If the odds boards are any indication, the Eastern Conference is wide open.
BetMGM Sportsbook has four teams – the Cavaliers, Celtics, Pistons, and Knicks – between +300 and +400 to win the conference.
That’s about as close as it gets this late into the season, but there’s one team that went all-in at the NBA trade deadline that oddsmakers may still be underestimating.
The Cavaliers made some big-time changes earlier this month, pulling off a blockbuster trade in sending Darius Garland to the Clippers in exchange for James Harden.
While Garland is a promising young guard, injuries limited him to just 26 games this season, and he didn’t quite look like himself when on the court, making Harden a massive addition without much of a loss.
It’s shown on the court.
Since Harden arrived, Cleveland has gone 6-1 heading into Wednesday night’s game against the Bucks with an impressive win over the Nuggets in Denver and a beatdown of the Knicks on Tuesday night.
Over that stretch, the Cavs have the second-best Net Rating (+10.6) in the East behind only the non-contender Heat, and have the third-best rated offense and 11th-best rated defense in the league.
Their only loss came against the Thunder in Oklahoma City in their third game in four nights, coming off the All-Star break.
Harden gives the Cavs two top-level scorers alongside Donovan Mitchell and provides a bit more on defense compared to the much smaller Garland.
And that wasn’t all they did at the deadline.
Cleveland also made a sneaky deal to bring in Keon Ellis and Dennis Schroeder from the Kings for De’Andre Hunter in a three-team deal with the Bulls, who ended up with a pair of second-round picks and forward Dario Saric.
Ellis gives them some solid defense and three-point shooting off the bench, while Schroeder provides a third ballhandler, giving the Cavaliers one of the top guard rotations in the league.
The deal was also likely an addition by subtraction by getting rid of Hunter, who had a -0.5 plus-minus and opened up more minutes for sharpshooting wings Sam Merrill and Dean Wade.
The Pistons are still very young and lack the scoring punch needed in the playoffs behind Cade Cunningham. The Celtics have remained surprisingly good without Jayson Tatum, but it’s hard to imagine them making a deep postseason run unless their star can miraculously get to full strength post-Achilles tear. And we’ve all seen how unconvincing the Knicks have been all season.
Betting on the NBA?
Wednesday’s news of Harden’s thumb fracture may scare bettors away, but the injury occurred in his non-shooting hand and should allow him to return in plenty of time for the postseason, if he misses any extended time at all.
Take the Cavaliers in a crowded East.
The play: Cavaliers to win the Eastern Conference (+300, BetMGM Sportsbook)
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Dylan Svoboda is a versatile writer and analyst across many sports. He’s particularly knowledgeable about the big three — MLB, the NFL and the NBA.