Vegas likes KG and the Celtics

Not that we’re condoning gambling or anything, but we were interested to see what the odds-makers have to say about the upcoming NBA season. Popular online sportsbook bodoglife.com rolled out its odds to win the ‘08 chip, so we broke down where they could be right, and where they might be way off.

100/1 — Hawks, Sixers, Bobcats, Pacers, Grizzlies, Timberwolves. No arguments here, although we do kinda like the Hawks to do a little something. Overall, though, this group might as well start deciding who’s going to represent them at the ‘08 Lottery show. Our ideal cast? Billy Knight (yeah, he’ll still have a job), Billy King (ditto), Michael Jordan (good luck with that), Jim O’Brien (Larry Legend looked bored out of his mind last year), Mike Conley Jr., and Corey Brewer (guaranteed he won’t be sporting a sourpuss).

90/1 — Kings. They should be in the 100/1 category. Do they really have that much more talent than Charlotte or Atlanta? And consider Sacramento has to fight through the West to get to the Finals.

80/1 — Clippers, Bucks, Knicks. If Elton Brand’s gonna miss the entire season, put L.A. in that 90s range. The Knicks and Bucks should be getting better odds than some of the teams you’ll see later on, such as the …

65/1 — Blazers. Especially without Greg Oden, this team will need at least a year or two to be any good. They’re losing a 23-10 big man (Zach Randolph) and have to replace him with LaMarcus Aldridge and Channing Frye.

60/1 — Wizards. They’re not getting enough credit. Before Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler went down with injuries, Washington was one of the top teams in the East. Now they’ve gotten better off the bench with Nick Young.

55/1 — Hornets. Better than Washington? Chris Paul is our dude, but his squad needs to stay healthy first and find someone else besides Rasual Butler who can shoot.

50/1 — Sonics. Someone’s drinking the Kevin Durant Kool-Aid in healthy portions. Even Dime’s Seattle contingent has to admit the Sonics are gonna lose a lot of games this year.

45/1 — Nets, Raptors, Magic. Solid picks here, although have fun trying to convince a Toronto fan their squad belongs on the same level with Orlando.

35/1 — Warriors. Some will say they should be getting better odds, but everything has to fall into place just right for Golden State to realistically contend. Baron has to be healthy when it matters, Belinelli will have to replace J-Rich’s scoring, and someone will have to grab a rebound and protect the rim in the postseason.

28/1 — Nuggets. Going from first-round exit to title contention isn’t usually how it goes. But with two of the Top-10 players in the game on the same squad, anything is possible.

25/1 — Lakers. Better odds than Denver? Maybe if they get Shawn Marion/Andrei Kirilenko, and Andrew Bynum finally breaks out, and Kobe plays FIBA Tournament-level defense all season.

20/1 — Jazz. Outclassed by the Spurs last spring, but they’re just a piece or two away.

15/1 — Heat. Some of us around the office think this is the year Miami falls all the way off. They have an easier road than Utah to get to the Finals (although Boston just upgraded the entire Eastern conference), but as usual, it all depends on Shaq’s health/conditioning.

14/1 — Bulls, Cavs. Two teams that should be at the top of the East for the foreseeable future.

12/1 — Pistons. Apparently some people think last year’s ECF series was a fluke and the Pistons are still the better team than Cleveland.

11/1 — Rockets. Is there that much difference between them and Denver? Yao is as good offensively as Camby is defensively, ‘Melo and T-Mac dominate games equally … the only difference is that George Karl is a better coach than Rick Adelman.

4/1 — Celtics, Mavs, Suns. Three months ago, Boston would be right in that 100/1 group, and now they’re in there with Dallas and Phoenix after pulling off two big, bold offseason moves. This is the kind of thing that makes Kobe Bryant go crazy. Funny how only one of these teams advanced past Round 1 of the playoffs last year.

7/2 — Spurs. You have to put the defending champs here, especially considering they didn’t lose anyone significant, Tim Duncan isn’t going to suddenly fall off overnight, and Tony Parker will be even better this year. If you’re not much of a gambler, the safe money goes here.