Chris Paul's Health Update Hasn't Altered Suns' Vegas Odds Yet

You'd think for someone who sells insurance for a living, Chris Paul would be a little more risk-averse. Alas, despite his background as a State Farm spokesman, news dropped today that Paul has entered the NBA's health and safety protocol system (AKA Covid isolation) and will not be around the team for "an indefinite period of time," according to Shams Charania of The Athletic. Even more concerning, his status for the Western Conference Finals is very much up in the air.

Ruh roh.

Despite being away from his teammates for who knows how long, and therefore missing practice and preparation for the upcoming Western Conference Finals, the Suns remain the favorites to win the West and make the NBA Finals with their odds to win the conference standing at +130 on WynnBET, which is ahead of the Jazz (+185) and Clippers (+240).

Of course, the Jazz and Clippers are tied 2-2 in their conference semifinal matchup, which naturally makes the Suns the favorites because they've already advanced. But if Paul can't play even one game in the WCF, expect that number to change dramatically.

Paul has been the lifeblood of the Phoenix's run in the West, averaging 15.7 points, 8.7 assists and 4.1 rebounds per game. He's shooting 50.9% from the field and 44.4 from 3-point range. He's also not turning the ball over and playing his traditional tough defense on the outside. He's the floor general who makes the Suns offense and defense run. Without him, even for one game, the Suns face an uphill climb to reach the NBA Finals.

Currently the Suns are the second betting favorite to win the finals on WynnBET with +400 odds (bet $100 to win $400).

This is still a fluid situation so we'll update this post as more information becomes available. For now, all we know is Paul is away from the team and we don't know when he'll return.