NBA Eastern Conference Odds: How Did The Heat Pull It Off?

That's all, folks. The Miami Heat defeated the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals to advance to the NBA Championship. 

Miami will have a tough time as significant underdogs vs the West-winning Nuggets, but it's not impossible for them to achieve yet another upset victory. 

Here is how the Eastern Conference odds wrapped up.

Who Won The 2022-23 Eastern Conference Championship?

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How The Heat Pulled It Off

It was truly a miraculous run. Beginning with a first-round upset over the Bucks, the Heat later tore through the Knicks and edged the Celtics in seven games. What a series that was, too. Boston fell behind 3-0 but stormed back to tie it. In the end, Miami kept that ice in the veins and snuffed any hopes of a Beantown comeback. 

Now, Miami is a heavy underdog in the NBA Finals odds, and Jimmy Butler is second on the odds board in NBA Finals MVP. If you believe in magic, both the Heat and Butler as MVP are great bets.

Past Eastern Conference Championship Winners

LeBron James dominated the Eastern Conference for the better part of the century, taking the Cavaliers and Heat to the NBA Finals almost every year. However, when James left for the West’s Lakers, things opened up for some new teams in the East.

NBA Eastern Conference Championship History

The NBA’s Eastern Conference was created in 1970 and the current divisional alignment in the East began in 2004-05 when the Charlotte Hornets joined the Association as a 30th franchise. The Eastern Conference championship trophy was first handed out in the 2000-01 season and was renamed after Hall of Famer Bob Cousy before the 2021-22 campaign.

NBA Teams with the Most Eastern Conference Championships

This leaderboard is, naturally, run by the dynasties. The Celtics have had several iterations, from the Larry Bird era to the original big three to the Tatum/Brown tandem that currently runs the East. While Michael Jordan’s Bulls haven’t won in a while, the always-competitive Heat have closed the gap on Boston over the last several years.

NBA Teams That Have Never Won an Eastern Conference Championship

The Hawks have gotten oh-so-close to an East title in the last decade, making the conference finals twice since 2014. They lost to LeBron’s Cavs back in 2014-15 and fell to Giannis’ Bucks in 2020-21.