Adjusting the odds: How Vegas sees Durant injury affecting LeBron's MVP chances
An injury to another star player has lifted LeBron James' Las Vegas odds to win a fifth NBA Most Valuable Player award.
Sports betting site Bovada has James at 5/6 odds to win his fifth MVP, up from 3/2, according to CBS Sports, following news that Oklahoma City Thunder star Kevin Durant will miss six-to-eight weeks with a foot injury.
Durant, last season's MVP winner, has now gone from neck-and-neck with James as the favorite to a further second at 4/1 odds.
Behind those two are Blake Griffin (12/1), Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook (15/1).
Despite the injury, Vegas still pegs Durant to be the NBA's scoring leader, with James the third favorite in that stat category.
New Cavalier Kevin Love, who was traded from Minnesota to Cleveland for a package including former No. 1 overall picks Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett, comes in with 35/1 MVP odds.
First-year head coach David Blatt is only behind the head coach of the defending NBA champion San Antonio Spurs, Greg Popovich. Blatt has 9/2 odds, while Popovich leads the pack at 3/1.
As a team, the Cavs are also Vegas favorites to take him the title at 5/2 odds, followed by the Spurs (7/2), Bulls (11/2) and Thunder (7/1).
James and the Cavs open their season Oct. 30 against the New York Knicks.
