NBA Eastern Conference Betting Online
There is more delineation between the top teams in the Eastern Conference coming into the 2023-24 season. The Brooklyn Nets were forced to blow things up after both Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving announced that they wanted out, and so that put an end to the era of the superteam in this conference. Instead, Boston and Milwaukee are seen as the favorites to win the East with Miami not far behind those two squads based on the belief that the Heat will be landing Damian Lillard at some point before the trade deadline.
NBA Betting Lines
We have yet to see Boston win anything with the duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown leading the way. However, the Celtics have been awfully close over the last few years, so the front office bit the bullet and gave Brown a supermax extension this offseason that will see him paid over $300 million over the next five years. Boston also added Kristaps Porzingis to try to put the team over the top this coming season.
Giannis Antetokounmpo is probably the most talented player in the league. Antetokounmpo will have a chip on his shoulder after Milwaukee’s first round exit at the hands of Miami last year, but it’s hard to blame him considering he was playing with a noticeable back injury. The Bucks are pretty much chalking up last year as a fluke and will bring back everyone from last year’s team in their efforts to win a second title this decade.
An interesting longshot at 100-1 to win it all is the Orlando Magic. This team is probably still a year or two away from being competitive, but there is a lot of young talent on the roster. If they mature a little earlier than expected, they could make some real noise in the East.
NBA Eastern Conference Winners (2000)
SEASON |
WINNER |
2023 |
Miami Heat |
2022 |
Boston Celtics |
2021 |
Milwaukee Bucks |
2020 |
Miami Heat |
2019 |
Toronto Raptors |
2018 |
Cleveland Cavaliers |
2017 |
Cleveland Cavaliers |
2016 |
Cleveland Cavaliers |
2015 |
Cleveland Cavaliers |
2014 |
Miami Heat |
2013 |
Miami Heat |
2012 |
Miami Heat |
2011 |
Miami Heat |
2010 |
Boston Celtics |
2009 |
Orlando Magic |
2008 |
Boston Celtics |
2007 |
Cleveland Cavaliers |
2006 |
Miami Heat |
2005 |
Detroit Pistons |
2004 |
Detroit Pistons |
2003 |
New Jersey Nets |
2002 |
New Jersey Nets |
2001 |
Philadelphia 76ers |
2000 |
Indiana Pacers |
There has not been a repeat champion in the Eastern Conference since LeBron James took the Cleveland Cavaliers to four straight NBA Finals with the help of Kyrie Irving. Cleveland won the NBA Finals in 2016, ending decades of futility among the city’s professional sports teams by beating the Golden State Warriors.
That came after James and Dwyane Wade led the Miami Heat to four straight Eastern Conference titles from 2011 to 2014. James ended up playing in eight straight NBA Finals, and that success helped spur the wild player movement that has made the NBA offseason so interesting.
Five different franchises have won the last six Eastern Conference titles. Toronto and Milwaukee went on to win the NBA title, but the other four teams fell short, including the Miami Heat twice.
Eastern Conference Finals Results By Team
TEAM |
CHAMPIONSHIPS |
LAST |
Boston Celtics |
22 |
2022 |
Philadelphia 76ers |
9 |
2001 |
New York Knicks |
8 |
1999 |
Miami Heat |
7 |
2020 |
Chicago Bulls |
6 |
1998 |
Detroit Pistons |
5 |
2005 |
Cleveland Cavaliers |
5 |
2018 |
Washington Wizards |
4 |
1979 |
Orlando Magic |
2 |
2009 |
Brooklyn Nets |
2 |
2003 |
Milwaukee Bucks |
1 |
2021 |
Golden State Warriors |
1 |
1956 |
Indiana Pacers |
1 |
2000 |
Toronto Raptors |
1 |
2019 |
The Boston Celtics have been the most successful team in the Eastern Conference by a country mile. They put together one of the greatest runs we’ve seen in North American sports by winning 11 NBA Championships in 13 seasons, and the Celtics won the Eastern Division 12 times in that stretch. They had another great run in the 1980s, winning the Eastern Conference in four straight seasons from 1984 to 1987 with Larry Bird leading the way.
Philadelphia has claimed the second-most Eastern Conference titles, but the 76ers haven’t made it to the NBA Finals since Allen Iverson was in his prime. They are one of the oldest NBA franchises, as they were originally the Syracuse Nationals, and they made it to the NBA Finals three times in their first six seasons.
We have seen the New York Knicks claim eight Eastern Conference titles, but the Knicks have not won the conference since 1999, and their last NBA title came in 1973. They made the NBA Finals three straight seasons from 1951 to 1953, but they were unable to get past the great George Mikan and the Minneapolis Lakers.
Michael Jordan led the Chicago Bulls to six Eastern Conference titles and six NBA championships in the 1990s. The Bulls have only been able to reach the Eastern Conference Finals once since Jordan retired though, and that was the season where Derrick Rose was named the NBA MVP.
Log into BookMaker Sportsbook and get the best Basketball Betting Odds, Basketball Betting Articles and information about this and all other sports betting events!