The NBA season is just a couple short days away. That means there is no time like the present to get down on some 2025 NBA Awards futures. The markets are ripe, we’ve seen the preseason action, we know where these teams stand. And if you don’t have the time to weed through all of the odds, we got you covered. Come check out what we have cooked up for this season.
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2025 NBA Awards Futures – Best Bets and Predictions
2025 MVP Award
Favorite – Nikola Jokic (+220)
I understand why Jokic is the odds-on favorite coming into this season – he has won three of the last five MVP awards. Still, I just don’t love the value on him here. For one, the voters seem to look for a reason to not give him the award every year. With the Nuggets slipping a bit in the Eastern Conference hierarchy, I think they’ll have all the reason to pass on him for the award this year.
Best Value – Victor Wembanyama (+1200)
The best value on the board is undoubtedly Wembanyama. He already puts up absolutely gaudy numbers every time he’s on the floor, which is step one to getting votes here. The other piece seeing improvement in the squad. The Spurs are going to get a full year of Wemby working with De’Aaron Fox and I think we see the team take a big step forward. If they do that, he’ll be right in the thick of the conversation and at a great price here.
Sleeper – Trae Young (+10000)
While it is certainly not likely – it is 100-to-1 after all – there is a reasonable path to Young getting his name on that trophy. He’s always been a guy who can score in the high-20s in terms of points per game. I really like the addtion of Kristaps Porziņģis when it comes to giving him some more options to work with. His awkward style is tough to defend and might open up more opportunities for Young.
2025 Rookie of the Year
Favorite – Cooper Flagg (-180)
You could probably pencil Flagg right into the “Best Value” line of this column too. While the number one overall pick isn’t the lock that it once was for Rookie of the Year, Flagg is as hyped of a first pick as we’ve seen in a minute. Not only that, but he comes right into a situation where his team will be playing meaningful games, and that should create an easy path to this award.
Best Value – Hansen Yang (+3000)
As I said before, Flagg could easily be the “Best Value” here too, but for a little change of pace, I also like the price on Yang. While everybody laughed at this pick on draft night, he dazzled in the summer league. His combination of size (7’1″ and 265lbs) and court vision should help him fill out the state sheet. If there was an injury to Flagg or if he slumps late, Yang may be primed to step in and grab this one.
Sleeper – Egor Demin (+5000)
Sometimes these awards are all about having an opportunity. There is likely no player in the rookie class who is going to have more opportunities that Demin. He’s penciled in at point guard for the Nets, which is a team that is not exactly littered with scorers. Someone on that team will need to score and he showed he could shoot a bit last season at BYU.
2025 Most Improved Player
Favorite – Amen Thompson (+1100)
The Most Improved Player is always a bit of a crapshoot. Even the favorie to take home the award is into double figures on the return. However, I’m not a fan of Thompson here as a possible winner. He already added nearly five points per game to his average from year one to two, and he’d have to take an even larger step to win here.
Best Value – Matas Buzelis (+1800)
Instead of Thompson, I’ll flip on over to the Buzelis to break out in his sophomore campaign. While there is no real formula to win this award, a spike in starts and/or points is always a good sign. While he played in nearly every game, he only started 30 last year. After putting up single digits for the first couple months last year, he closed with three straight months of a dozen points per game. His season average was 8.6 per game. If he were to post his last month’s stats, he would already be adding nearly five per game. Add a regular spot in the Bulls’ starting rotation and this could be an easy one.
Sleeper – Bub Carrington (+5000)
After starting just over half of the games last season, Carrington should be the everyday point guard for the Wizards. You can expect that squad to put up putrid numbers this year and be fighting for a handful of wins. However, with that being said, someone has to score. In April last year, Carrington posted over 17 points per game. That might just be enough to steal this one.
If you’d like even more picks for the 2025 NBA Awards, be sure to check out the Sports Gambling Podcast. The guys are dropping plenty of episodes to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar.
