Thunder now favored in wild NBA playoffs series with Mavericks ahead of crucial Game 5

It’s been an up and down series, but it’s the Thunder who have the upper hand over the Mavericks heading into a crucial Game 5 on Wednesday night. 

Oklahoma City is now a -148 favorite to advance to the Western Conference finals at FanDuel Sportsbook after a comeback win during Game 4 in Dallas, evening the series at 2-2. 

Oddsmakers have had a tough time pinning down which team will take the series, with both teams swapping back and forth as favorites at certain points. 

Before the series, the Thunder were ever so slight -115 favorites over the Mavericks, who were just behind them at -105. 

OKC appeared to take command of the series after their Game 1 win, jumping to -300, but Dallas bounced back with a road upset over the Thunder a few days later, to steal home-court advantage.

After winning Game 3, the Mavericks looked to be the ones in control at -250, but that flipped once again after Monday night’s game. 

The series now shifts back to Oklahoma City on Wednesday night, where the Thunder are currently 4.5-point favorites. 

No matter who advances to the West Finals, they will likely be underdogs to the winner of Nuggets-Timberwolves, which Denver leads, 3-2, after Wednesday’s 112-97 win in Game 5. 

Betting on the NBA?

As that series has wavered, Denver and Minnesota have swapped as favorites to come out of the conference, with the Wolves jumping to favorite status after their stunning 2-0 start and the Nuggets taking the reins after evening the series with two wins in Minnesota. 

Denver is now a massive -125 favorite to return to the NBA Finals.

The Thunder are currently +800 to win the NBA championship, while the Mavericks are +1500. 

The Celtics, who are up 3-1 on the Cavaliers in Round 2 entering Wednesday’s Game 5, remain the favorite to win it at -135.