NBA: How the Chris Paul and other trades impact the east and west

Bradley Beal traded to the Suns, Chris Paul to the Warriors, Kristaps Porzingis to the Celtics, Marcus Smart to the Grizzlies, and Jordan Poole to the Wizards, and all within the last week. All these trades combined with the NBA draft, it feels like the NBA never left. Let’s take a look at how all this offseason movement and the draft will impact future NBA bets. 

Who will win the Western Conference after the huge trades?

The defending champions Denver Nuggets were the betting favourites to win the west for this upcoming season when the odds were released after last season ended. The Nuggets are still hanging onto that spot with +500 odds to repeat on BetMGM after the Phoenix Suns acquired Beal and the Golden State Warriors acquired Paul.

Although these moves are exciting for a lot of NBA fans, over the past few seasons, Kevin Durant has played with James Harden, Kyrie Irving, Ben Simmons, and Chris Paul. Those teams have 0 championships or NBA Finals appearances to show for it, so betting on the Suns to win the west or championship is not a sure bet considering this is their first year together.

Can Chris Paul get his first ring?

Adding Chris Paul to the Warriors a couple of years ago would have made them the title favourites or close to it, but not in 2023. The Warriors have the fifth best odds at +1200 to win the title and the third best odds to win the west at +650. Paul is 38 years old and has been injured during the playoffs a couple of times throughout his career. If Paul goes down this year, the Warriors will have to get through the west by relying on their aging core.

The Grizzlies didn’t get Beal or Damian Lillard, but they got a former Defensive Player of the Year who hasn’t missed the playoffs in his career. They have a young core and finished second in the west in 2022 and 2023. At +1200 odds to win the west, the Grizzlies could pull off something similar to what the Miami Heat did last season if they can survive the first 25 games without Ja Morant.

How was the Eastern Conference impacted?

The Boston Celtics are the betting favourites to win the championship and the east on BetMGM after acquiring Porzingis. The Celtics have +475 odds to win the title and +210 odds to win the east. Last year was the first year since the 2016-17 season that Porzingis played more than 60 games. He also had his highest scoring season, averaging 23.2 points per game last year.

Jordan Poole is heading to the Washington Wizards and the Eastern Conference. This move probably will not affect how most people bet this year. However, Poole’s scoring average should go up now that he isn’t playing with Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson. Poole averaged 20.4 points last year for the Warriors.

It takes a village ♥

Friends, family & former teammate/fellow draftee @Bilaal_6 at @vicw_32's portrait shots! pic.twitter.com/cTgcnkcpEn

— NBA Draft (@NBADraft) June 23, 2023

The draft

None of the championship contenders made a trade to move up in the draft. There is still a possibility one of them could end up with a player who contributes this year, that player will just be a bit of a surprise. Victor Wembanyama was drafted by the San Antonio Spurs. Brandon Miller was picked second by the Charlotte Hornets, and Scoot Henderson went third to the Portland Trail Blazers.