Yahoo Sports Warriors no longer favorites to win NBA Finals for first time all season
For the first time all season, the Golden State Warriors are no longer favored to win the NBA Finals, according to BetOnline. Title odds are now even between the two-time defending champs and the Toronto Raptors, a representative for the website said.
Toronto defeated Golden State 123-109 in Game 3 on Wednesday night to take a 2-1 series lead. The Warriors, currently playing in the Finals for the fifth consecutive season, last trailed a championship series after Game 3 of the 2015 Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers. They went on to win their first of three titles in six games.
That Cavs team was down Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving by that point. This time, the Warriors are the ones without two All-Stars and three of their top six rotational players. Klay Thompson is slated to return from a hamstring injury in Game 4, and Kevin Durant, who has been ruled out with a calf strain, could join him in Game 5.
The odds for Game 4 reflect potential lineup changes, as the Warriors are favored by 5.5 points to beat the Raptors in Oracle Arena on Friday night. Toronto still holds home-court advantage, with Game 5 and a potential Game 7 at Scotiabank Arena.
The Warriors were favorites to win the title throughout the regular season and the first three rounds of the playoffs. Entering the playoffs, BetOnline placed the odds of the Raptors winning the title at 12-to-1, tied with both the Houston Rockets and Boston Celtics for the third-best odds, behind the Warriors and Milwaukee Bucks.
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Ben Rohrbach is a staff writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach
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