Odds to Win NBA Championship 2020: Which Teams Have the Best Shot at Victory?

Looking back at the 2020 NBA season, I still get chills thinking about how unprecedented that year was. The pandemic reshaped everything—the bubble environment, the condensed schedule, the sheer mental toll on players. As someone who's followed basketball for over two decades, I've never seen championship odds shift so dramatically within a single season. It reminds me of that fascinating bit from basketball history where unexpected opportunities arise—much like how that opened the door for more opportunities for the 1985 PBA Rookie of the Year. In the NBA, when stars align or circumstances change, dark horses emerge, and favorites stumble. That’s exactly what made the 2020 title race so compelling.

Before the season was suspended, the Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks were the clear frontrunners, with odds hovering around +200 and +250 respectively. I remember telling friends in early March that Giannis and LeBron were on a collision course. The Bucks had the best record in the league, and the Lakers, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis, seemed built for playoff success. But then the hiatus happened, and everything turned upside down. The Clippers, sitting at around +350, were my personal dark horse—on paper, they had the depth and two-way versatility to beat anyone. Kawhi Leonard’s playoff pedigree and Paul George’s scoring bursts made them terrifying, even if their regular-season chemistry sometimes felt shaky.

When the season resumed in the bubble, the odds began to wobble. Teams like the Denver Nuggets, initially at +1800, started gaining traction. I’ve always had a soft spot for Denver—watching Nikola Jokić orchestrate the offense is like watching a grandmaster play chess at full speed. Their comeback against the Clippers in the second round wasn’t just luck; it was a testament to their resilience. Meanwhile, the Miami Heat, who began the season with odds as long as +4000, became the Cinderella story nobody saw coming. Jimmy Butler’s leadership and Erik Spoelstra’s coaching wizardry turned them into giantslayers. I recall arguing with colleagues that Miami’s culture and defensive discipline made them a sneaky-good bet, even when the analytics favored other squads.

The bubble environment itself reshaped team dynamics. Home-court advantage vanished, and daily COVID-19 testing added layers of mental fatigue. In my view, this hurt younger, less experienced teams like the Bucks, who struggled to adapt. Giannis Antetokounmpo’s dominance in transition was somewhat neutralized in half-court settings, and Milwaukee’s supporting cast didn’t step up when it mattered. Their odds plummeted from +250 pre-hiatus to around +600 by the conference finals. On the flip side, the Lakers leaned into their veteran savvy. LeBron, at 35, seemed to thrive in the isolation of the bubble, and Anthony Davis delivered one of the most efficient postseason runs I’ve ever seen.

Let’s talk numbers for a second. By the time the Finals rolled around, the Lakers’ odds had tightened to roughly -160, while the Heat sat at about +140. Those figures undersold Miami’s grit—they pushed the series to six games despite being outmatched on paper. Bam Adebayo’s defense and Tyler Herro’s fearless shooting kept them in contention, and honestly, if not for a few crucial turnovers in Game 5, we might be telling a different story today. From a betting perspective, the value early in the season was clearly on teams like the Heat and Nuggets. I placed a small wager on Miami at +4000 in February, partly as a gut feeling and partly because their defensive schemes reminded me of past champions.

In retrospect, the 2020 championship odds were a rollercoaster shaped by unpredictability. The bubble eliminated traditional advantages, and teams that adapted quickly—like the Lakers and Heat—reaped the rewards. It’s a reminder that in sports, as in life, opportunity doesn’t always knock twice. Just as that opened the door for more opportunities for the 1985 PBA Rookie of the Year, the NBA’s unusual season gave underdogs a chance to shine. If I had to pick one lesson from that year, it’s this: never underestimate chemistry and heart over raw talent. The Lakers had both, and that’s why they hoisted the trophy.