Shocking Kevin Durant Trade Report Causes a Major Shift in the Celtics’ Championship Betting Odds
The Kevin Durant trade buzz has been relatively quiet since the superstar forward requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets late last month. The Nets have been asking for a historic trade package in return for Durant, and no team has been willing to match their lucrative price tag just yet.
That may change soon, though, as the Boston Celtics have reportedly engaged in trade talks with the Nets involving a package centered on Jaylen Brown. The two sides haven’t come close to a deal yet, but Boston’s interest in Durant has already caused a major shift in its championship betting odds.
The Boston Celtics have emerged as serious contenders to land Kevin Durant
For the last few weeks, Durant has been most commonly connected to the Phoenix Suns, Miami Heat, and Toronto Raptors as potential trade destinations. The Suns essentially bowed out of the race by signing DeAndre Ayton to a four-year, $133 million extension last week, and a new suitor has apparently taken their place.
According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the Celtics reached out to the Nets and offered them Brown, Derrick White, and a draft pick for Durant. Brooklyn declined, and Charania reported the team would only be interested in a package involving Brown, Marcus Smart, multiple draft picks, and possibly another rotation player.
The Nets aren’t going to make this easy with their sky-high asking price, but the Celtics have the resources to match it.
“As of right now, the Celtics have emerged as a serious possibility as a landing spot for Durant,” Charania writes. “They have tremendous interest in bringing him in and view him as a piece that could take them over that final hurdle. Although there is work to be done, there is a deal to be had that would suffice the Nets’ overwhelming ask.”
Durant trade report causes a major shift in Celtics’ championship odds
Before the Celtics entered the Durant sweepstakes, Boston was the favorite to win the title in 2023 at nearly every sportsbook across the country. That hasn’t changed since Charania reported their interest in Durant, but their odds are now on the move.
BetMGM has moved the Celtics’ championship odds from +650 to +450. WynnBET has moved them from +600 to +400. Every major sportsbook seems to be bracing for a Durant-to-Boston trade, and if a deal does get done soon, those odds are only going to drop even more.
Futures odds are typically more reactive than proactive, so don’t assume these oddsmakers know something we don’t. But if the Celtics do land Durant this offseason, they’ll enter the 2022-23 season as the prohibitive betting favorites to win it all.
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