SAN ANTONIO — Las Vegas oddsmakers are busy with 2023-24 NBA prop futures and are projecting the winners and losers of the new In-Season tournament set to debut during the 2023 NBA season.
The new annual competition is for all 30 teams and will tip off on Friday, Nov. 3 in NBA team markets and culminate with the playing of the Semifinals (Thursday, Dec. 7) and Championship (Saturday, Dec. 9) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The San Antonio Spurs are slotted in Group C with the Wolves, Warriors, Thunder, and Kings.
And despite adding Victor Wembanyama and a young core, the Spurs' odds of winning the first In-Season tournament are low.
Oddsmaker Caesars Sportsbook is projecting the Spurs to not even be a factor in the tournament at all. The San Antonio odds are set at +6000 to capture the tournament title.
The team is tied with the Blazers, and Hornets with the same odds while the Wizards and Pistons have the worst odds to win the tournament at +8000.
In addition, the Spurs are projected to finish last within Group C at +1400 odds.
The favorite to win the tournament is Boston with +650 odds according to Caesars Sportsbook.
“We are excited to introduce the NBA In-Season Tournament as an opportunity to further enhance and innovate around our season structure,” said Joe Dumars, NBA's head of basketball operations. “With the addition of this new marquee event on the NBA calendar, we are focused on providing players and teams with another competition to win, engaging fans in a different way and driving further interest in the early portion of the regular-season schedule.”
Vegas oddsmakers are not bullish on the Spurs heading into the new season.
For example, they peg the Spurs to finish among the worst teams in the league and finish last in the Southwest Division.
Perhaps the oddsmakers need to revise their assessment of the Silver and Black.
Wembanyama will make a huge difference on both ends of the court, the young Spurs players got plenty of NBA experience last season, and players who could be making big leaps in their development are Jeremy Sochan, Devin Vassell, and Malaki Branham.
What do you have to say, Spurs fans? Let us know on Twitter at @KENS5 and at @JeffGSpursKENS5.