NBA Eastern & Western Conference 2024 Betting Preview: Will the Suns Shine in the West?

The NBA is upon us. After so many blockbuster moves and trades, we’ve finally got a full picture of what the NBA season will look like.

I have a couple of best bets and a sleeper to consider at the online sportsbooks for this year’s NBA conference picks.

Below, you will find the NBA Championship odds, courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook (check our Caesars Sportsbook Review), as of October 24, 2023.

Eastern Conference Odds

Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks are tied with the Boston Celtics to win the Eastern Conference. The Bucks added Damian Lillard, who scored an average of 32 points last season, to the roster.

He’ll be paired up with a former MVP in Giannis Antetokounmpo, who averaged about 31 points last year.

The Bucks don’t have much young talent other than Andre Jackson Jr. We’ll see if that will bite them. For now, the starting lineup looks incredibly good. I love the addition of Cam Payne off the bench. Bobby Portis might even come off the bench for the Bucks, so Malik Beasley can play shooting guard.

The Bucks are certainly one of the best teams in the NBA, but a new pairing between Lillard, Giannis, and Khris Middleton might be shakey at the start of the season.

Boston Celtics

The Celtics still have a better team than the Bucks. Don’t get it twisted. With Jrue Holiday at the point, Derrick White, Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Al Horford, it will be hard to defeat the Celtics on any given night.

Boston added Payton Pritchard to a massive extension. He’ll stick around and get more minutes for the Celtics. Boston also has Kristaps Porzingis, who will be an x-factor for the Celtics. The bench is a bit bleak right now at the guard spot, but Tatum can bring the ball up whenever needed if we’re being honest.

I’d rather take the Celtics at +180 than the Bucks.

NBA Pick: Celtics (+180) at Caesars Sportsbook

Eastern Conference Sleeper

This year, the New York Knicks could be a sleeper at +1800. They have a strong roster that has played with one another for a long time. They’ve also got the assets to make a deal at the NBA Trade Deadline to bring in another major superstar.

Western Conference Odds

Denver Nuggets

Denver lost some assets from last year’s championship team, but with Jamal Murray, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon, and Nikola Jokic back in the starting five, the Nuggets will be fine. The depth is small, but Julian Strawther has proven that he can be the next big x-factor for this team throughout the preseason.

It will be hard to beat the Nuggets day in and day out.

Phoenix Suns

It’s boom or bust for the Suns, though. They’ve got way more talent in the starting lineup than the Nuggets. With Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant, and Jusuf Nurkic, the Suns should win the Western Conference.

They’ve even added Keon Johnson, Grayson Allen, Eric Gordon, Nassir Little, and plenty of other solid role players for a run at the NBA Championship this season.

The Suns needed more depth when they traded for Beal, but they picked up some depth with the Lillard trade that sent DeAndre Ayton to Portland.

I’d back the Suns here.

NBA Pick: Suns (+350) at Caesars Sportsbook

Western Conference Sleeper

The Rockets +20000 is hilarious. This team is 3-0 in preseason action and is being coached by Ime Udoka, which is why the Celtics are also at the top of their game.

Udoka did some bad things within the Celtics organization, but he’s a great coach with much talent on the roster.

If Houston is going to have Amen Thompson and Cam Whitmore come off the bench, it’s game over. This team has veteran leadership with Fred VanVleet and plenty of young talents like Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr., and Alperen Sengun. These NBA odds are too good to pass up.

The line and/or odds referenced in this article might have changed since the content was published. For the latest information on line movements, visit OddsTrader’s free betting odds tool.