Bettors Jumping on Favored Bucks in Series Over Nets With Kyrie Irving’s Status in Question

As Brooklyn's Big 3 has become the Big 1, the Milwaukee Bucks are not only favored to beat the Nets, but most of the new money coming in is on the Bucks.

Before Sunday's game, the Nets were up 2-1 and priced at -370 at BetMGM to win the series. After the game — and after Kyrie Irving didn't play the second half in the loss due to an injury — the Nets moved to +100. The Bucks went from +310 to -125.

And at -125, bettors are liking it.

Kyrie's status is unknown as is James Harden's for Game 5. While 81 percent of the money on the series at BetMGM is still on the Nets, 80 percent of the bets since yesterday are coming in on the Bucks.

PointsBet has the Bucks at -140 to win the series.

"We're operating under the assumption that the most likely outcome is we don't see Kyrie again the rest of the series and seeing Harden again is very much up in the air," said PointsBet spokesman Patrick Eichner. "We think Harden is more likely to appear than Kyrie."

Since the Kyrie injury, 85 percent of the money has come in on the Bucks, Eichner said, to a point where there's no more money (53 percent) on the Bucks than the Nets to win the Series.

The Bucks beating the Nets would be a tremendous result for the sportsbooks. The Nets are, by far, the largest bet team to win outright. Eichner said the Bucks to win the East would be their best result and PointsBet would do well if they won it all.

At BetMGM, the Nets odds to win it all, once as low as +100, are at +260. Twenty-four percent of all tickets and 41 percent of the money is on the Nets. 

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