The madness that is the NBA Draft has been completed and the new rookie class will soon hit the hardwood for their Vegas Summer League debut. Draft Day is always a major checkpoint for the offseason roadmap, and this year was certainly no different with several key trades and signings around the league.
With several important moves around the association as well as the infusion of the new rookie class, there has been an obvious impact on the title picture. So as the offseason continues to progress, let’s stop and take a moment to look at the 2025 NBA Finals odds with winners and losers following the NBA Draft.
2025 NBA Championship Odds: Movement after the Draft
With the lottery picks now in the books, it’s a good time to revisit the 2025 NBA Finals odds as the combination of draft picks and free agency has shifted the championship picture. The Celtics currently sit as somewhat sizeable favorites to repeat as champions with the best odds (+290), with the Denver Nuggets at (+800) holding the next best odds.
Here is the full list of 2025 NBA Finals odds after the Draft:
- Boston Celtics (+290)
- Denver Nuggets (+800)
- Oklahoma City Thunder (+850)
- New York Knicks (+850)
- Minnesota Timberwolves (+1000)
- Milwaukee Bucks (+1000)
- Dallas Mavericks (+1100)
- Philadelphia 76ers (+1300)
- Los Angeles Lakers (+3000)
- Golden State Warriors (+3000)
Note: All NBA championship odds provided on this page are courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook. New users on the platform can secure the DraftKings promo code to get started with bonus bets when they register today. Other popular sign-up offers include the FanDuel promo code as well as the bet365 bonus code.
There was movement near the top of the list after the NBA Draft got underway, as the crop of contenders aims to dethrone the recently crowned Boston Celtics. Let’s take a look at some of the winners and losers of the recent events using odds from before and after the NBA Draft.
2025 NBA Draft winners
New York Knicks: One of the biggest and most impactful odds jumps during the 2024 NBA Draft period was that of the New York Knicks. What’s even more interesting is that it has virtually nothing to do with the player (Pacome Dadiet) who they drafted 25th overall.
In what was the first major move of the NBA offseason, Draft Day saw the Knicks trade a bevy of picks for the Brooklyn Nets’ Mikal Bridges, who will now take his talents to Madison Square Garden. Bridges is an excellent player and should fit in nicely with the Knicks as he’ll be reunited with some of his college teammates from Villanova.
Just a few hours later, it was reported that the Knicks also re-signed OG Anunoby to a five-year $212.5 million contract as New York is looking to make a legitimate Finals run in 2025. Entering the day of the Draft, the Knicks odds to win the championship were (+1000). After the impactful moves the Knicks jumped up to (+850) to win the championship, good for the third-best odds on the board.
Memphis Grizzlies: Closer to the middle of the board on the 2025 NBA Finals odds, the Memphis Grizzlies saw their number jump from (+4500) to (+4000) after selecting Purdue’s Zach Edey at no. 9 overall in Round 1 of the Draft. Edey is coming off a terrific season for Purdue that saw him win National Player of the Year as the Boilermakers reached the Final Four of the NCAA Tournament.
Edey should be a day-one starter for the Grizzlies who look to get back to Playoff contention after injuries severely hampered their 2023-24 campaign.
Los Angeles Lakers: While there was no major movement with their odds to win the Finals, the Lakers will surely be happy with how the Draft-board played out. Los Angeles selected Dalton Knecht out of the University of Tennessee with the 17th overall pick, and it was a pleasant surprise for the LA that he was available at that spot. Many mock Drafts had Knecht being taken as high as 7th overall, highlighting the value in where the Lakers were able to pick him.
Knecht is 23 years old and the reigning SEC Player of the Year, a 6′5′' sharpshooter who’s skillset perfectly fits the Lakers’ needs. Ironically, Knecht is very much a 2.0 version of JJ Redick, the recently hired head coach for LA. Redick should know exactly how to deploy Knecht and the rookie should have an immediate impact for a Lakers team aiming to get back into title contention.
Losers of the Draft
Atlanta Hawks: While there was no major movement downward on the odds table for the 2025 NBA title picture, there are certain franchises, like the Hawks, who will feel yesterday’s Draft was somewhat bittersweet. The Hawks held the no. 1 overall pick after winning the Draft Lottery back in May. And while this is typically a covetous position, the consensus of this year’s Draft class is that it’s a rather weak one.
The Hawks selected Zaccharie Risacher of the French league with the first pick in this year’s Draft. And while Risacher could turn out to be a fine player, it will be hard to measure up to the top picks of previous seasons. Just one year ago, the Spurs selected Victor Wembanyama first overall, a generational talent who handily won Rookie of the Year honors this past season. The year before that, the Magic selected Paolo Banchero with the top spot, who also won the Rookie of the Year award, and this past season made the NBA East All-Star team.
Adding to the Hawks misfortunes, the value of their most prominent trade asset, Trae Young, appears to be at an all-time low. Just recently, ESPN’s Bobby Marks reported that “when you talk to teams and look at the landscape of the league, the window for Trae Young to maximize the most value in a trade has closed.” Young is a three-time NBA All-Star, but the Hawks have struggled to build a consistent winning team around him and have been rumored to possibly look to pivot this offseason.
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