It's funny how things change so quickly in the NBA. Not long ago, the expectation was that either the Detroit Pistons or New York Knicks would be the ones to push for the Eastern Conference Title and make their way to the NBA Finals. That's no longer the case, as there's a new favorite. That's right, the Boston Celtics' NBA Finals odds have soared with Jayson Tatum back.
And with that, the Celtics are also the clear-cut favorites to win the Eastern Conference. During the postseason last year, Tatum tore his Achilles against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. It was a brutal injury for the Celtics and it was one that was supposed to have Tatum out for the 2025-26 season. However, he's back to 100 percent and making a huge impact for his team.
| NBA Finals odds |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thunder to win | +150 | +150 | +150 |
| Celtics to win | +650 | +650 | +650 |
| Nuggets to win | +750 | +750 | +750 |
| Spurs to win | +800 | +800 | +800 |
"It's been a long time coming just to get to this point," Tatum said after his return last week. "Nights and days I dreamed about this moment and anticipation, the crowd. It's been 42 and ½ weeks since I played in an NBA game, so just trying to get caught up on the speed and everything. I just kind of felt like I was a step off or moving too fast. But the game started to slow down as I just kind of relaxed a little bit."
According to the best online sports betting sites, Boston now holds +650 NBA Final betting odds to win the title this year. They also have +150 odds to win the Eastern Conference. When Boston is at full health, they have proven that they can compete with anyone. Getting Tatum back is of course major, but will it be enough for the Celtics to go on a deep postseason run and capture the Larry O'Brien Trophy once again?
12 FIRST QUARTER POINTS FOR JAYSON TATUM 🔥
This guy tore his achilles 300 days ago 😅 pic.twitter.com/yqfiGOKdE2
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) March 8, 2026
The Oklahoma City Thunder are still the favorites to win the NBA Finals
While there's understandably a lot of talk surrounding the Celtics right now, don't forget that the Oklahoma City Thunder are still the favorites to win the NBA Finals. As things stand, the Thunder still hold the best NBA betting odds, listed at +150. This isn't shocking at all, as OKC won the title last year and they've looked incredibly dominant once again thus far this campaign.
“I think we had clarity,” OKC coach Mark Daigneault said after winning the title last year. “This was never the plan specifically. There was never a specific timeline. You plan as many seasons as you can and you tend to them, then you see what happens. We’ve gotten some good luck in this period of time, too, that we’re not denying at all. We’ve also tried to control what we can. The guys have done an incredible job. It’s landed us in a great spot."
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Back to the action on the hardwood, the expectation for a lot of people and analysts is that the Thunder are going to find a way to repeat as the champs. That's of course not going to be an easy task, especially if the Celtics keep on improving with Tatum back suited up. It will be interesting to see how things go down here, but a lot of people think we could see Oklahoma City and Boston meet with the NBA Finals title on the line.
Don't count out the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals race just yet
Before the playoffs do get here, however, don't count out the Denver Nuggets in the NBA Finals race just yet. Denver is always going to be a threat to stun some people thanks to the one and only Nikola Jokic. In recent years, Jokic has looked like one of the top players in the game and he also has three NBA MVP honors to his name. That just shows how great he is with the ball in his hands.
In the Western Conference, Oklahoma City is the favorite, but the expectation is that Denver will make things interesting for the Thunder if they meet in the Western Conference Finals. The San Antonio Spurs are also a team that people are going to want to pay attention to. With Denver specifically, they've won it all recently and they're hungry to do so again.
Per the top NBA betting sites, Denver holds +750 NBA betting odds to win it all this year. Previously, they were second in the odds only behind the Thunder, but the Celtics have managed to pass them there. Still, that won't matter, as Denver will hope to take down OKC in the postseason and then Boston if the Nuggets can get that far. The Nuggets no doubt will be a team to follow closely once the postseason arrives.
