NBA In-Season Tournament MVP odds: Jayson Tatum favored
The knockout round of the inaugural NBA In-Season Tournament takes place Monday and Tuesday with eight teams remaining from group play.
On Monday night, the Pacers host the Celtics, followed by the Pelicans visiting the Kings.
On Tuesday evening, the Knicks travel to Wisconsin to face the Bucks, while the Lakers take on the Suns in late-night action.
The winners of the quarterfinal games travel to Las Vegas for Thursday’s semifinals and the championship game takes place Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena.
The Celtics are the betting favorite to win this tournament at FanDuel sportsbook at +330 odds, followed by the Bucks (+350) and Kings (+490).
The Lakers sit at +600 odds, while the Knicks own 11/1 odds to grab the tournament crown.
The three favorites to win the In-Season Tournament MVP are Boston’s Jayson Tatum (+500), Sacramento’s De’Aaron Fox (+600) and Milwaukee’s Damian Lillard (+650).
LeBron James has the fourth-best odds at +700.
Boston dominated Indiana in its first matchup this season, 155-104, at TD Garden in early November as a13-point favorite. That marked one of 16 Overs for the Pacers this season in 18 games, and Monday’s total sits at 242.5 at FanDuel.
Sacramento lost each of its first two meetings with New Orleans on the road as the Pelicans won each time in the home underdog role. Pelicans forward Zion Williamson averaged 25.5 points per game in the two wins, but New Orleans enters Monday’s contest with a 3-6 road record.
The Bucks faced the Knicks in group play and Milwaukee won at home, 110-105. New York advanced as the top team that didn’t win its group, and the Knicks put their three-game winning streak on the line Tuesday.
The Lakers have defeated the Suns twice this season, including a win in group play as two-point road underdogs, 122-119. The two victories for Los Angeles over Phoenix this season came by a combined eight points as LeBron James scored 32 points in the most-recent matchup.
Boston is the only road favorite in the quarterfinal round, and the Celtics own a 1-6-1 against the spread mark in its last eight opportunities in this role.
New Orleans has covered six straight games as an underdog, as the Pelicans closed as a favorite in the last five contests.
Who is going to take the crown for the first-ever In-Season Tournament?
The Suns are worth a strong look at 6/1 as they are playing with double-revenge against the Lakers in the quarterfinals and can beat either the Pelicans or Kings in the semifinals.
Backing Indiana or the Knicks may be asking a lot even at long odds, as a potential Boston/Milwaukee semifinal looks to be a tremendous matchup in Las Vegas.
Betting on the NBA?
As far as a long shot goes, the Pelicans at 12/1 can make a run to the title.
Fox averaged 36 points per game in three tournament games, the most of any player remaining.
The MVP will likely go to a player on the championship team, as Suns’ star Kevin Durant put up 35.7 points per game in three group play contests and his odds sit at 11/1 to win MVP, which are worth strong consideration.
