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LAKE BUENA VISTA, FLORIDA – SEPTEMBER 10: LeBron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts with … [+]
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The Lakers enter the Western Conference Finals as heavy 1/2 favorites to win the NBA title, and Denver Nuggets coach Brendan Malone is already cracking wise.
“We petitioned the league to start down 3-1 — save everybody a lot of time and get caught up to the Eastern Conference (series),” Malone said Thursday, per ESPN’s Malika Andrews. “They shut that down.”
The Nuggets — who play Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals Friday night against LeBron James and the Lakers — are the first team ever to come back from 3-1 down in two NBA series.
Led by Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic, the Nuggets overcame a 3-1 deficit against Donovan Mitchell and the Utah Jazz, and then did the same against Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and the favored Clippers.
Per bookmaker.eu, the Lakers are -550 to beat the Nuggets in the West Finals, with the Nuggets at +420.
In the East, even though Miami won Game 1 over Boston thanks to a vicious block by Bam Adebayo of Jayson Tatum, the Celtics remain -160 favorites to win the series, with Miami at +140.
As for odds to win the NBA title, after the Lakers at 1/2, Miami is at 4/1 (+400), Boston at 5/1 (+500) and Denver 10/1 (+1000)
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