NBA Championship Prediction Markets: Five Teams That Make Sense

The 2026-27 season is one of the most anticipated campaigns in NBA history. With plenty of moves to bring big names to new locations, this parody cycle is set to get bigger and better this year.

There could be many teams competing for the NBA championship. If you feel good about a certain group, it might not be a bad idea to close your options early. Looking at last year’s preseason odds, the San Antonio Spurs were +6600 and ranked 17th in the entire league. They reached the NBA Finals with 62 wins.

These are the five favorites to win the championship in 2027.

Oklahoma City Thunder (23% chance, 23¢ Yes)

The Thunder is trying to make history this season. In each of the last three years, Oklahoma City entered the playoffs as the top seed in the Western Conference. If OKC can finish a fourth straight season ranked number one, they will join the Boston Celtics (1983-88) and the Los Angeles Lakers (1981-1990) as the only two franchises to accomplish that mark.

With the departures of Luguentz Dort, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins, you could argue that the Lightning got worse this summer. But they were able to bring in some impressive new players with Aday Mara and Bennett Stirtz joining the OKC program.

If Oklahoma City hadn’t been dealing with injuries to Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell in last year’s Western Conference Finals, they definitely could have beaten San Antonio and would have been favored to beat the New York Knicks. I think the Thunder are still the best team in the NBA, which makes them the favorite to win the 2027 championship.

San Antonio Spurs (22% Odds, 22¢ Yes)

Right behind OKC is the defending Western champion Spurs. Last year, they advanced to the NBA Finals in their first playoff rodeo together. Six of the Spurs’ top seven players played the first minutes of playoff basketball last season.

Given another terrific year from Victor Uembanyama, a second/third year jump from Dylan Harper and Stephon Castle, and last season’s experience, San Antonio will be a force to be reckoned with in both the regular season and the playoffs.

No team has made back-to-back NBA Finals appearances since 2019, so San Antonio will have to break that streak to win the title. But there’s no question that the Spurs will stick with the Thunder if he’s healthy.

Philadelphia 76ers (11% Chance, 11¢ Yes)

The 76ers will have all eyes on them this year. Adding Jaylen Brown and LeBron James to Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid, VJ Edgecombe would be cinematic for the basketball world.

But Philadelphia has a lot to figure out in the short term. They need to bring these four All-Stars together, which won’t be easy. They are all used to having the basketball in their hands.

I think it might be difficult for Philly to hit home court in the Eastern Conference. However, there is no denying the talent the 76ers possess. If they can put it all together, maybe Philadelphia can come out of the East and win it all this season.

New York Knicks (8% Odds, 9¢ Yes)

The defending champions look pretty low on this one, coming in fourth. But the NBA hasn’t seen back-to-back champions since the 2017-18 Golden State Warriors with Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry.

New York still has a fantastic roster, led by a great starting lineup. After winning a championship, Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns will have a lot of confidence.

In my opinion, they should still look like the best team in the East, but with how loaded the conference is, I wouldn’t be shocked if they lose early.

Minnesota Timberwolves (6% Chance, 7¢ Yes)

This is arguably the most shocking team in the top five. I know Anthony Edwards and LaMelo Ball would make for a super fun backcourt, but I believe there is a significant drop from OKC and San Antonio to the next best team in the West.

I would put teams like Miami, Indiana, Toronto and Cleveland above Minnesota because they are all in the East. The Timberwolves don’t have the best depth, especially in the frontcourt, and there will be a lot of pressure on an aging Rudy Gobert to clean up a lot of mistakes on defense.