Pelicans, Suns, Warriors and Trail Blazers Favorites in Opening Odds to Make 2021 Western Conference Play-In Tournament

• The NBA implemented a playoff play-in-tournament for each conference at the end of the 2020-21 regular season. The current dates for the tournaments are May 18-21, 2021.
• The teams with the seventh through the 10th highest winning percentages in each conference will play for the final two playoff spots in their conference
• See the opening odds for Western Conference teams and best early bets below

The NBA will have a play-in-tournament at the end of the regular season to decide the seventh and eighth playoff seeds for each conference. The tournament will consist of the teams with the seventh through the tenth highest winning percentages in the regular season. The NBA experimented with a similar concept at the end of the 2020 season, but that only involved two teams playing for the eighth seed.

In this version, the team with the seventh highest winning percentage will play the team with the eight highest. The winner of that game will be the seventh seed. Meanwhile, the team with the ninth highest winning percentage will play the team with the tenth highest percentage. The winner of that game will play the loser of the seventh-eighth game. The winner of that matchup will be the eight seed in the playoffs.

The playoff odds at most books are based on the results of this tournament.

NBA Western Conference Play-In Tournament Odds

Odds as of December 9th at FanDuel

The current favorites to play in the Western Conference play-in-tournament are the New Orleans Pelicans at +100. The Phoenix Suns and Portland Trailblazers both sit at +110 while the Golden State Warriors are close by at +115. The format presents an interesting angle in that bettors need to consider that teams may be “too good” to make this tournament.

Of the four teams with the shortest odds, the only one that fits this description would be the Portland Trail Blazers. Still, there are plenty of other options to consider.

The Utah Jazz Could Be the Seventh Seed

The Utah Jazz are currently +210 to participate in the Western Conference Playoff Play-In-Tournament. They are not a bad bet considering they are bringing back the same roster that finished as the six seed last season. It may not be easy for them to do the same this season.

Jazzin' together 🏀🕺🏻

Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert combining for @utahjazz could be a treat to watch this season 👏🏻@spidadmitchell @rudygobert27 pic.twitter.com/8pI1HWVftN

— NBA India (@NBAIndia) December 9, 2020

Last season Utah finished ahead of the Warriors, Trail Blazers and Suns – which is not a given to happen again. Despite losing Klay Thompson for the season, the Warriors will have Stephen Curry back. They also brought in Kelly Oubre Jr. via trade and James Wiseman in the draft. The Suns showed what they were capable of in the bubble (and have added Chris Paul) while Portland added Robert Covington to an already stout defensive team.

Mavericks Aren’t a Playoff Lock

The Mavericks are priced like a lock to make the playoffs, but they are a team that could struggle early in the season. Kristaps Porzingis still does not have a return date after tearing his meniscus in last season’s playoffs. The Mavericks are not the same team without Porzingis, and he is not a lock to be the same player he has been in the past.

Kristaps Porzingis’ growing list of leg injuries at 7-3, age 25, is incredibly worrisome…

Left leg: torn ACL, sore Achilles, sore knee, sprained ankle, sore groin, strained quad, bruised thigh

Right leg: sore knee, sore hip, sprained ankle, sore foot, knee tendon inflammation https://t.co/8XeuFX2Nk8

— Kevin O'Connor (@KevinOConnorNBA) August 26, 2020

Dallas hit it out of the park in the draft with Josh Green from Arizona. He is a 3-and-D guy that will be able to play right away, but rookies take time to adjust to NBA life. The Mavericks have the look of a team that can be good enough to tread water in the crowded west until Porzingis returns. That could lead to a birth in the play-in-tournament.

Where Will the Odds Move?

In the next two weeks before the season tips off, monitoring these lines would be a good idea. If and when there are sudden trades, many bettors will overlook these lines and go right for the playoff lines which can present value. Since this is the first year of this tournament, many bettors may not even know of these lines or think to keep them on the radar.

One situation to monitor is James Harden’s in Houston. If he is moved, or if he holds out, the Rockets would likely move from +125 to something shorter. That would also have a ripple effect on the other teams in the Western Conference depending on where he goes.