By Chris Harris Contributor
Updated 11/3/23 3:03pm ET
While Victor Wembanyama’s breakout 38-point performance on national television trended on social media and mesmerized fans, oddsmakers also took notice and quickly adjusted correlated betting odds.
The 19-year-old phenom is now a -340 favorite to win Rookie of the Year at DraftKings, after having odds in the neighborhood of -140 before last night’s upset of the Phoenix Suns as 9.5-point underdogs.
Sportsbooks also lowered the odds for the San Antonio Spurs across the board. For example, they were around 40-to-1 longshots to win the Southwest Division but those odds are now around 25-to-1. Their Western Conference and NBA championship odds were also adjusted.
Wembanyama’s 38 points came on 15-of-26 shooting, while also grabbing 10 rebounds with two blocks in 34 minutes. Just five games into his NBA career, he is averaging 20.6 points on 50.2% shooting with 8.0 rebounds, 2.2 blocks, 1.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He is the first player to have 85+ points, 35+ rebounds and 10+ blocks in his first five career games since Shaquille O’Neal in 1992.
Contributing to Wembanyama’s relatively low -140 Rookie of the Year price entering the season were several factors that are still in play.
In an effort to limit teams voluntarily resting players, the NBA now requires a minimum of 65 games to qualify for any individual award. That means Wembanyama must not miss more than 17 games this season. Given his significant injury history, slight frame, and a head coach (Gregg Popovich) who created and normalized the concept of “load management”, the award is far from decided.
Wembanyama isn’t the only rookie to have a strong start to the season. Chet Holmgren (+600), Scoot Henderson (+3000), and Brandon Miller (+3500) have all been impressive in their NBA debuts. Holmgren is 7-foot-1 and missed all of last season with a Lisfranc (foot) injury. He was the #2 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft but is still considered a rookie this year.
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