If there was any doubt about who the favorites were for the NBA Championship they were quickly erased in the Golden State’s and Houston’s NBA second round playoff openers. The two Western Conference teams cruised past upstarts Utah and New Orleans over the weekend.
The Jazz and Pelicans were heavy underdogs to upset Golden State and Houston. Utah, who lost to the Rockets, 110-96, on Sunday, are +925 to take the best-of-seven series. Houston is -1400.
Oddsmakers give the Pelicans virtually no chance against the defending champions. New Orleans is +1200, while the Warriors are at -2500, the biggest margin of any of the eight teams in the second round.
Dominating Without Star Guard
Golden State was a 7.5 favorite against the Pelicans and won, 123-101. The Warriors beat New Orleans at its own game plan, using an up tempo style that at one point allowed them to go on a 25-2 run in the second quarter.
Despite the lopsided defeat, New Orleans’ coach Alvin Gentry said after the game during his press conference, he was sticking to the strategy.
“We’re still going to play with a fast pace,” Gentry said. “And we are going to do a better job of spacing the floor. We’re going to be better defensively from the standpoint of not having breakdowns. We’re not going to go back and change everything that we did. We’re not going to all of a sudden walk the ball up the court now and try to play slow.”
Oddsmakers believe that is an advantage for Golden State. Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson combined for 53 points and Draymond Green had a triple double. Sportsbooks opened the line for Tuesday’s game at 10.5 and at some Nevada outlets it quickly went to 11.
What is really scary is that they are doing this without their two-time MVP Stephen Curry. The guard is still rehabbing from a knee injury and no timetable has been presented for his return.
“You’re still going to have to play at an extremely high level to be able to win a game where he’s not in the game,” Gentry said of Curry’s absence. “They’ve already proven that they can do that.”
Hardin Leading Houston
The Rockets’ star player is very healthy and led his team to an easy victory over the Jazz. James Hardin scored 41 points and the team had a 25-point lead by halftime.
Utah was working with just a day’s rest after eliminating Oklahoma City in the first round on Friday. Sunday they looked tired and the Rockets took advantage of it.
Jazz coach Quin Snyder said Hardin, who is the favorite to win the MVP award this season, is a tough player to guard.
“He’s a special player,” Snyder said. “It’s hard to give credit to all the things that he does. He just impacts the game in so many mays. You have to try to make it harder for him.”
The two teams play the second game on Wednesday and Houston is an 11-point favorite.