Many anticipate the Rockets-Warriors West Finals series more than the NBA Finals this year.
The Golden Nugget Casino in Las Vegas is paying out bets on the Golden State Warriors winning the Western Conference finals, though the series has not started yet. The Golden Nugget sportsbook also is not taking bets on the 2018 West Finals series, either.
The #1 seed in the Western Conference, the Houston Rockets, opens the series in Houston against the #2 seeded Golden State Warriors. Since the Golden State Warriors are the defending NBA champions and have won the title 2 of the last 3 years — and came within seconds of winning it the third year — one might imagine the Golden Nugget’s ownership must be big Warriors fans.
Quite the contrary. Tilman Fertitta, owner of the Houston Rockets, also happens to own the Golden Nugget Las Vegas. Fertitta’s restaurant corporation, Landry’s Co., bought the Golden Nugget is 2005. Fertitta bought the Houston Rockets for $2.2 billion in September 2017.
Tilman Fertitta Buys Houston Rockets
The reason is a bit complicated, but makes sense. When Tilman Fertitta bought the Rockets, it canceled all bets involving his NBA franchise, to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest. The Golden Nugget also halted all futures bets involving the Houston Rockets. Since September 2017 was after some 2018 Western Conference futures bets were posted, it could not simply cancel out a whole slate of bets already involving the Western Conference.
Instead, the Golden Nugget canceled Houston Rockets bets to win the Western Conference. The wager was renamed to “Finish Best” in the West. With the Rockets already eliminated from the betting options, that means the Golden State Warriors already satisfied the terms of the wager, because the Warriors already have finished best of all the teams in the proposition. So Warriors bettors receive their payouts a little early — or at all, if the Rockets pull off an upset of the defending champs.
Aaron Kessler, the sportsbook manager of the Golden Nugget Las Vegas, told ESPN’s Chalk, “We’ve already graded [the Warriors] a winner. Bring your ticket and you’ll get paid.”
Graded GS Warriors a Winner
It is common for legal sportsbooks to not take bets when one of their owners also has an ownership stake in a major sports team or sporting event. For instance, when Tilman’s cousins, Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta, owned the Ultimate Fighting Championship, their Station Casinos sportsbooks did not take wagers on UFC events.
When Gary Loveman was the CEO of Caesars Entertainment, he did not take wagers on Boston Celtics games, because Loveman had a minority stake in the Celtics from 2006-forward.
2018 Western Finals Match-Up
Though it is common practice, that does not make it easier for those running the Golden Nugget sportsbook. The 2018 Western Finals is one of the most-anticipated series in years. The Golden State Warriors have established easy dominance over the Western Conference the past three-plus seasons. With Lebron James’s Cleveland Cavaliers set to play a depleted Boston Celtics franchise (missing Kyrie Irving and Gordon Heywood), the likely outcome is a fourth straight NBA Finals featuring the Cavs and Warriors.
The Houston Rockets, on the other hand, are seen as a (perhaps) worthy challenger to the Warriors — unlike most West playoff opponents over the run from 2015 to 2018. With perennial NBA All-Stars James Harden and Chris Paul leading a team that secured homefield advantage, there is at least some intrigue to the finals series. Some say the Rockets are hungrier or the Warriors are due for a letdown after four straight deep playoff runs. Most still assume the Warriors are a big favorite, because they have more stars and the Rockets’ leaders are known for playoff flame-outs.
Whatever one’s stance, it is the kind of intriguing playoff matchup that drives a lot of sports betting. On one side is the talented upstart challenger which has wooed audiences. On the other side is the sports dynasty, with a legion of devoted fans and true believers, but also with a legion of detractors or simply people who believe the winning streak will come to an end.
Tony Miller on VSiN
Tony Miller, the director of the Golden Nugget Las Vegas’s sportsbook, said he is asked by bettors almost daily why they cannot bet on the highly anticipated Western Finals series. In an appearance on the Vegas Stats & Information Network (VSIN) this week, Miller said, “It’s crazy. Two great teams in the Western Conference finals, and we’re doing more explaining every day than anything else.”
Given the dilemma such limitations pose, Tony Miller had to give a political answer when asked by VSiN whether he wanted to Rockets to miss the NBA Finals — thus allowing the sportsbook to take finals bets. Miller replied, “How can I frame this so it’s not going to get me in trouble?”
“It would be decent handle in a slow month, but it’s not going to kills us if we don’t book [the Finals]. We’d still have baseball, and we still have the [Vegas Golden] Knights.”
