Las Vegas sportsbooks are split when it comes to which NBA rookie has the best odds of winning the Rookie of the Year award int he 2017-18 season.
According to ESPN, the William Hill Nevada sportsbook opened up the ROY odds on Wednesday, and Los Angeles Lakers point guard was the favorite, with odds of 9-5. However, yesterday the Westgate SuperBook listed Sixers forward Ben Simmons as the favorite at 5-2.
The Westgate's reasoning for listing Simmons over Ball, per ESPN,
"We expect Philadelphia to exceed the Lakers in wins and make the playoffs in the East, with Simmons having better stats [than Ball]," Jeff Sherman, assistant manager at the Westgate, told ESPN in a text message. "Had Simmons come out in this loaded class, he still would have been the No 1 pick in the draft."
Simmons was not included in this year's loaded NBA Draft, but having sat out his entire rookie season last year due to injury, he is eligible as a Rookie of the Year candidate this season.
William Hill's Nevada sportsbook lists Mavericks point guard Dennis Smith Jr as the third most likely to win ROY, with 4-1 odds, followed by this year's #1 overall pick, Sixers guard Markelle Fultz, who comes in at 13-2.
Kings point guard De'Aaron Fox and Celtics forward Jayson Tatum are both currently sporting 8-1 odds.
According to ESPN, this will be the first season that Nevada sportsbooks will offer betting on the NBA Rookie of the Year and regular-season MVP. William Hill made the request to gaming control and, upon approval, opened betting on the awards Wednesday.
Per ESPN,
"With so much attention on the rookie class and the stars of the league, this is a fantastic year to start offering them," Nick Bogdanovich, director of trading for William Hill U.S., said in a release.
As for the regular season MVP odds, most Vegas sporrtsbooks have Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook as favorites, though William Hill currently has last year's MVP slightly ahead with 5-2 odds, as opposed to KD's 4-1. LeBron comes in at 6-1, followed by Kawhi Leonard at 13-2 and James Harden, who is 15-2 at William Hill.
Check out a partial list of the NBA Rookie of the Year odds below.
| Rookie of Year odds | Westgate | William Hill |
|---|---|---|
| Ben SIMMONS (PHI) | 5/2 | 4/1 |
| Lonzo BALL (LAL) | 11/4 | 9/5 |
| Dennis SMITH JR (DAL) | 4/1 | 4/1 |
| Markelle FULTZ (PHI) | 15/2 | 13/2 |
| De'Aaron FOX (SAC) | 10/1 | 8/1 |
| Josh JACKSON (PHX) | 10/1 | 15/1 |
| Jayson TATUM (BOS) | 10/1 | 8/1 |
| Donovan MITCHELL (UTA) | 15/1 | 25/1 |
| Malik MONK (CHA) | 25/1 | 15/1 |
| Jonathan ISAAC (ORL) | 30/1 | 50/1 |
| John COLLINS (ATL) | 30/1 | 50/1 |
| Bam ADEBAYO (MIA) | 30/1 | 75/1 |
| Milos TEODOSIC (LAC) | 40/1 | * |
| Justin JACKSON (SAC) | 40/1 | 50/1 |
| Lauri MARKKANEN (CHI) | 40/1 | 25/1 |
| Zach COLLINS (POR) | 40/1 | 75/1 |
| Frank NTILIKINA (NY) | 50/1 | 50/1 |
| Luke KENNARD (DET) | 50/1 | 75/1 |
