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NBA Championship Odds 2021: Bucks Favored Over Suns, Clippers

Mike Chiari

After outlasting the Brooklyn Nets in Game 7 of their second-round playoff series Saturday, the Milwaukee Bucks are favored to win the 2020-21 NBA championship.

According to FanDuel, the Bucks are +160 (8-5) favorites to win their first NBA title since the 1970-71 season.

The Bucks are followed by the Phoenix Suns at +220 (11-5). Phoenix starts its Western Conference Finals series against the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday.

Also on Sunday, the top-seeded Philadelphia 76ers will face the No. 5 Atlanta Hawks in Game 7 of their second-round playoff series.

The Clippers and 76ers are tied for the third-best odds to win the NBA title at +450 (9-2), while the Hawks are fifth at +2,700 (27-1).

Milwaukee needed overtime to beat the Nets 115-111 in Game 7, and it also had to contend with a 48-point performance by Kevin Durant.

Two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo was up to the task, as he answered with 40 points, 13 rebounds and five assists in his own right.

With Khris Middleton, Jrue Holiday, Brook Lopez and PJ Tucker alongside Giannis, the Bucks have arguably the best starting lineup of any team remaining in the playoffs, which may be why they are favored to hoist the Larry O'Brien Trophy.

The Bucks posted the best record in the NBA in both 2018-19 and 2019-20, but they failed to reach the NBA Finals in either season. Now, they are four wins away from the Finals after finishing with the third-best record in the Eastern Conference.

Like the Bucks, the other four remaining teams are all in search of either their first-ever NBA title or their first in decades.

The Suns and Clippers have never won a championship, while the Hawks haven't won since 1958 (when they were the St. Louis Hawks) and the Sixers' championship drought dates back to 1983.

While the Suns and Clippers are both supremely talented teams in the Western Conference, they are both walking wounded as well.

Suns All-Star point guard Chris Paul is out for Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals in compliance with COVID-19 health and safety protocols, while Clippers All-Star forward Kawhi Leonard is out for Game 1 with a knee injury.

In the East, the Sixers are the top seed, but they have had a surprisingly difficult time with the upstart Hawks.

Philly will be dangerous if it can reach the Eastern Conference Finals with the way Joel Embiid, Tobias Harris and Seth Curry have been playing, although point guard Ben Simmons has struggled mightily offensively, averaging just 12.5 points per game during the playoffs.

The Hawks are the longest shot, but with guard Trae Young averaging 29.8 points per game in these playoffs, they'll force their way into the title discussion if they can get past the 76ers.

 

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