The Loop
People betting on the Golden State Warriors this season have been getting absolutely crushed
David Dow
Forget what their record says, we all know the Golden State Warriors are still the NBA's best team. The winners of three of the past four NBA championships, including the past two, are plodding their way through the ridiculously long regular season before they turn it on for the even more ridiculously long postseason. As sure as Game of Thrones returns in April, Golden State will be crowned in June for a third consecutive year.
OK, so it's not a total lock, but according to Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, the Warriors, despite all their internal strife and struggles this season (by the way, they still have the best record in the Western Conference at 44-19) are HEAVY 2-to-5 (meaning you'd have to risk $500 to win $200) favorites to win the title. However, if you've been betting on them in single games against the spread this season—especially of late—you have been getting absolutely crushed. Check out this crazy stat:
ONE and nine? Eesh. And Golden State has gone 6-4 during that stretch so Vegas is just playing people for suckers.
That tweet got us curious about which team(s) the Warriors are tied with at the bottom of the ATS standings with a 25-37-1 record, according to TeamRankings.com. Turns out, one of them is the Toronto Raptors, a team many feel will be the Warriors opponent victim in this year's NBA Finals. The other team is the Lakers, which is not a surprise considering the Trainwreck (get it?) of a campaign they've had in LeBron's first season in LA.
On the flip side, the team currently sitting atop the NBA standings, the Milwaukee Bucks, also has the best record against the spread at 37-24-3, just ahead of the Sacramento Kings. So in conclusion, betting on the NBA is WILD. You're better off just putting it all on the Warriors winning it all.