Kyrie Irving is headed to the Boston Celtics and the entire NBA world exploded as a result. Naturally, the biggest focus of the trade that includes Isaiah Thomas landing with LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers is on the Eastern Conference pecking order. With that said, there is another subplot and it comes in the form of the NBA MVP race.
Reigning MVP Russell Westbrook was the odds-on favorite when the first batch of odds was released earlier this month and, while that is still the case now, there has been a major shift according to Jeff Sherman of the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook.
2017-18 NBA MVP Award adjustments
L James 5/1 (from 6/1)
K Irving 25/1 (from 50/1)
I Thomas 100/1 (from 30/1)— Jeff Sherman (@golfodds) August 22, 2017
Ironically, though, the same book did not move the NBA championship odds as a result of the trade.
NBA Title odds prior to K Irving/I Thomas trade
Cavaliers 4/1
Celtics 10/1NBA Title odds after trade
Cavaliers 4/1
Celtics 10/1— Jeff Sherman (@golfodds) August 22, 2017
It comes as no surprise that the MVP odds for James, Irving and Thomas would shift, but the speed of the change and the direction of the movement is interesting. James moving to 5-to-1 is likely a byproduct of the conventional wisdom that he would have to do a bit more without his partner-in-crime with Irving, even as Thomas is coming off an absolutely tremendous season in Boston.
Beyond that, Irving sinking from 50-1 to 25-1 isn’t exactly a shock, either, simply because the Celtics paid a (very) significant price to land him in trade and his profile as a scorer is undeniable. It could be dissected a bit in that Boston also has Gordon Hayward on board to take some opportunities for impact away from Irving but Celtics fans would almost certainly cape for their dynamic duo and that could help the public perception.
Finally, Thomas goes from a relatively unlikely candidate (in part because of the Hayward addition) to a massive long-shot with one move. It is virtually inconceivable that the talented point guard could make a real impact in the MVP race playing alongside James and that isn’t a knock on Thomas considering the same plight affected Irving during his time in Cleveland.
There will be plenty of angles evaluated in the coming days but the MVP race changed, too.
