The lottery picks from the NBA Draft dominate the NBA Rookie of the Year odds ahead of the tip-off of the 2025-26 season. Cooper Flagg, the number one pick, is the favorite to follow in Paige Bueckers’ footsteps and bring the ROTY to Dallas.
This guide analyzes the latest NBA ROTY odds for this season. I will discuss the leading favorites and give my best bets to win Rookie of the Year this year in the NBA.
NBA Rookie of the Year 2025-26 Winner Odds
See the table below for the latest NBA Rookie of the Year betting odds, courtesy of Bovada Sportsbook.
| Player | Odds |
|---|---|
| Cooper Flagg | -190 |
| Tre Johnson | +725 |
| Ace Bailey | +850 |
| VJ Edgecombe | +900 |
| Dylan Harper | +1000 |
| Kon Knueppel | +2200 |
| Hansen Yang | +2800 |
| Kasparas Jakucionis | +3000 |
| Walter Clayton Jr. | +3800 |
| Egor Demin | +4000 |
Flagg was a prohibitive favorite to be the first pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. So, it should not be surprising that Flagg is the -190 favorite to win Rookie of the Year this season.
At his current odds, the youngster has an implied win probability of 65.52%. He is the only rookie with better than +700 odds to win the award.
The next closest player in the ROTY odds at top NBA betting sites is Tre Johnson at +725. Johnson was selected by the Washington Wizards with the sixth pick in the draft. Ace Bailey and VJ Edgecombe also have shorter than 10-1 odds at +850 and +900, respectively.
Dylan Harper, who was drafted ahead of Johnson, Edgecombe, and Bailey, rounds out the top five at +1000.
View the latest odds and bet on your 2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year predictions by going to Bovada > Sports > Basketball > NBA Awards > Rookie of the Year.
NBA Rookie of the Year Betting Favorites for 2025-26
Let’s take a closer look at the top favorites in the current NBA ROTY betting odds.
Cooper Flagg (-190)
Flagg’s lone season at Duke failed to produce a National Championship, but the talented small forward still walked away with plenty of hardware. Some of the awards Flagg won as a freshman for the Blue Devils included:
-
- National College Player of the Year
- Lute Olson Award (most outstanding player)
- Julius Irving Award (best SF)
- Wayman Tisdale Award (best freshman)
- ACC Male Athlete of the Year
- ACC Player of the Year
He was also First-Team All-ACC, ACC Rookie of the Year, and named to the ACC All-Defensive Team.
THREE #1 PICKS ARE JOINING FORCES 🤠@AntDavis23 x @KyrieIrving x @Cooper_Flagg pic.twitter.com/kMn8uzCogB
— NBA (@NBA) September 29, 2025
Flagg made an immediate impact at Duke and could be in a similar position this year. Kyrie Irving tore his ACL in March and is unlikely to play until late in the regular season at the earliest. Anthony Davis is healthy, for now, but has a long list of injuries on his resume.
Playing significant minutes will be key to Flagg’s chances of winning ROTY. Given their current and likely future injuries, the Mavs will need Flagg to be productive when he is on the court, which will further enhance his ROTY chances.
Tre Johnson (+725)
The rookie with the best odds of keeping Flagg from winning ROTY is Tre Johnson. Bovada lists Johnson at +725 to win ROTY this season.
Johnson’s implied win probability is set at 12.12%, significantly behind Flagg’s 65.52%.
Tre Johnson On Getting Drafted:
"Dream Come True. Everything You Look Forward To Since Being A Kid" pic.twitter.com/7IBjo1tAeD
— WizardsMuse (@WizardsMuse1) September 28, 2025
The good news for Johnson is that he has much lower expectations to live up to than Flagg. Mavericks fans are expecting Flagg to replace Luka Doncic. Johnson, on the other hand, joins a Wizards team with little to no expectations this year.
In his one season at Texas, Johnson averaged:
-
- 9 PPG
- 1 RPG
- 7 APG
- 7% on 3-point shots
Johnson joins a Washington team that finished 18-64 last season. The lack of expectations and media coverage will make it challenging for Johnson to stand out and garner support for ROTY.
Ace Bailey (+850)
Rounding out the top three is Ace Bailey at +850 odds to win Rookie of the Year. The Rutgers alum was picked by Utah with the fifth overall selection.
Here is Ace Bailey's response on why he parted ways with previous agent Omar Cooper. ⬇️
Short and to the point. He just wants to play ball. 🏀 pic.twitter.com/GcsdOnDFrV
— SleeperJazz (@SleeperJazz) September 29, 2025
Bailey is in a similar position to Johnson as they head into their rookie seasons. Utah finished with the worst record in the league at 17-65. The talent-poor roster should afford Baily plenty of chances to play, but he will have little to no help in trying to make the Jazz relevant this season.
In his one year at Rutgers, Bailey put up the following stats:
-
- 6 PPG
- 2 RPG
- 3 APG
- 6% on 3-point shots
Bailey played 33.3 MPG and averaged 46.0% from the field. If he can produce at a similar rate in the NBA, he could see his odds of winning ROTY improve significantly.
Best NBA Rookie of the Year Sleepers in 2025-26
Anyone not named Cooper Flagg could be considered a sleeper NBA ROTY prediction. My top two dark horses for this year’s award are New Orleans’ Jeremiah Fears and Phoenix’s Khaman Maluach.
2025-26 NBA Rookie of the Year Prediction and Betting Pick
Cooper Flagg is the -190 favorite to win Rookie of the Year this season, and he is the best bet to win the award.
Usually, being drafted to a team with not one but two superstars would significantly reduce a rookie’s playing time. However, Kyrie Irving’s ACL injury and Anthony Davis’s long injury history all but guarantee Flagg will see the court early and often in his debut season.
Flagg will have the opportunities, and it will be up to him to make the most of them. If Flagg performs anywhere near the expectations, he will easily win ROTY this season.
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