Players are just beginning to arrive at training camps for the 2024-25 NBA season, but the first major changes of the season are already underway.
On Friday night, the New York Knicks acquired Karl-Anthony Towns from the Minnesota Timberwolves in a package that featured Julius Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and a first-round pick.
The Knicks were already considered one of the favorites before the deal. At BetMGM, New York was tied with the Philadelphia 76ers for the third-best odds at 9-1 before the trade. The only teams ranked higher than the Knicks were the Oklahoma City Thunder (+675) and the defending champion Boston Celtics (+310).
After the trade, New York rose to +700, still behind the Celtics and Thunder, while the Sixers fell to +1000. As of Friday night, the Knicks received 6.2 percent of all NBA title bets at BetMGM and accounted for 8.8 percent of the handle.
The move reunites a (seemingly stunned) Towns with head coach Tom Thibodeau, who led the Timberwolves from 2016 to 2019.
Minnesota, which had odds of 11-1 to win the title before the trade, is now 10-1 to win the championship and accounts for 6.6 percent of BetMGM’s NBA title handle.
The trade did not immediately affect the MVP odds of New York’s Jalen Brunson (+1500) or Minnesota’s Anthony Edwards (+1400), but it does reflect how each team plans to use their players. That could change in the coming days as we learn more about it. Acquisition.
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