Updated Celtics NBA championship odds, over/under win total originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The quest for Banner 19 begins in almost two months for the Boston Celtics.

The Celtics won their 18th championship in June after beating the Dallas Mavericks in the 2024 NBA Finals. They passed the rival Los Angeles Lakers for the most titles in league history as a result.

Boston’s title defense begins Tuesday, Oct. 22 when the New York Knicks come to TD Garden. The C’s will raise their 2024 championship banner and receive their rings during a pregame ceremony.

The schedule, which was released in full Thursday, is pretty soft early. Just four of the Celtics’ first 13 games are against teams that made the first round of the playoffs last season. March is a fun month that includes both the longest homestand and longest road trip of the season. Opponents in March include the Lakers, Nuggets, Thunder, Sixers, Heat and Spurs.

Here are the latest championship odds and over/under win total for the Celtics post-schedule release. All betting lines via Fanatics Sportsbook (as of Friday, Aug. 16).

NBA title odds

The Celtics are the title favorites entering the season. Here’s a look at the teams with the five-best title odds as of Aug. 16.

1. Boston Celtics: +300

2. Oklahoma City Thunder: +700

3. Philadelphia 76ers: +850

4. Denver Nuggets: +900

5. New York Knicks” +900

The top 11 players from the Celtics’ championship roster are returning, which is pretty rare in a salary cap league. Difficult roster decisions will eventually have to be made, but for next season it looks like Boston’s roster will again be loaded with elite talent and plenty of depth.

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There hasn’t been a repeat champion since the Golden State Warriors won back-to-back titles in 2016-17 and 2017-18. The last five champions haven’t even advanced past the second round the following season. Going back-to-back has become very difficult.

The C’s as a franchise haven’t repeated as champs since 1967-68 and 1968-69. Those were Bill Russell’s last two titles.

The Celtics do have some motivating factors in their favor, though. Jayson Tatum was a DNP in multiple games at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Jaylen Brown wasn’t even selected to the team after winning a title and NBA Finals MVP in June. A lot of people criticized Boston’s path to the Finals this past spring, saying it was easy because some of their opponents had injuries. The C’s should be plenty motivated to get back to the Finals, win again, and shut up their critics for good.

It’s easier said than done, of course, but the Celtics shouldn’t have to look far to find fuel for their title defense.

Regular season win total

Over 58.5 (-110), Under 58.5 (-120)

The Celtics have the highest win total of any team. They led the league with a 64-18 record last season, which was seven wins higher than any other team. But it was also just their third 60-win season since 1986. In fact, the Celtics have won more than 58 games just three times this century — 66 wins in 2007-08, 62 wins in 2008-09 and 64 last season.

However, the fact that the Celtics are bringing back almost the same roster as last season makes them a deserved favorite to finish atop the Eastern Conference standings again.

One factor is the Kristaps Porzingis injury. When will he return, will it be December or January? Although, the C’s fared quite well without him in both the regular season and playoffs in 2023-24. Will the Celtics dial back Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown’s minutes after several deep playoff runs in recent years? Will the C’s prioritize earning the highest seed possible, or make sure the roster is as healthy as possible entering the playoffs? These are all things to consider when analyzing their win total.

Even if the Celtics rest guys more often, they still have a team capable of winning a ton of games again. Will it be more than 58? Time will tell.