The 2025 NBA Playoffs are scheduled to get underway today, and the field looks to be wide open this year. With one of the tightest races in years, it took every regular-season game just to determine the play-in games that would ultimately finalize this season’s NBA playoff bracket. Yes, things were that close!

I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am for these playoffs. Questions hit the buzzer in my mind, like “Will the No. 1 seeds take over and dominate this postseason, or will a few Cinderella teams shock the world and send the favorites home packing sooner than believed?”

In the Eastern Conference, the Cleveland Cavaliers took no prisoners during the 2024 regular season. The Cavs emerged as the top seed after a phenomenal campaign that saw them rack up 64 wins while capturing the Central Division title.

Led by their dynamic young core and anchored by a stifling defense, the Cavs look like serious contenders for their first NBA Championship since 2016. Cleveland boasted the best record at home in the East this season at 34-7, which doesn’t bode well for the rest of the teams in the Eastern Conference. The Cavaliers will have home-court advantage throughout the postseason in the East for each round as long as they continue to win.

While the Cavs have the No. 1 spot, they still won’t have an easy path to the NBA Finals. In fact, even with their gaudy record, Las Vegas odds makers don’t have them listed as the favorites to win the East. That honor belongs to the Boston Celtics. Yes, standing firmly in Cleveland’s way are the reigning NBA champion Celtics. The Celtics claimed the No. 2 seed and have the talent to repeat as champs.

With Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, and Kristaps Porzingis leading the charge, the Celtics are looking to become the first team since the 2017-2018 Golden State Warriors to win back-to-back crowns. Boston currently sits at -145 to win the East, with Cleveland right behind them at +180.

While the Celtics and Cavaliers are the clear-cut favorites to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals, two other teams to keep your eyes on are the New York Knicks and the Detroit Pistons.

The Knicks and Pistons will square off in Round 1 of the NBA playoffs, and it may be one of the best first-round matchups to keep an eye on.

Detroit is the No. 6 seed, but don’t let that fool you. This team is loaded with talent and could very well upset the No. 3-seeded Knicks. Detroit’s Cade Cunningham is blossoming into the superstar Pistons fans hoped he would be as he leads the team in scoring with 26 PPG, but that isn’t even close to the story that has fans buzzing in Motown.

Although the OKC Thunder sit at the top of the standings and odds, don’t count LA out. After sputtering most of the season, the Lakers have started to (w)hoop it up on teams thanks to the late addition of guard Luka Doncic.

Since hiring J. B. Bickerstaff to take over as coach at the end of last season, Detroit has been one of the most improved teams in NBA history. The Pistons won 44 games this season, which is 30 more than the 14 victories they earned in the 2023-24 season.

Don’t sleep on these Pistons. They are playing with house money and getting overlooked by many experts. That is when a team is usually most dangerous. And if you are into long shots, Detroit may be worth throwing a few bucks on. Sitting at +13000 ($100 wins $13,000) to win the East, and +400 to win their series vs. the Knicks, the Pistons could make you a small fortune for a very small investment!

In the Western Conference, there is also a surprise team to watch out for. That team is the OKC Thunder.

The Thunder were a very good team last season; this year, they improved 100-fold. OKC ran away from everyone in the West in 2024, claiming the No. 1 seed by an incredible 16 games over the Houston Rockets. That is impressive.

The only problem the Thunder and the rest of the West may face is the sudden rise of the Los Angeles Lakers. A late-season trade that brought superstar Luka Dončić to LA from Dallas changed the whole complexion of the West.

LA was sputtering, and even with LeBron James in charge, the Lakers did not have the look of a champion. Since the Luka deal, the Lakers posted a 23-13 record and moved from the 5th favorite to win the West at +1400 to second place at +600.

While the Thunder and Lakers lead the way, don’t count out Stephen Curry’s Golden State Warriors and Kawhi Leonard’s LA Clippers. The Warriors and Clippers play much better as an underdogs, and when you have that mentality that most experts aren’t looking at you as a serious contender, well, that’s when teams seem to play their best!

Which one of the current 18 teams vying for the NBA title will be the last standing? The question will be answered soon! However, this season, don’t be surprised if it is one of the squads that many experts may just be overlooking.

Here is a look at each team’s current odds to win the 2025 NBA championship as of Thursday, April 17.