With James Harden trying to force a move to Brooklyn, the gambling market is taking notice and bookmakers are moving the odds in favor of the Nets as an insurance policy in the event Harden joins forces with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
The NBA Championship odds for the Nets has been on a steady rise as Harden pushes for a move to Brooklyn. At BetOnline, the odds on the Nets winning the Championship moved from +950 to +600 after the NBA trade market opened, pending when the trade becomes a reality.
Upon the reopening of the the NBA market, swaps followed in quick succession, with Jrue Holiday being acquired by the Milwaukee Bucks from New Orleans, Chris Paul being dealt from Oklahoma City Thunder to the Phoenix Suns, and Bogdan Bogdanovic traded from Sacramento Kings to the Milwaukee Bucks, in a bid to support the 2019-20 NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Houston Rockets had offered James Harden a $50-million per year extension deal, but he turned it down to try and force a trade out of Houston. It was earlier reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that they had been preliminary talks between both teams. But there has been nothing concrete to indicate the direction James Harden will be headed. There exists a worry about James Harden being the right fit to pair alongside Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. It is in the Rockets’ best interest to hold on for the best acceptable offer, as there is a possibility of the Nets upping the ante after the draft.
Net Bettors Not Waiting Around
That said, Nets bettors are not waiting around for the trade to take place. Jeff Sherman of the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook said that when they opened the NBA Championship futures market, they had placed the Nets at 14-1, increased them to 10-1, and now they have them at 6/1. He went on to say that the Brooklyn Nets and the Golden State Warriors are some of their most frequently bet teams, and that after acquiring Holiday and Bogdanovic, they moved the Bucks from 10-1 to 5-1.
Sherman ended by saying that the odds on the Bucks and the Nets will be flipped if the James Harden trade goes through and he ends up with the Nets, but at the moment, the Lakers are the number one most frequently bet team, the Warriors being second and Brooklyn third.
