Who wins the title, and how many games will the series go? Will Steph Curry get his first Finals MVP? Our panel predicts the Finals.
Who will win the fourth matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers? How many games will the series go?
Our ESPN Forecast panel predicts the NBA Finals and MVP winner.
Likelihood of winning series
ESPN Forecast: Warriors 81 percent likely to win; Cavaliers 19 percent
Basketball Power Index: Warriors (91 percent)
FiveThirtyEight: Warriors (77 percent)
Fan panel: Warriors (76 percent)
Predictions: Which team will win?
Forecast (%)* BPI (%) Fans (%)*
GSW in 4 16 23 9
GSW in 5 67 35 55
GSW in 6 16 17 23
GSW in 7 0 15 3
CLE in 4 0 1 1
CLE in 5 0 1 0
CLE in 6 2 4 3
CLE in 7 0 3 7
*Percentage of votes (not likelihood of winning series)
More:
5-on-5: How far can LeBron carry the Cavs in this Finals rematch?
Why Round 4 of Warriors-Cavs deserves our appreciation
The Undefeated: Tyronn Lue reflects on the NBA Finals, LeBron’s greatness, and his love of Shirley Temples
Warriors hugely favored over Cavs in Finals
Sources: Iguodala gets second opinion on knee
The Undefeated: The reigning champs are headed back to the Finals
FiveThirtyEight: This Eastern Conference crown is truly LeBron’s masterpiece
Dan Gilbert: Focus on Finals, not LeBron’s future
Game 1: Thursday| 9 p.m. ET, ABC/WatchESPN
Top picks
Player Forecast (%) Fans (%)
Stephen Curry 40 33
Kevin Durant 37 35
LeBron James 18 22
Klay Thompson 4 7
Draymond Green 1 2
Panel ranked their top three choices
Recent winners:
Kevin Durant (2017)
LeBron James (2016)
Andre Iguodala (2015)
To join the fan panel, click here. ESPN Forecast is conducted in collaboration with The Wharton School and Microsoft Research.
