Awards season—the on-court version—is drawing nearer.
The NBA returns to regular-season action on Thursday in the aftermath of All-Star Weekend, meaning players have roughly two months remaining to solidify their cases for MVP or whatever the honor may be. An added wrinkle to consider while on awards watch this year is the new 65-game requirement to be considered eligible for these honors—a rule that has written last season’s MVP Joel Embiid out of the conversation.
Before the final stretch of the NBA season begins, here’s where each awards race currently stands. Betting odds listed in each category were retrieved from DraftKings Sportsbook.
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NBA Most Valuable Player
Current Odds Leader: Nikola Jokic (-135)
Others in the Mix: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (+210), Giannis Antetokounmpo (+850), Luka Doncic (+950), Jayson Tatum (+2200) and Jalen Brunson/Kawhi Leonard (+7000 each).
The Serbian center is becoming very familiar with having his name atop the NBA’s MVP leaderboard. Jokic earned the honor on back-to-back occasions after the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons, then finished second behind Embiid last year. The six-time All-Star is averaging 26.1 points, 12 rebounds and 8.9 assists while shooting 57.7 percent from the field for the defending champion Nuggets to bolster his case to go back to No. 1 in the voting. Embiid seemed to be Jokic’s main competition for the award again this time around, but now that the Sixers standout is out of the award picture, a third MVP trophy could be heading to Denver soon enough.
Defensive Player of the Year
Current Odds Leader: Rudy Gobert (-650)
Others in the Mix: Jarrett Allen (+1000), Victor Wembanyama (+2000), Chet Holmgren (+2500), Anthony Davis (+2800) and Bam Adebayo (+3000).
Gobert, the odds-on favorite for the NBA’s top defensive honor, would join Dikembe Mutombo and Ben Wallace as the most decorated defenders in league history by taking home this particular trophy again. Both of those Hall of Famers have four Defensive Player of the Year statues, while Gobert has three and, maybe, counting. The 31-year-old leads the league with 4.2 defensive win shares this season, per Basketball Reference.
Rookie of the Year
Current Odds Leader: Wembanyama (-600)
Others in the Mix: Holmgren (+450)
Any other year, and Holmgren—averaging 16.7 points and 7.6 rebounds as a starter on the Western Conference’s No 2 team—might be a runaway Rookie of the Year pick. But he just so happened to be paired with Wemby in this season’s award head-to-head. San Antonio’s 7-foot-4 French phenom is already averaging 20.5 points, 10 rebounds and an NBA-best 3.2 blocks per game. The 2023-24 edition of this award has been a two-player competition, though betting odds at this point would suggest it is getting closer to being down to one.
Most Improved Player
Current Odds Leader: Tyrese Maxey (-195)
Others in the Mix: Coby White (+400), Jonathan Kuminga (+750), Alperen Sengun (+800), Jalen Williams (+1800) and Jalen Johnson (+4500)
Maxey finished sixth in this category two seasons ago. The fourth-year point guard achieved All-Star status this season and is up about five points (to 25.7) and nearly three assists (to 6.4) per game from last season—among other statistical improvements. Philly dealing disgruntled star James Harden to the Clippers appears to have officially unlocked a new level to Maxey’s game, and that may be recognized soon enough.
Sixth Man of the Year
Current Odds Leader: Malik Monk (-115)
Others in the Mix: Tim Hardaway Jr. (+175), Norman Powell (+750), Caris LeVert (+2200), Bogdan Bogdanovic and Jordan Clarkson (+3000 each)
Monk joined his third team in as many seasons when he arrived in Sacramento for the 2022-23 campaign and quickly took on a dynamic bench role for the high-scoring, breakout Kings. A year later, and Monk is having a similar effect. The Kentucky product is averaging 15.1 points per game this season—a career high—while shooting 37.5 percent from deep in his Sixth Man role. Monk has checked in off the bench in each of his 53 games so far this season and averages about 26 minutes per night.
Coach of the Year
Current Odds Leader: Mark Daigneault (+200)
Others in the Mix: Chris Finch (+225), J.B. Bickerstaff (+425), Tyronn Lue (+600), Rick Carlisle and Joe Mazzulla (+1800), and Tom Thibodeau (+3000)
Both coaches in front of this awards race, at least from an odds standpoint, are in their fourth year on the job and have transformed their once-ailing franchises into a Western Conference powerhouses. Daigneault went 22-50 in his first season leading the Thunder, and now OKC (37-17) is second place in the West with the third-best record in the NBA. Just behind who? Yes, Finch and the 39-16, West-leading Timberwolves. Finch won only 16 games in his 2020-21 head-coaching debut, but fast-forward to last weekend and he was coaching in the All-Star Game.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.