NBA Playoffs 2020: Lakers, Bucks, Raptors Favored To Cruise In First Round, 76ers Among Underdogs

The 2020 NBA playoffs were supposed to begin Saturday with the start of the first round. The postseason has been put on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic, and it’s a real possibility that the season will ultimately be canceled.

The league is still holding out hope that it can crown a champion at some point. There’s a chance the playoffs could be held this summer without fans in attendance. The NBA Finals would likely have to conclude by Labor Day.

If the season does resume, it’s all but certain that only a handful of regular-season games, if any, could be played. That means the standings are unlikely to change much and the opening-round playoff series are mostly set.

The Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers are set to be the top seeds in the Eastern Conference and Western Conference, respectively. The Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Clippers are all virtually guaranteed to have home-court advantage in the conference quarterfinals.

BetOnline has released betting odds for each first-round series, based on the latest standings. Three teams have better than -1000 odds to advance to the second round. Only one team that’s set to play Game 1 on the road is favored to win its series.

Eastern Conference Playoff Odds

No.1 Milwaukee Bucks (-5000) vs. No.8 Orlando Magic (+1550)

No.2 Toronto Raptors (-1400) vs. No.7 Brooklyn Nets (+825)

No.3 Boston Celtics (-290) vs. No.6 Philadelphia 76ers (+245)

No.4 Miami Heat (-280) vs. No.5 Indiana Pacers (+235)

Western Conference Playoff Odds

No.1 Los Angeles Lakers (-2000) vs. No.8 Memphis Grizzlies (+750)

No.2 Los Angeles Clippers (-275) vs. No.7 Dallas Mavericks (+230)

No.3 Denver Nuggets (+105) vs. No.6 Houston Rockets (-125)

No.4 Utah Jazz (-165) vs. No.5 Oklahoma City Thunder (+145)