With the 2023-24 NBA regular season right around the corner, now's an opportune time to check out the current Rookie of the Year odds and potentially put down a futures bet or two. The odds market has seen plenty of fluctuation since opening and will continue to move during the regular season, so if you can spot some market inefficiencies, you can get ahead of potential odds shifts.
Earlier this offseason, 7-4 wunderkind and No. 1 overall pick Victor Wembanyama sat as a heavy favorite to take the league by storm in year one. Fast forward to a week before the start of the regular season, and Wembanyama's odds are now $1.90 on TAB, giving him a comfortable lead over his fellow freshman.
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Not far behind Wembanyama sits Chet Holmgren ($3.75) and Scoot Henderson ($3.75), indicating that we're in store for a three-player race ahead of the regular season tip-off. That said, we could easily see several other rookies put their names into consideration with strong freshman campaigns.
How should bettors approach wagering on this award? Let's look at the most up-to-date 2024 Rookie of the Year odds and highlight the odds-on favorites along with a couple of sleeper candidates.
NBA Rookie of the Year 2023-24 odds
| Player | Odds |
| Victor Wembanyama | $1.90 |
| Chet Holmgren | $3.75 |
| Scoot Henderson | $3.75 |
| Cam Whitmore | $21 |
| Amen Thompson | $21 |
| Keyonte George | $26 |
| Brandon Miller | $26 |
| Jarace Walker | $34 |
| Gradey Dick | $41 |
| Taylor Hendricks | $41 |
| Anthony Black | $41 |
| Jaime Jaquez | $51 |
| Bilal Coulibaly | $51 |
| Cason Wallace | $51 |
| Gregory Jackson | $67 |
| Dariq Whitehead | $67 |
| Jordan Hawkins | $67 |
| Leonard Miller | $67 |
| Marcus Sasser | $67 |
| Nick Smith Jr. | $67 |
NBA Rookie of the Year 2024: Favorites
Victor Wembanyama ($1.90). Considering Wembanyama was evern shorter odds ofter the draft, now might be the time to bet on the Spurs' franchise centerpiece at a discounted price. Even when taking his preseason stats with a grain of salt, the man boasts a 13.7 net rating with a 71.2 true shooting percentage in two games.
He's thriving on the perimeter as a defender and scorer, showcasing his switch ability and smoothness scoring off the bounce for someone his size. He'll likely garner fairly heavy usage during the regular season, as his 34.5 usage percentage this preseason is an indication of what his potential in-season workload may look like.
Sure, betting the chalk favorite won't result in the heftiest payday, but should Wembanyama start the regular season with a bang, we could see his odds shift back toward the $1.20 - $1.50 range.
Chet Holmgren ($3.75). Holmgren fully recovered from his foot injury that caused him to miss the entirety of the 2022-23 season and should be right in the thick of the ROY race in 2023-24. Last season's No. 2 overall pick looks like the missing piece for a Thunder squad on the verge of getting into the playoffs, as Mark Daigneault's shiny-new 7-1 weapon helps draw some attention away from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Like Wembanyama, Holmgrens' two-way ability and highlight-reel style should lend itself to a strong rookie campaign. As long as he avoids another setback, with the Thunder likely contending for a playoff spot, we could see the Gonzaga product take home ROY honors in his second year with his franchise.
Scoot Henderson ($3.75). Despite having the third-best odds to win ROY, Henderson's $3.75 price tag is enticing now that Damian Lillard's been shipped to Milwaukee. Scoot should get plenty of volume operating as the Blazers' lead guard, and while his perimeter shooting is an immediate concern, he's thriving on high ball screens, connecting on 64.6 percent of his two-pointers.
Portland has ample guard depth with Anfernee Simons, Shaedon Sharpe, and Malcolm Brogdon, so Henderson there's a chance he might not see enough volume to put forth a stat line worthy of ROY honors. Still, he deserves to be one of the frontrunners entering the season.
NBA Rookie of the Year 2023-24: Sleepers
Keyonte George ($26). We'll see how much run George gets in his rookie season, but ex-Baylor Bear looked the part of a future starting-caliber guard in the NBA Summer League. George is always looking to pull the trigger on offense, as his aggressive and confident style should help him post a respectable stat line in his rookie season. Through four preseason tilts, George owns a respectable 14.6 net rating and averages 7.8 field goal attempts per game in 21.5 minutes. He will hoist up shots when his name gets called, so it won't be overly surprising if his $26 odds shorten during the season.
Jarace Walker ($34). Although he will begin his career off the bench, Walker has more upside than the Pacers' opening night four-man, Obi Toppin. It won't take long for the eighth-overall pick to become a vital piece of the Pacers' rotation.
Walker's knack for thriving as a help-side defender and disrupting passing lanes gives him a chance to see ample minutes in the early stages of his career. While there are still questions regarding his offensive game, the NBA's spacing should help Walker become a more consistent offensive piece. At $34, there is a chance Walkers' odds improve throughout the regular season, so bettors could get ahead of potential odds shifts by taking a flier on the former Houston Cougar.
Other Rookie of the Year sleepers to consider: Amen Thompson ($21), Jaime Jaquez Jr. ($51).
