In late June, Kevin Durant requested a trade from the Brooklyn Nets. It sent an immediate ripple through the NBA futures market. Teams like the Phoenix Suns and Miami Heat were rumored to be the favorites to acquire him, and their odds shot up as a result. Meanwhile, with the Nets rumored to be moving on from one of the league's best players, their odds came crashing down.

However, unlike most NBA teams in this day and age, the Nets did not acquiesce to Durant's demands. The team realized that they had some leverage with Durant under contract for four years. The franchise moved heaven and earth to appease Durant and Kyrie Irving, and moving Durant this quickly would set the franchise back for years.

The Nets waited out Durant and finally, the team announced that the organization and Durant have reached an agreement that will see Durant rescind his trade request. It appears that Kyrie Irving will also return to Brooklyn after a lot of chatter earlier in the summer surrounding his future. With their two star players expected to return, Brooklyn is now amongst the favorites to win the NBA title in 2023.

Crazy odds movement for Brooklyn

There's no denying that last season was a disaster for Brooklyn. Durant missed a lot of time with a knee injury. Irving didn't play for the first half of the season and then was only allowed to play in road games down the stretch before the politicians of New York lifted their ban on unvaccinated athletes playing sports in the city right before the playoffs. James Harden demanded a trade, a request which the Nets actually granted. They acquired Ben Simmons as the main piece in return. Simmons did not play a game last season due to a combination of back and mental health issues.

Brooklyn ended up getting swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Boston Celtics. It was a series that stamped an extremely disappointing season for the franchise. However, it's worth noting that Brooklyn spent the majority of last season as the betting favorites to win the NBA title. That's an endorsement of how high the ceiling is for this team and what the oddsmakers think of them when they're healthy and everyone is playing.

Brooklyn opened the offseason with +700 odds to win the NBA title in 2023 which put them amongst the favorites to win it all. However, after Durant requested a trade, the Nets' odds moved to 25-to-1. By July, Brooklyn's odds were down to 40-to-1. At those odds, they were in a tier with teams like the Chicago Bulls and New Orleans Pelicans.

Yesterday, news started to break that Durant might suit up for the Nets this season. Brooklyn's championship odds jumped all the way to 16-to-1. With the team making the agreement official today, Brooklyn's odds to win the NBA title are now at +700. That's exactly what the Nets were at the start of the offseason. It's as if none of this actually happened. Those odds make them one of the top five favorites to win the NBA title this season.

Brooklyn has potential

With Durant back in the fold, there's no denying that Brooklyn has the talent and potential to win an NBA title. There's hope that Durant can coexist with head coach Steve Nash. When healthy, Durant is arguably the best player in the NBA. At the very least, he's a top-five talent. Durant is currently +850 to win NBA MVP this upcoming season, the fourth-best odds behind Luka Doncic, Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo.

There are no more vaccine mandates and restrictions, so theoretically, Kyrie Irving should be available to play every night. It rarely works out that way with Irving as he always finds a way to miss a few games here and there. However, maybe he was humbled by the relative lack of interest in him around the league this past offseason and plays with a chip on his shoulder.

Ben Simmons was cleared to play 3-on-3 basketball a few days ago which makes it more likely he'll be available for the Nets to start this upcoming season. He hasn't played basketball in a year but the potential is certainly there with Simmons. He might be an easy target to make fun of, but he's a great defender and good ball distributor.

The team added some key depth players with the likes of Royce O'Neal and T.J. Warren. They join a group of role players that consists of Patty Mills, Seth Curry, Joe Harris, Cam Thomas and Nicolas Claxton. That's a good cast of talent to surround the team's three stars.

There's certainly an infinite amount of question marks surrounding this team right now, but if things break their way, absolutely nobody should be surprised if they end the upcoming season as champions. The futures market at BetMGM reflects that.

Current NBA championship favorites

Following the Durant news, here are the top 10 favorites at BetMGM to win the NBA title this upcoming season:

• Boston Celtics (+500)

• Golden State Warriors (+600)

• Milwaukee Bucks (+650)

• Brooklyn Nets (+700)

• Los Angeles Clippers (+700)

• Phoenix Suns (10-to-1)

• Philadelphia 76ers (14-to-1)

• Miami Heat (16-to-1)

• Denver Nuggets (18-to-1)

• Los Angeles Lakers (18-to-1)