NBA Awards voting has become polarizing, political and pricey.
Between players’ contract value being tied to All-NBA teams and exhausting filibuster-style petitions for Defensive Player of the Year happening on a nightly basis, someone has to dive in and actually make a decision.
NBA media has sent out awards ballots virtually, with a due date of April 18.
Those voters are the ones who will be calling the shots and dictating players’ bonuses – and even where people’s hard-earned money will be going.
Betting odds have been tracking these awards all season long, and some awards looked like foregone conclusions entering Friday.
Below, we dive into the 2025 final awards odds provided by BetMGM Sportsbook, which has tracked and taken real money on every NBA award throughout the season.
You’ll also see the predictions, with a confidence level, listed below.
2025 NBA Awards final odds
2025 NBA MVP final odds
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | -3000 |
| Nikola Jokic | +1000 |
Seemingly everyone over at The Ringer is voting for Nikola Jokic to win the MVP award, despite the odds clearly going the other direction.
It appears that Bill Simmons, Michael Pina and Ryen Russillo intend to vote for the Nuggets’ big man to win it this year, but don’t expect that to be who is crowned MVP come June.
A few notable voters who claimed that they would be voting for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander include Yahoo! Sports’ Kevin O’Connor and CBS Sports’ Bill Reiter and James Herbert.
Prediction: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – Confidence Level: 9
2025 Defensive Player of the Year final odds
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Draymond Green | -450 |
| Evan Mobley | +350 |
| Luguentz Dort | +600 |
| Dyson Daniels | +4000 |
Of the few voters who have stated their intention for awards voting, a few have swung and missed.
O’Connor said he intends to — or already has — voted for Rockets second-year forward Amen Thompson, who was completely off the board at close.
He essentially voted for the Green Party in this highly contested, wildly entertaining race.
Yahoo Sports’ Tom Haberstroh, who may or may not have voted, also says he would pick Thompson to win, but he hasn’t had a vote in years past.
Green has been getting a ton of heat for pushing his case on “The Draymond Green Show,” which it seems has upset some gatekeeping writers and podcasters.
His odds did rocket in March, from 50/1 to favorite status in just three weeks, but those aren’t nonsense.
The loudmouth defensive stalwart is certainly worthy – although it feels like he is being penalized for pushing his own narrative.
It’ll be intriguing to see how they view his candidacy in the advanced stats metrics.
Green has second-favorite Evan Mobley beaten in individual defensive rating, opponent field goal percentage and team defensive rating.
The Warriors’ star covers up a lot of holes on defense and is a fine pick for Defensive Player of the Year.
It’s impossible to put any sort of confidence on anyone to win this race.
Prediction: Draymond Green – Confidence Level: 1
Rookie of the Year final odds
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Stephon Castle | -1600 |
| Zaccharie Risacher | 10/1 |
| Alexandre Sarr | 13/1 |
| Zach Edey | 125/1 |
| Jaylen Wells | 150/1 |
Only a handful of balloters have put their hats in on Rookie of the Year, but if the early returns tell you anything it’s clear who is winning.
Had 76ers guard Jared McCain not been injured, he seemingly would have run away with the award.
The injury all but hands the honor to Victor Wembanyama’s new running mate, Stephon Castle.
So far, everyone but ESPN’s Tim Bontemps has voted Castle’s way. He should run away with this.
Prediction: Stephon Castle – Confidence level: 10
Most Improved Player of the Year final odds
| Player | Osds |
|---|---|
| Dyson Daniels | -1250 |
| Cade Cunningham | +400 |
| Christian Braun | 150/1 |
| Evan Movely | 250/1 |
| Tyler Herro | 250/1 |
Cade Cunningham was the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, which seems to have soured some voters.
O’Connor gave the vote to Cade Cunningham on his show, while Daniels has been given the nod by Reiter.
Interestingly, Ivica Zubac was given three first-place votes, two by The Ringer and one by CBS Sports.
Zubac was not on the board at BetMGM at the time of the odds close.
This award is calculated differently than MVP, with first, second- and third-place votes being worth points. The player with the most points wins.
Prediction: Dyson Daniels – Confidence Level: 9
NBA Sixth Man of the Year final odds
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Payton Pritchard | -1400 |
| Malik Beasley | +500 |
| Russell Westbrook | 66/1 |
Malik Beasley had an incredible season with the Pistons, starting in 18 games and playing in all 82.
Payton Pritchard comes in as a true bench player, starting in just three games.
Early polling and balloters have a clear Pritchard position, with six voters having given the Celtics guard all first-place votes.
Prediction: Payton Pritchard – Confidence Level: 10
NBA Coach of the Year final odds
| Coach | Odds |
|---|---|
| Kenny Atkinson | -325 |
| J.B. Bickerstaff | +200 |
| Mark Daigneault | 22/1 |
There are several coaches who deserve this award in 2025.
Ime Udoka, JJ Redick and Joe Mazzulla are all worthy coaches who should get votes.
Just five voters have planted a Coach of the Year flag, with four of those five selecting Kenny Atkinson.
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At one point Atkinson was as high as -1000 to win the award, and it seems that he will be a clear winner here after a strong season for the surprising Cavaliers.
Closing as a -325 favorite was certainly good value as he looks to be trending as the clear winner.
Prediction: Kenny Atkinson – Confidence Level: 9
Why Trust New York Post Betting
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