The majority of NBA teams that most recently were seen on the basketball court finishing well outside of playoff contention aren’t picked as one of the top-five choices by oddsmakers in Las Vegas to win the next NBA Championship, but the Los Angeles Lakers aren’t most NBA teams.
So yes, despite the Lakers not looking like anywhere close to a title contender during the 2017-18 season, Las Vegas oddsmaker Westgate has given the purple and gold the fifth-best odds to win the next NBA title at 20/1, tied with the Miami Heat and behind the Golden State Warriors (5/4), Houston Rockets (7/2), Philadelphia 76ers (7/2) and Boston Celtics (8/1).