5 smartest bets to place for 2019-20 NBA championship

2. Los Angeles Lakers (Odds: +419)

The Los Angeles Lakers have LeBron James and Anthony Davis, so any bet placed on them makes some sense.

The case for them is that they now have a transcendent big man who is in the middle of their prime and a surprisingly rested LeBron James. LBJ made it to eight straight NBA Finals before last year, in which the Lakers missed the playoffs. Because of this, LeBron is now coming in to this season as rested and as fresh as he has been in a very long time.

A high pick and roll with these two will be just about be unstoppable and with capable shot makers around them such as Danny Green and Kyle Kuzma (when he returns from injury), they can end up being a special team on offense.

Although the team is not incredibly deep, you have to think that this roster they have right now will not be what it will be come playoff time. This team still could use some pieces to really bolster this roster and as is the case with just about every LeBron-led team, the Lakers will definitely be looking to be making moves to do just that in the upcoming months before the trade deadline.

There really isn’t much else to say about this team to be honest. We all know that just about every season this past decade that has had a healthy LeBron has found their way to the Finals. The difference now is that he has Anthony Davis by his side, who is easily the most talented player to ever play with LeBron.

If the front office can make the necessary moves and the coaching staff can push all the right buttons to complement the dominant duo, then the Lakers will return to prominence and lift yet another banner into the rafters.

1. LA Clippers (Odds: +362)

I know this is a bit of a boring No. 1 pick. This isn’t the boldest bet, but it is the smartest. The LA Clippers obviously have the best odds to win the whole thing and for good reason. This team will have to really self destruct to not find themselves in at least the Western Conference Finals at the end of the year.

The Clips overachieved last year with the scrappy roster that they had, but the team now has a totally new look. The team hit the free agency jackpot and were able to sign reigning NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard and trade for All-NBA forward Paul George.

Having two of the top 10 players in the league last year now on the same team is a scary thought, but there is surprisingly a lot more than that to this team.

On offense, this team will still have Mr. Sixth Man in Lou Williams. Sweet Lou is a walking bucket and will remain fueling the production off the bench and he will remain playing with Montrezl Harrell. The Louisville big has formed a good rapport with Williams and their pick and roll game together is extremely hard to defend.

On the defensive side of the ball, this team will be just as good. With a perimeter defense of Leonard, George, Patrick Beverley and Moe Harkless, they will be lock down. Again, Leonard and George have been two of the best perimeter defenders of the past 5 years or so, so them now being on the same team seems a bit unfair.

It should be noted that as of right now PG-13 is out with an injury for the foreseeable future, but should be back in about two months. The team may have some growing pains at first when he returns, as they will need to all figure out how they fit in with each other.

Steve Ballmer, your thoughts?

I am willing to bet that they will get that all figured out with no problem and will find themselves competing deep into May and early June.

This team seems to have all that it takes to be a NBA champion and it would be a pretty smart bet on your part to bank on the Clips adding a banner of their own to the Staples Center.