The Daily Sweat: The NBA futures market is a wild place right now

The NBA free agency window opened last night, but it wasn't even the biggest news of the day in the league. Kevin Durant kicked the madness off earlier in the day by requesting a trade out of Brooklyn. The Phoenix Suns emerged as a preferred destination for Durant, and as a result, the Suns became the new favorites to win the NBA title in 2023.

Earlier in the week, we saw the news of John Wall joining the Clippers cause waves in the betting market. Atlanta acquiring Dejounte Murray from San Antonio also made quite the impact. As reports and rumors fly, the betting market for NBA futures is changing by the minute.

Obviously, the biggest domino to fall will be the Kevin Durant situation. Durant is one of the very best players in the league and any team that acquires him will immediately enter contender status. As mentioned above, the Suns seem like a potential likely destination. As a result, they've gone from 10-to-1 to win the NBA title down to +550, overtaking Golden State as the favorite to win the title.

The Miami Heat are also reportedly on Durant's wish list, and bettors are making speculative bets there as well. Miami has moved from 14-to-1 down to +900 to win the NBA title over the past 24 hours.

Kyrie Irving's situation is worth monitoring as well. If Brooklyn moves on from Durant, it's likely they move Irving as well. The Los Angeles Lakers and Irving have been linked throughout the early part of the offseason, and it wouldn't be surprising to see Kyrie reunite with LeBron James in LA. The Lakers opened at 22-to-1 to win the NBA title, moved down to 14-to-1 and now with the Irving situation picking up steam again, their odds have changed again. The Lakers are now just 11-to-1 to win the NBA title.

With the departure of Durant and Irving appearing imminent, it's no shock that the odds of the Brooklyn Nets have come crashing down. The Nets opened the offseason at +700 to win the NBA title, the third-best odds in the league. Currently, they are down to 30-to-1 to win it all, and once the trades are official, those odds will likely drop even further.

While one New York team is dropping, the other New York team is moving up. The New York Knicks signed Jalen Brunson and Isaiah Hartenstein on the first day of free agency, and their odds have improved dramatically. New York opened at 300-to-1 to win the NBA title, but those odds are currently 100-to-1. The Knicks are still huge long shots of course, but at least they're getting some respect. With Brunson joining R.J. Barrett and Julius Randle, the Knicks should be back in the mix for a play-in spot in the East this coming season.

MLB weekend action kicks off

While NBA free agency is giving us plenty of drama, the only major sport actually playing games right now is MLB. It's a Friday, so we have a stacked 15-game slate on tap to kick off the weekend.

The most intriguing weekend series probably features the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres. The Padres entered the series opener on Thursday just 1.5-games back of Los Angeles for first place in the NL West. However, the Dodgers won 3-1 on Thursday as -130 favorites. The Dodgers are -175 favorites on Friday night, as Tony Gonsolin takes the mound against Blake Snell. Gonsolin has a 1.68 ERA and is yet to be hit with a loss, while Snell has a 5.60 ERA and is looking to pick up his first win.

Every team in the AL East outside of Baltimore is at least five games over .500, but they all trail the first place New York Yankees by at least 12.5 games. The Toronto Blue Jays host the Tampa Bay Rays this weekend, with the Jays installed as -150 favorites on Friday with Jose Berrios on the mound. The Boston Red Sox are -140 road favorites against the Cubs in a matinee affair. The Yankees are massive -225 road favorites against the Cleveland Guardians as they send Gerrit Cole to the bump.

J.T. Poston leads John Deere Classic

J.T. Poston shot a 9-under 62 on Thursday in the first round of the John Deere Classic to enter Friday's second round with a two-stroke lead. Poston is currently a +300 favorite to win the tournament.

The betting favorite before the tournament was Webb Simpson at 14-to-1. He finished the first day even and is in jeopardy of not making the cut. Simpson is currently 66-to-1 to win the tournament.

Wimbledon and UFC for your weekend

The third round of Wimbledon is under way, and the tennis will continue throughout the next week-plus. The women's final is next Saturday, while the men's side wraps up next Sunday. Novak Djokovic is a -200 favorite on the men's side, while Iga Swiatek is a +150 favorite to win it all on the women's side.

UFC 276 takes place Saturday in Las Vegas. Israel Adesanya is a -500 favorite in the main event against Jared Cannonier.