Cavaliers' title odds slide to +3000 after Game 1 OT loss to Knicks

Sports Illustrated reported on May 21 that the Cleveland Cavaliers’ NBA championship odds had dropped after their overtime loss to the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference finals. The move followed New York’s 115-104 comeback win, a game in which the Knicks erased a 22-point fourth-quarter deficit, according to Yahoo Sports. DraftKings showed Cleveland at +3000 to win the title after the loss, while FanDuel listed the Cavaliers at the same number on Thursday. ### How far did Cleveland’s odds move after Game 1? DraftKings had Cleveland at +2000 before the Eastern Conference finals began and at +3000 after Game 1, according to Sports Illustrated and DraftKings’ published futures board. Sports Illustrated said that shift cut the Cavaliers’ implied championship probability to 3.23%. (si.com) FanDuel’s Cavaliers futures page also showed Cleveland at +3000 on May 21. The same page listed New York at +430, with Oklahoma City and San Antonio still shorter than both Eastern Conference teams in the title market. ### What game result triggered the market reaction? Yahoo Sports reported that New York beat Cleveland 115-104 in overtime after trailing by 22 points midway through the fourth quarter. (si.com) The victory gave the Knicks a 1-0 series lead and extended their winning streak to eight games, Yahoo said. (sportsbook.fanduel.com) Sports Illustrated tied the odds move directly to that collapse, writing that Cleveland “blew Game 1.” ESPN’s conference-finals roundup, cited in the source briefing, also framed Cleveland’s task as recovering after letting the opener slip away at home. ### Why does +3000 stand out in this market? (sports.yahoo.com) DraftKings’ current NBA Finals board listed the Cavaliers as the longest shot among the four teams left in the playoffs at +3000. The same board showed Oklahoma City at -110, San Antonio at +210 and New York at +425. Yahoo Sports published a separate odds roundup on May 21 that put Cleveland at +2800 at bet365, indicating that books were aligned on a sharp downgrade even if the exact price varied by operator. (si.com) That is an inference from the listed prices across sportsbooks, not a statement from the books themselves. ### Was Cleveland already an underdog before the series started? (sportsbook.draftkings.com) Sports Illustrated reported earlier this week that Cleveland had risen to +2000 after advancing to the Eastern Conference finals, but still ranked last among the four remaining teams. DraftKings’ earlier conference-finals coverage also placed the Cavaliers behind Oklahoma City, San Antonio and New York in the title market before Game 1 tipped off. (sports.yahoo.com) SportsBettingDime’s series preview, published before the opener, likewise listed Cleveland at +3000 and described the Cavaliers as the longest shot on the board. That suggests some books were already pricing Cleveland more conservatively even before the overtime defeat. ### What comes next for the Cavaliers and Knicks? (si.com) FanDuel’s game page listed Cleveland at +194 for its next game against New York, with Game 2 scheduled for May 22 at Madison Square Garden. The same page showed the Knicks as 6.5-point favorites. DraftKings and FanDuel both continued to post live championship futures on May 21, with Cleveland at +3000 heading into the second game of the series. (sportsbettingdime.com) Any further move will depend on the result of Game 2 and the remaining conference-finals schedule. (sportsbook.draftkings.com) (sportsbook.fanduel.com)