After 21 straight playoff appearances, Vegas believes that the San Antonio Spurs' streak will be snapped this season.
As tweeted by ESPN, the Oddsmakers at the Westgate SuperBook in Las Vegas projected a Spurs-less playoff this season. Below is their forecasted standings for the Western Conference:
Vegas set some over-unders on NBA season win totals Sunday.
Oddsmakers have the Lakers pegged as a playoff team, with the Spurs out. https://t.co/Vvz6i8MURm pic.twitter.com/60ga2k2pIS
— ESPN (@espn) August 6, 2018
Specifically, the Spurs will come away with just 43.5 wins, according to the odds:
NBA seas wins
Atl 23.5
Bos 57.5
Brk 32.5
Cha 35.5
Chi 27.5
Cle 30.5
Dal 34.5
Den 47.5
Det 37.5
GS 62.5
Hou 54.5
Ind 47.5
LAC 35.5
LAL 48.5
Mem 34.5
Mia 41.5
Mil 46.5
Min 44.5
NO 45.5
NY 29.5
OKC 50.5
Orl 31.5
Phi 54.5
Phx 28.5
Prt 41.5
Sac 25.5
SA 43.5
Tor 54.5
Uth 48.5
Wsh 44.5— Jeff Sherman (@golfodds) August 5, 2018
According to SuperBook manager Jeff Sherman, the Western Conference will be a lot tougher this season:
“We felt in the tougher Western Conference, we made a number [on the Lakers] that is competitive with other similar teams,” SuperBook oddsmaker Jeff Sherman told ESPN in an email. “Our expectations are the public will bet over, but sharps will be more inclined to bet under if we went higher.”
The Los Angeles Lakers' rise in power is due to LeBron James' monumental decision to join the team. This and other factors might contribute to the Spurs' playoff demise. Sherman admitted that James' impact won't be as significant as before.
“We've seen the impact LeBron has had in his prior free-agency moves, although that involved staying in the Eastern Conference,” Sherman said. “With the more competitive Western Conference, his impact wouldn't be as drastic as what we've seen prior. We figured about 10-12 wins, plus the young players growth to get to the number we set.”
Will these projections turn into reality in the upcoming season? Is the Spurs' reign coming to a close? After this season, are they bound to be bottomfeeders — something they haven't been in more than two decades?
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