the Eastern Conference Final, which continues Tuesday night. Milwaukee leads the Raptors in the series 2-1.

By Tuesday morning, the odds shifted to -180/+150 for the Warriors over the Bucks at the SuperBook.

FanDuel offers lines on the Warriors against both squads. They’re -190/+160 against the Bucks, and -250/+210 against Toronto.

The futures line at FanDuel offers the Warriors at -220, the Bucks at +195, and the Raptors at +1000.

It remains unclear if Durant and Iguodala or even DeMarcus Cousins might return for the Warriors. However, Warriors coach Steve Kerr noted earlier in the series that Cousins, who suffered a torn left quadricep muscle in the first round against the Los Angeles Clippers, was ahead of Durant in possibly returning.

The NBA Finals will start May 30 in Oakland as Golden State will host the first two games and then games 5 and 7 if necessary.

Eastern Conference Odds

While Milwaukee is on the road today and comes off a double-overtime loss Saturday in Toronto, the Bucks still enter Game 4 as the favorite.

Sportsbooks in Las Vegas vary as the MGM Mirage has Milwaukee as a 2.5-point favorite, while the Superbook, William Hill, Wynn, and Stations list the Bucks 3-point favorites. FanDuel has it a 2.5-point spread, while PointsBet lists a 3-point spread.

The Bucks are 19-4 against the spread this season coming off a loss. Tuesday marks the first time all season the Raptors have been a home underdog.

Milwaukee remains the heavy favorite to win the series as FanDuel offers the Bucks at -650, compared to the +430 for the Raptors. PointsBet lists -556 and +400.

Even if Milwaukee loses again Tuesday, the Bucks still have up to two more games to play at home in the series. They are 39-9 straight-up at home.