The NBA is a league that has been ruled by dynasties for much of its history, but just crowned its seventh different champion in seven years. However, the Oklahoma City Thunder have all the pieces for a sustained run of success: an MVP in his mid-20s, a young supporting cast and one of the most well-respected general managers in the league. Add that all together and the Thunder are the betting favorites to win the title again next season.
Just after overcoming a halftime deficit to beat the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the Thunder opened as the clear favorites to win the 2026 championship with +250 odds on BetMGM. The Thunder were expected to be the favorites regardless of how Sunday’s game went, but the ranking of top contenders is where things get interesting.
The New York Knicks +700 and Cleveland Cavaliers +750 lead the Eastern Conference in the odds. It might be slightly surprising to see the Knicks this high, even after making the Eastern Conference finals, but a lot of the Eastern Conference is a major question mark right now. Boston is several teams down in the odds because of Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury. Even after being a half away from a championship, the Pacers (+4000) are likely to be without Tyrese Haliburton, the breakout star of the 2025 playoffs, for much of next season after he left Game 7 with an ugly injury. Plus, Milwaukee’s future is unclear with Damian Lillard also suffering an Achilles injury this postseason and Giannis Antetokounmpo trade rumors swirling.
The Cavs have every reason to think they are contenders next year after winning 64 games this regular season, especially if two of the conference’s top teams will be without their stars for significant chunks of the season.
The Houston Rockets are next at +800. Reports came out earlier on Sunday that the Rockets are trading for Kevin Durant, temporarily stealing the spotlight from Game 7 with what could end up being the biggest trade of the NBA offseason.
Houston adds Durant, who returns to the state where he played his college ball, to a core that includes Alperen Şengün, Fred VanVleet, Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith Jr.
Şengün, Thompson and Smith are all 22 and could still improve, while VanVleet and Durant have won NBA championships. Durant can give what was a young team this past season more experience. Houston won 52 games in the regular season and grabbed the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, but went out in the first round of the playoffs.
The next tier of contenders is Minnesota (+1400), the Los Angeles Lakers (+1600), Boston (+1600), Denver (+1600) and Orlando (+1600).
The longest odds are shared by the Washington Wizards and Utah Jazz, which are both +100000 (1,000-to-1).
2026 NBA title odds
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(Photo of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: Justin Ford / Getty Images)