2026 NBA Championship Odds: Thunder Heavily Favored Amid Best Start in Franchise History

2026 NBA Championship Odds: Thunder Heavily Favored Amid Best Start in Franchise History

2026 NBA Championship Odds: Thunder Heavily Favored Amid Best Start in Franchise History

2026 NBA Championship Odds: Thunder Heavily Favored Amid Best Start in Franchise History

No Jalen Williams? No problem.

The Oklahoma City Thunder have raced out to an impressive 17-1 start to begin the 2025-26 NBA season despite playing without their All-NBA forward. Much of the credit goes to reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has kept OKC afloat by averaging 32.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and a career-high 6.6 assists per game in his team's first 17 wins. His otherworldly performance has shortened the Thunder's NBA odds from +250 when the season began to as low as +170 at bet365.

Let's dive into the latest NBA Championship odds as early season action unfolds.

🏆 2026 NBA Championship odds

📈 2026 NBA Finals odds over time

Here's a visual representation of how the NBA championship has odds evolved since June 2025.

💰 Sportsbook betting splits and insights

Highest ticket percentage•    Nuggets 8.8%•    Thunder 8.7%•    Mavericks 8.2% Highest handle percentage•    Thunder 17.9%•    Mavericks 16.3%•    Lakers 13.3% Biggest liability•    Mavericks •    Lakers•    Warriors

Data courtesy of BetMGM.

2026 NBA Championship opening odds

• Thunder +230

• Knicks +900

• Pacers +900

• Timberwolves +1000

• Cavaliers +1100

• Rockets +1200

• Lakers +1600

• Spurs +1600

• Nuggets +1700

• Celtics +2000

• Warriors +2300

• Magic +2500

• Mavericks +4000

• Clippers +4000

• 76ers +4500

• Heat +5000

• Pistons +7000

• Bucks +7500

• Grizzlies +10000

• Raptors +15000

• Suns +17000

• Kings +20000

• Pelicans +20000

• Nets +25000

• Hawks +30000

• Bulls +40000

• Trail Blazers +40000

• Wizards +60000

• Hornets +60000

• Jazz +60000

🤖 AI NBA Championship prediction

We turned to the enormous computing power of ChatGPT to find out who the large language model believes will be the last team standing this season. Not surprisingly, it stuck with the defending champs.

Oklahoma City has the cleanest runway to be the best team in 2026: an MVP-caliber engine in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander entering the heart of his prime, a two-way star wing in Jalen Williams, and a 7-footer in Chet Holmgren whose blend of rim protection, spacing, and feel supercharges modern schemes. That trio already drives elite half-court efficiency and a top-tier defense, and it’s backed by organizational continuity that reliably turns role players into playoff-useful pieces. By 2026, Holmgren’s strength and timing should be fully NBA-hardened, unlocking more switching and fewer help-and-recover compromises, while SGA’s mid-range and foul-drawing remain matchup-proof in May and June.

Depth and optionality push the Thunder over the top. They can win big or small, play five-out without sacrificing rim protection, and toggle between pressure defense and conservative coverages depending on opponent. Crucially, they still have surplus picks and cap flexibility to plug the inevitable holes that show up in a long postseason, whether that’s a second unit scorer, another stretch big, or a specialist wing.

Expect a rotation stacked with plus length, shooting, and decision-making around the core; enough to outlast the West’s heavyweights and finish the job in the Finals.

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here