A soft beginning to the season might have been enough to improve the Grizzlies NBA Finals odds. That was offset, however, by a tough stretch in the middle of the 2019-20 campaign.
Thus the odds of Memphis hoisting the Larry O’Brien Trophy for the first time are largely unchanged. The books remain bearish on the Grizzlies.
2019-20 schedule’s impact on Grizzlies NBA Finals odds
Memphis is a rebuilding and young team. It seems the NBA did its best to accommodate that. The first two months of the season are a soft landing.
The Grizzlies get several contests against teams expected to be the bottom-feeders of the league in October and early November. Not to mention, three of Memphis’ first four games are at home.
The Grizzlies face the Minnesota Timberwolves, Orlando Magic and Phoenix Suns in three of their next four. The schedule starts to toughen up in mid-November, but there are no back-to-back games, and just one of those games is on the road.
Memphis might prefer to hibernate for February and March. The Grizzlies play just one home game in a 24-day span in February.
In March, Memphis faces three back-to-backs and nine of 15 games on the road. February and March could likely make or break the Grizzlies’ season.
Memphis expects rookies Brandon Clarke and Ja Morant to play a large role. That youth works in conjunction with those two brutal months to make the Grizzlies a long shot to be a playoff team.
Breaking down the Grizzlies NBA Finals odds
Vegas lists Memphis at 1000/1 to win the 2020 NBA Finals and 600/1 to win the Western Conference finals. Other oddsmakers share that opinion.
While Vegas is by no means optimistic about the Grizzlies this season, other books are down even more. Current odds on Memphis winning the Finals listed elsewhere include:
- DraftKings +50000
- FanDuel +25000
- PointsBet +40000
- SugarHouse +5000
- William Hill +50000
That +25000 line FanDuel has on the Grizzlies winning it all is seen elsewhere. Four of the books included above have Memphis +25000 to reach the NBA Finals. William Hill has the Grizzlies +30000 to win the West, however.
When Tennessee sports betting goes live, there will be other Memphis futures to bet on. Those odds aren’t looking much better, however.
Other current Memphis team futures
Although the Grizzlies aren’t expected to be a playoff team and that could be a disappointment for fans, Memphis presents some opportunities for sports betting in Tennessee.
If veterans like Andre Iguodala and Dwight Howard nurture the young core, this team could surpass expectations. Unfortunately, there’s currently zero opportunity to turn bettors into winners because of the win expectancy.
All five of the aforementioned books have the over/under on the Grizzlies at 26.5 wins. The books don’t seem settled on that, however.
None of them currently offer positive odds on either the over or the under. As a result, other futures are more attractive.
FanDuel has a line of +1700 on Memphis making the playoffs. William Hill lists the Grizzlies at +30000 to win the Southwest Division.
That +25000 number shows up again on DraftKings, FanDuel and SugarHouse. That’s the current odds of Memphis being the top seed in the Western Conference playoffs.
A young roster and tough middle stretch of the season make the Grizzlies unlikely to post many wins in 2019-20. If they surpass expectations, however, they could make some serious money for those brave enough to take the risk.
