Bettors React Quickly After Donovan Mitchell Traded to Cavs

It didn’t take long for sports fans to respond to the news that Utah Jazz All-Star Donovan Mitchell had been traded.

It wasn’t to the Knicks, however, but rather to the Cleveland Cavaliers who put together an intriguing enough package of players and picks to compel Jazz CEO Danny Ainge to pull the trigger on a trade that continues Utah’s dramatic teardown of the franchise the bailout-Miller-family built.

It is shocking. Here’s a team that some felt could make a push for another Finals appearance. And then, poof! – in less than a year, it’s all gone.

So what did everyone make of it? Bets. In furious fashion.

Cleveland’s odds, all across the board, dropped dramatically.

According to Jimmy Shapiro (look him up), a wagering wizard and expert who’s in the know, the odds went like this:

Cleveland’s title odds: From 125/1 to 25/1. From 21st best odds to 12th.

Cleveland’s Eastern Conference title Odds went from 60/1 to 12/1. From 10th best odds to sixth.

Cleveland’s win total went from 43.5 to 46.5.

Here’s how the Cavaliers’ new lineup looks heading into October (their first game is Oct. 19 at Toronto):

• PG: Darius Garland, Ricky Rubio, Raul Neto, RJ Nembhard Jr.
• SG: Donovan Mitchell, Caris LeVert, Dylan Windler
• SF: Cedi Osman, Isaac Okoro, Lamar Stevens
• PF: Evan Mobley, Kevin Love, Dean Wade
• C: Jarrett Allen, Robin Lopez, Isaiah Mobley

That’s solid, although likely not enough to overtake the Celtics, Bucks, and Sixers.

But wouldn’t it be fun to imagine – and maybe I’m a few years off – that the Timberwolves, with Rudy Gobert, and the Cavaliers, with Donovan Mitchell, could, one day, battle in the NBA Finals?

Hey, a man can dream.

If you think the Cavs have what it takes to win a championship, you can bet on them to do so at any of these New Jersey Online Casinos.