Zion Williamson Has Second-Best NBA Rookie Of The Year Odds, Ja Morant Still Favored For 2020 Award

The latest betting odds suggest that missing the first half of the season hasn’t taken Zion Williamson out of the race for Rookie of the Year. Only Ja Morant is given a better chance to win the award, following the debut of the No. 1 overall draft pick.

Morant is a heavy favorite with -500 odds at DraftKings Sportsbook. He’s played 37 more games than the former Duke star. Williamson is a relative long shot at +1000, but he’s ahead of all other first-year players.

Kendrick Nunn (+1200) and Tyler Herro (+2500) of the Miami Heat, as well as the New York Knicks’ R.J. Barrett (+1400), are the only other rookies that are considered to be potential Rookie of the Year contenders.

Williamson was the odds-on Rookie of the Year favorite shortly after the 2019 NBA Draft. It only took him a few quarters to remind everyone why that was the case.

After a slow start, Williamson took over Wednesday night’s game between the New Orleans Pelicans and San Antonio Spurs. The 19-year-old scored 17 straight points in a little over three minutes, going 4-4 from three-point range. A 12-point deficit at the beginning of the fourth quarter briefly turned into a Pelicans lead.

New Orleans lost 121-117 as Williamson watched from the bench for the final 5:23 because of a minutes restriction. He finished the game with 22 points, seven rebounds, three assists and five turnovers while shooting 8-11 from the field.

Zion Williamson New Orleans Pelicans — Zion Williamson #1 of the New Orleans Pelicans reacts after making a three-point shot against the San Antonio Spurs at Smoothie King Center on January 22, 2020 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Williamson averaged 23.3 points and 6.5 rebounds per game in four preseason games. He shot 71.4% from the field.

It’s hard to believe he’ll be good enough in the second half of the season to get more votes than Morant. The No. 2 overall pick is a fringe All-Star candidate. He’s averaging 17.5 points, 7.0 assists and 3.4 rebounds per game while shooting 48.7% from the field.

Morant has led the Memphis Grizzlies to a half-game out of the West’s No. 8 seed. New Orleans is 3.5 games behind Memphis.

Joel Embiid finished third in the 2017 Rookie of the Year voting with 23 of a possible 100 first-place votes, despite only playing in 31 games. Malcolm Brogdon played 75 games and won the award that year.