NBA Championship 2025: Opening Odds Favor Celtics Over Mavericks, Nuggets

This NBA Championship 2025 preview and odds are brought to you by BetOnline. BetOnline is a market leader in sports betting, offering various options from NBA Finals betting odds to the UFC and everything in between.

The Boston Celtics are on top of the world after defeating the Dallas Mavericks in the 2024 NBA Finals. The Celtics were the best team from the start of the 2023-24 campaign until the end, bringing home the franchise’s 18th title to Boston.

But even though the dust has barely settled, NBA bettors are already looking forward to the next campaign. Fortunately, they don’t have to wait long for more action as some of the major sportsbooks — including BetOnline — have already released 2025 championship odds.

So, who’s favored to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy next year?

Let’s recap this year’s NBA Finals before diving into the 2025 championship odds.

2024 NBA Finals: Mavericks vs. Celtics Recap

As with most years, the Mavericks and Celtics both took different paths to reach this year’s NBA Finals.

The Mavericks opened the postseason as the Western Conference’s No. 5 seed following a 50-32 regular-season performance. They needed six games to defeat both the LA Clippers and Oklahoma City Thunder through the first two playoff rounds but only needed six games to dispose of the Minnesota Timberwolves to reach the Finals.

Meanwhile, the Celtics were rarely challenged in any of their series. It only took five outings to eliminate the Miami Heat and Cleveland Cavaliers before Boston swept the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Celtics only played 14 games before reaching the 2024 NBA Finals. 

Once the NBA Finals began, it didn’t take long for basketball enthusiasts to realize that we were dealing with quite the mismatch.

The Celtics absolutely dominated the Mavericks in Games 1 and 2, notching 107-89 and 105-98 victories, respectively. There was just nothing that Dallas could do to solve Boston’s defense, leaving many to wonder if the former even belonged in the championship round.

The series shifted to American Airlines Center for Game 3, but not even that could help the Mavericks. Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum combined for 61 points as the Celtics notched a 106-99 win in a game that saw Luka Doncic foul out.

When all hope was lost, Dallas showed some signs of life in Game 4. Staving off elimination, the Mavericks gave their fans hope with a massive 122-84 victory that was highlighted by a 29-point effort by Doncic. Although the series deficit was still at two games, a comeback was more of a real possibility at this point.

Until it wasn’t. The Celtics shut down any thoughts of a comeback with a 106-88 statement win in Game 5 to win the championship. Tatum led the team with a double-double (31 PTS, 11 REB) in the series-clinching game, however, it was Brown who took home NBA Finals MVP honors for his heroic effort throughout the last round.

The best regular-season team isn’t always the one that wins the championship, but this year is an exception. The Celtics were the best team from start to finish and time will tell if they have what it takes to repeat.

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Opening NBA Championship 2025 Odds

All NBA Championship odds are courtesy of BetOnline as of 1:32 p.m. ET on Tuesday, June 18. 

• Boston Celtics (+300)
• Dallas Mavericks (+700)
• Denver Nuggets (+700)
• Minnesota Timberwolves (+900)
• Oklahoma City Thunder (+900)
• Milwaukee Bucks (+1000)
• Philadelphia 76ers (+1400)
• New York Knicks (+1600)
• Los Angeles Lakers (+2500)
• Phoenix Suns (+2500)
• Golden State Warriors (+2800)
• LA Clippers (+2800)
• Memphis Grizzlies (+3300)
• Miami Heat (+3300)
• Cleveland Cavaliers (+4000)
• Indiana Pacers (+5000)
• New Orleans Pelicans (+6000)
• Sacramento Kings (+6600)
• Orlando Magic (+8000)
• Atlanta Hawks (+10000)
• San Antonio Spurs (+10000)
• Houston Rockets (+20000)
• Chicago Bulls (+25000)
• Utah Jazz (+30000)
• Brooklyn Nets (+50000)
• Charlotte Hornets (+50000)
• Detroit Pistons (+50000)
• Portland Trail Blazers (+50000)
• Toronto Raptors (+50000)
• Washington Wizards (+50000)

Unsurprisingly, the Celtics are BetOnline’s odds-on favorite to take home the 2025 NBA Championship. Boston currently sits at +300 odds to accomplish the task and, if successful, would be the first team since the 2017/2018 Golden State Warriors to win consecutive Finals appearances.

The Mavericks — this year’s runners-up — are currently tied with the Denver Nuggets for the second-best 2024-25 title odds (+700). For reference, the 2017 Warriors were the last team to win the NBA Finals after losing the championship round in the previous postseason.

Despite failing to make it past the Western Conference Finals, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves round out the top five at +900 odds apiece. It’s a good indication that these teams that were once seen as being on the rise have finally arrived.

Interestingly enough, nine of the top 13 odds belong to Western Conference teams. Since the 2014 postseason, seven of the last 11 championship-winning teams have come from out West.

Nevertheless, don’t expect these odds to remain unchanged from now until October. The 2024 NBA Draft and free agency will bring a ton of change to the league, meaning it might not be long before we see significant movement.

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