- The Boston Celtics (+300) have received the most tickets to win another title.
- Only three teams have received more than 10% of tickets to win next year’s title.
- Three Western Conference teams have received a higher handle percentage.
With only a few months separating bettors from the 2024-25 NBA season, I’m here to break down public betting trends for the futures markets.
Within a one-game sample, the public side is defined as the spread, total, or moneyline, which receives a majority of tickets.
In an index market — NBA Championship Winner, for example — it’s the team with a plurality of tickets.
In terms of sharp betting indicators, bettors can determine the “sharp” side by looking for markets with a higher money percentage compared to their tickets.
With that established, let’s dive into the report based on NBA odds at the BetMGM online sportsbook.
NBA Public Betting, Championship Winner
The Boston Celtics (+300) are preferred by bettors to repeat as NBA champions.
As of June 26, Boston has received 26.3% of tickets to win another NBA championship. That’s almost double the next closest team: the Denver Nuggets (+750), who have received 13.7%.
Only one other team has received more than 10% of tickets with only three teams receiving more than 5% of tickets:
- Oklahoma City Thunder (+900): 12.1% of bets placed
- Philadelphia 76ers (+1400): 6.5% of bets placed
- New York Knicks (+900): 5.1% of bets placed
NBA Sharp Betting, Championship Winner
Three Western Conference teams have received a significantly higher handle percentage compared to their ticket count.
Chief amongst those teams is the Thunder, who have accounted for a whopping 39.7% of the handle on 12.1% of tickets.
The Nuggets have also received a higher handle percentage. As of June 26, Denver accounts for 18% of the handle on 13.7% of tickets.
Finally, the Minnesota Timberwolves have seen a high handle percentage despite few tickets.
Minnesota, who fell in the Western Conference Finals, has received only 3.2% of all bets. However, it comes against 13.8% of the total handle.
NBA Public Betting, Season Win Totals
As of Wednesday, July 24, seven teams have received more than 97% of bets placed to finish over their season win total:
- Indiana Pacers (46.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
- Miami Heat (44.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
- New Orleans Pelicans (45.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
- Oklahoma City Thunder (56.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
- Orlando Magic (47.5 Wins, -105): 99% of bets placed
- Sacramento Kings (46.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
- San Antonio Spurs (35.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
On the other hand, five teams have accumulated more than 80% of bets placed to finish under their season win total:
- Brooklyn Nets (19.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
- Denver Nuggets (52.5 Wins, -110): 99% of bets placed
- Los Angeles Lakers (44.5 Wins, -110): 89% of bets placed
- Washington Wizards (22.5 Wins, -125): 89% of bets placed
- Boston Celtics (58.5 Wins, -130): 83% of bets placed
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