Rookie of the Year Watch: Wembanyama Triple-Double Highlights Solid Week for Rooks
There were plenty of interesting developments in the tight, three-man (for now) race for Rookie of the Year, some of which can and will impact your NBA betting picks. Let’s take a look at the past week or so for the trio of candidates.
Here’s a look at some NBA games odds to consider!
Victor Wembanyama, San Antonio Spurs
Twenty-one minutes. Again, 21 minutes. That’s all it took for Wembanyama to record his first career triple-double at Detroit on Wednesday. He only shot 6-for-16, but Wemby was in the middle of everything in what resulted in San Antonio’s easiest win of the season.
Amazingly, the outstanding effort was also the first game of his young career in which he had zero steals AND zero rebounds.
Still, this was another stretch in which it became clearer that Wembanyama is figuring out the NBA game. Consider that his true shooting percentage has risen by month, from 52.3 in November to 53.9 in December to 58.4 this month. That’s a sign of a guy learning how to find space and when to jack one up, elements of his game that will only get better.
Wembanyama aims for just the second winning streak of his young career when his Spurs host the Charlotte Hornets on Friday night. With the way he and his team are slowly improving, it’s a great time to make some NBA basketball picks in favor of the home team.
Chet Holmgren, Oklahoma Thunder
In just the same way that Wembanyama is learning how to play on the offensive end, Holmgren is finding his spots at a better rate as well. His true shooting percentage has also gone up each month, and they’re much loftier numbers: 63.8 … 64.2 … 70.3.
He needed just 20 minutes to pick up 19 points in Oklahoma City’s historic rout of Portland on Wednesday, his 17th straight game in double figures. Holmgren leads all rookies in points and remains just behind Wemby in rebounds and blocks.
Personal stuff aside, Holmgren’s Thunder is doing some pretty incredible things at the sportsbook. They are an NBA-best 25-11-1 against the spread, including 15-5 at home, where they’ll host a banged-up Orlando team playing on the second night of a back-to-back on Saturday. That’s a great opportunity to go big on Holmgren and OKC with some NBA betting.
Take A Look At These Other 2 NBA Special Articles
- Rookie of the Year Watch: Jaquez Makes Push at Top Honor
- Rookie of the Year Watch: Wembanyama Taking Over
Jaime Jaquez Jr., Miami Heat
He remains a fixture in the Heat’s starting five due to the continued absence of Jimmy Butler, as well as physical issues for Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin. And there’s no indication that the unexpected heavy minutes (most among rookies) are having any sort of impact.
Jaquez is averaging 15.2 points on 53.7% shooting during his current run of five straight starts. He’s buried 4 of 7 3-pointers over the last two games after a recent semi-cold stretch from the arc. And he continues to lead all of the NBA in fourth-quarter minutes, a category in which Wembanyama and Holmgren rank 83rd and 56th, respectively.
Jaquez has played 96 straight games going back to his college career. He’s the only Heat player to appear in every contest this season. Indeed, the rookie is gaining a reputation as a true workhorse.
Holmgren outscored Jaquez 23-21 and outrebounded him 9-5 in OKC’s win at Miami the other night. That very slight margin in production goes in line with the narrowing gap among Las Vegas odds makers between Jaquez and the favorites for ROY.
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Questions Of The Day
Who's currently the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year, and by what margin?
Wembanyama, but not by much. Recent books have him at +150, with Holmgren sitting at -210.
Have any rookies stepped up in the absence of injured veterans on their teams?
Several, most notably Jaquez. He figured to be a rotation piece when the season began for Miami, but perhaps a 15-minute guy. Here he is in mid-January leading the team in games, minutes, and steals.
The odds and predictions in the article are based on the time of writing and publication. They may differ as to when the actual event takes place.
