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Vegas odds open with Raptors favored to win Game 5, take home first NBA championship

jack baer
Staff writer

After a convincing Game 4 win on the Golden State Warriors’ home floor, the Toronto Raptors are up 3-1 in the NBA Finals and on the cusp of their first championship in franchise history.

The series now heads back to Toronto for what will presumably be the hottest ticket in Canadian basketball history. The good news for Raptors fans willing to shell out what’s needed to attend that game: Las Vegas oddsmakers are feeling good about their team’s chances.

Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook oddsmaker Jeff Sherman announced the casino’s opening odds for Game 5 favored the Raptors by 3.5 points. The over/under is set at 212, the lowest of the series so far.

Toronto Raptors center Serge Ibaka (9) celebrates his 3-point basket against the Golden State Warriors, next to forward Kawhi Leonard (2) during the second half of Game 4 of basketball’s NBA Finals, Friday, June 7, 2019, in Oakland, Calif. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP)
Las Vegas is liking the Raptors. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP)

The Raptors have been favored to win in every home game they’ve played so far in these NBA Finals, but the Game 5 mark represents their largest favorable spread of the series.

The series prices from Fanduel also indicate the Raptors are massively favored at minus-650 to close out the series, be it in Game 5, 6 or 7. That’s a far cry from when the Warriors opened the series as minus-275 favorites.

Given that the Warriors’ only NBA playoffs series loss in their current dynasty came after infamously blowing a 3-1 lead against the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016, those prices likely represent the lowest odds for a Warriors championship since they first hoisted the trophy in 2015, regular season included.

Clearly, the number crunchers are beginning to believe in the power of Kawhi Leonard and his supporting cast as the Warriors shockingly continue to look a step behind. The Raptors laid waste to the Warriors throughout the second half of Game 4, and that has plenty of Toronto fans, including a certain former "Degrassi" star, getting ready for the confetti.

Of course, those odds could shift the second we get an update on whether Kevin Durant will return to a team that looks like it needs him all of a sudden.

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