NBA Finals betting: Jayson Tatum and Luka Dončić are, unsurprisingly, the clear favorites for MVP
Are you willing to bet on anyone other than Jayson Tatum and Luka Dončić to win NBA Finals MVP?
The two first-team All-NBA members are the clear favorites for the award at BetMGM ahead of Game 1 on Thursday. Tatum is better than even money to win at -120, while Dončić is at +200.
Even though Dončić is the consensus best player in the series, Tatum has significantly better odds than Dončić because the Celtics enter the Finals as the clear favorites. Boston is still -225 to win the Finals, while Dallas is +180. The Celtics are 6.5-point favorites at home on Thursday night.
Tatum has averaged 26 points per game on 44% shooting during the postseason so far. If his 3-point percentage rebounds, he could be in for a big Finals; he's shooting just 29% from behind the arc over 14 postseason games after shooting 37.6% from deep during the regular season.
Dončić’s field goal percentage has also dropped this postseason as he’s dealt with some lingering injuries and more defensive focus. After averaging nearly 34 points a game in the regular season, Dončić is scoring just under 29 points per game this postseason and shooting 43.8% from the field compared to 48.7% in the regular season.
After struggling in Dallas’ Game 4 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals, Dončić rebounded with a huge game in Game 5. He shot 63.6% from the field with 36 points, 10 rebounds and five assists.
Jaylen Brown is the clear No. 3 favorite behind Tatum and Dončić at +625. Brown is averaging 25 points per game and shooting over 54% from the field in the playoffs. If you like Boston to cash in as favorites, he may be a better bet than Tatum.
Kyrie Irving is +1800 to win Finals MVP as he heads back to Boston for the first time as a member of the Mavericks. Irving last played against his former team in Boston during the 2022 postseason as a member of the Nets.
Irving has been phenomenal so far for the Mavericks in the playoffs. He’s shooting nearly 49% and is averaging 22.8 points and 5.2 assists per game.
After those four players, the odds for MVP get really long. And you have to go a ways down the board to find the next Mavericks player. Favorites Nos. 5-8 are all Celtics players before you get to three Mavericks at +30000.
NBA Finals MVP favorites
Celtics F Jayson Tatum (-120)
Mavericks G Luka Dončić (+200)
Celtics F Jaylen Brown (+625)
Mavericks G Kyrie Irving (+1800)
Celtics G Derrick White (+3000)
Celtics C Kristaps Porzingis (+5000)
Celtics G Jrue Holiday (+6600)
Celtics F Al Horford (+25000)
Mavericks F P.J. Washington (+30000)
Mavericks G Derrick Jones Jr. (+30000)
Mavericks C Daniel Gafford (+30000)
