The Knicks finally know who their opponent will be following Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs’ monumental Game 7 closeout win over the Thunder on Saturday night.
For one bettor on DraftKings Sportsbook, however, a $49,000 straight bet on the Knicks to win the NBA Finals for a massive $980,000 payout still hangs in the balance.
The finals winner bet was made a day after the Knicks beat the Hawks in Round 1 on May 1, as they were priced with 19-to-1 odds to win the championship.
This was also before the Knicks advanced by sweeping Joel Embiid and the 76ers in the East semifinals. The bettor was then presented with a $123,730.90 cashout entering the Conference Finals round and declined it.
This bettor’s crystal ball must be incredible, because of course, the Knicks then went on to land their second straight sweep, extending their historic playoff winning streak to eleven games, to the chagrin of Donovan Mitchell and Cleveland.
DraftKings, in its best Deal or No Deal impersonation, is now offering a $255,921.29 cashout, confirmed by the DraftKings Insights account on X.
The bettor seems content with letting things ride.
At this moment, the Knicks’ title odds have dwindled to +170, meaning that a prospective bettor would have to bet $576,471 to reach the heights of a $980,000 payout.
Game 1 of the Knicks-Spurs series is set for Wednesday, June 3.
Wembanyama and San Antonio are favored by 5.5 points on the spread for that contest, as well as -205 on the moneyline and to win the series outright on DraftKings.
Oddsmakers foresee a close best-of-seven matchup, with the over 5.5 total games played at -170 odds.
Jalen Brunson and the Knicks went 2-1 against the Spurs in the regular season, including a victory in the NBA Cup Championship in December.
Betting on the NBA?
While it remains unclear whether the public will learn who this bettor is, this would not be the first huge payday in this year’s playoffs.
Parlay Prince’s epic four-leg slip for $1.7 million was sealed with the Spurs winning the Western Conference.
That ticket was a $2,500 bet that also included Team USA men’s hockey to win Olympic gold, Michigan to win the NCAA Tournament, and the Knicks to win the Eastern Conference as the other three legs.
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Mike Turay is a sports journalist and editor who closely follows the NBA, NFL, college sports and UFC. He has demonstrated expertise in both NBA and NFL player prop bets for nearly three years. Mike is also highly knowledgeable about the sportsbook offer landscape, frequently trying and reviewing the latest apps and sites.