Worst odds for ’20 title: Miami
200-1? One oddsmaker banking that it will be a very, very long season
After a disappointing 2018-19 season and an offseason of uncertainty, at least one Vegas oddsmaker considers the Miami Heat a real long shot to win next year’s NBA championship.
Less than a week after the Toronto Raptors knocked off the Golden State Warriors for their first title, the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook already has published the odds for next year’s champion — and no team has worse odds than the Heat at 200-1. Five other teams also are being given 200-1 odds, including the Detroit Pistons, Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards, Cleveland Cavaliers and Minnesota Timberwolves.
The Los Angeles Lakers have the best odds at 3-1 after reportedly acquiring New Orleans Pelicans star Anthony Davis. The Milwaukee Bucks have the secondbest odds at 6-1, followed by the Los Angeles Clippers (7-1) and Houston Rockets (8-1). The defending champion Raptors are listed at 10-1, while the injury-riddled Warriors are 12-1.
The Heat went 39-43 last season, including a 19-22 home record, and missed the playoffs.
The Heat, who have the 13th pick in Thursday’s NBA draft, also will be without franchise icon Dwyane Wade, who retired in April after his 16th season.
Despite his team already hard up against the 2019-20 salary cap and luxury tax, Heat president Pat Riley remains optimistic the organization will field a competitive team next season.
“Every now and then, I used to
ing your P.J. Washington, your KZ Okpala is going to guard bigs.
“There’s certainly a trend of limiting the five position to the [Clint] Capelas of the world. Because people assume there’s no more post-up game, they just feel that post-up has been written out of the scouting universe.”
So perhaps Jaxson Hayes or Nic Claxton are the answers. Or not.
“The perception of the role is to find a rim-running Capela, Jaxon Hayes,” the scout said. “Some teams are going, ‘We don’t expect anything out of the center position.’ Part of it is just a limitation of the five role. They just want rebound, switch-ability. Offense is gravy.”
A breakdown at the prospects at center in advance of Thursday’s selections at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center:
Top 5
1. Goga Bitadze, 6-11, Mega Bemax, Republic of Georgia: Expected to be among the first international selections, if not the first, the 19-year-old offers an improving outside touch, drawing comparisons with his overall game to Marc Gasol.
2. Jaxson Hayes, 6-11, freshman, Texas: Has gone from a fringe Top 100 prospect out of high school to arguably the top domestic prospect at center with his 7-3 wingspan and brute force around the rim. His true shooting percentage of 75% ranked second in the entire NCAA, while his block percentage of 10.6 at 19th in the country. Hayes struggled with foul trouble at Texas, but his ability as a rim-runner and shotblocker is more or less unmatched in this class.
3. Bol Bol, 7-2, freshman, Oregon: With a 7-7 wingspan and a 9-7 standing reach for a player who shot 52% from beyond the arc in his only college season seems like a can’t miss. Unfortunately a knee injury, slender frame and subpar defensive skills have dropped Bol from what seemed like a lockedin lottery pick to potentially elsewhere in the first round.
4. Mfiondu Kabengele, 6-10, sophomore, Florida State: A rising presence in the draft order similar to Hayes, Kabengele went from a three-star prospect out of high school to a 256-pound big man who made 37% of his shots from 3-point range and 76% from the foul line in his final collegiate season as a sophomore. He’ll need to cut down on his fouls at the next level, but the athleticism and shooting upside are there.
5. Nic Claxton, 6-11, sophomore, Georgia: While he’ll need to add some weight to his nearly 7-foot frame, Claxton presents a versatile skillset for a center along with his ability to rim-run and block shots. The former Bulldog is an excellent playmaker for his size and has the ability to hit jumpers on the catch and in transition.
Sleeper
Naz Reid, 6-10, freshman, LSU: Like Claxton, Reid presents tremendous value at where he’s expected to be selected. The 250-plus-pound center has the physicality and strength to battle in the low-post and is an excellent offensive and defensive rebounder. Along with his inside play, Reid knocked down 38.2% of his shots from outside the arc during SEC conference play this past season. His ability to stretch the floor cannot be understated.
Rating the field
This group features a group of players who competed at a higher level collegiately than what was expected from them coming out of high school. The elite centers in this draft offer a borderline 50-50 mix of players who specialize as rim-runners and shot blockers and players who have the natural ability to stretch the floor.
Heat need
Hassan Whiteside seemingly will be gone by 2020 free agency, if not before, with the Heat looking to clear his cap space. So the question becomes whether Bam Adebayo is viewed as the long-term answer in the middle.