The Showtime era in Los Angeles is long gone. All that’s left is “no time,” as in, “the Lakers will be spending no time in the playoffs this year.” That’s magical news to one BetMGM bettor who wagered $10,000 before the season started that Jack Nicholson’s favorite team would miss the postseason. At long shot odds of 16-to-1, that bet will now pay out $160,000.
An unpopular bet at the time
When my colleague Sam Cooper wrote about the wager previous to the start of the regular season, the bet was largely derided, with comments like “bad bet” and “There’s a fool born everyday [sic] and this guy fits the bill.”
That’s completely understandable. The Lakers were a big favorite to win the Western Conference at +170 before the season tipped off. Golden State had the second-shortest odds (+425). The betting public pounded the Lakers’ regular season win total of 52.5, with 92.6% of the betting handle on the over. They also loaded up on another LeBron James championship at +450. This was supposed to be a very good team.
Then the regular season began. New addition Russell Westbrook didn’t have the positive impact on his fourth team in four years that many thought he would bring. Neither did fresh acquisitions like DeAndre Jordan, Rajon Rondo, Carmelo Anthony, Kendrick Nunn, Kent Bazemore, Trevor Ariza, Wayne Ellington and others.
What some thought to be a Banana Boat Crew ended up being the Titanic. Anthony Davis missed half the season due to injury, James missed 23 games and counting, Westbrook has been a terrible fit, and coach Frank Vogel is days from getting the ol’ heave-ho for his performance.
The Lakers’ postseason fate was sealed last night when they lost their seventh consecutive game and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Denver Nuggets to secure the last playoff spot in the Western Conference. Los Angeles was the seventh-most popular bet to win the championship, with 6.3% of all tickets and 6.1% of the handle.
Stats provided by Basketball Reference.
