The Miami Heat refuse to go away in the NBA playoffs, coming back from a double-digit deficits in Game 2 of the NBA Finals against the Denver Nuggets to even the series at one game apiece on Sunday night.
Miami has won at least one road game in every single series this postseason, including three in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Boston Celtics. Sunday's win was huge, as Denver was a perfect 9-0 at home in the playoffs prior to Game 2.
Even with the series shifting back to Miami, the Heat are still underdogs despite evening the series. The No. 8 seed continues to see disrespect in the betting market despite knocking off multiple Finals contenders to get to this point.
Denver is still favored to win this series, but Nikola Jokic needs more help from his supporting cast after the team put up a weak showing in Game 2. The Nuggets now have to win a game in Miami to win this series, but they do have four road wins in seven tries in the playoffs.
Let's break down the latest odds to win the NBA Finals:
Latest odds to win NBA championship
Nuggets still heavy favorites to win NBA Finals
At -275 odds, Denver has an implied probability of 73.3 percent to win the NBA Finals this season.
Similar to Miami's series against Boston, oddsmakers aren't sold on the Heat pulling off the upset even though they stole a road game.
Miami's current price of +220 gives it a 31.25 percent chance of taking home the Larry O'Brien trophy. The Heat have outperformed expectations all postseason, but oddsmakers seem to be banking on the team coming back to earth.
In Game 2, the Heat had a massive outlier of a fourth quarter which propelled them to a win.
Not only that, but the team has put together some insane shooting performances in the playoffs, which will be key to beat the Nuggets' high-powered attack. Miami has been solid at home as well, going 6-2 in the playoffs.
For bettors, there are two ways to play this series. Denver's price likely won't drift into plus money unless the team falls behind 3-1, so it's hard to back it now unless you're willing to lay the juice.
However, Heat bettors may want to wager at the +220 number since the team is entering back-to-back home games, where it could open up a 3-1 lead. Game 3 of this series is scheduled for Wednesday, June 7 in Miami.
—
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
