Even though the NBA season is complete, basketball fans can still wager on their favorite teams this week. The 2021 NBA draft takes place on Thursday night, and West Virginia sportsbooks are equipped with lots of betting markets.
Just like with the NFL draft, bettors can put action down on similar markets with the NBA draft. This year’s edition begins at 8 p.m. EST on July 29.
WV online sportsbooks feature a wide variety of ways to bet on the event.
The most popular market is usually which player will go first overall; however, that won’t be much of a surprise this year.
Oklahoma State’s Cade Cunningham is the consensus top choice, which belongs to the Detroit Pistons. Of course, WVU Mountaineer basketball fans will recall seeing their team bounced from the Big 12 tournament behind Cunningham’s notable performance of 17 points and eight rebounds.
While the odds vary at WV sportsbooks, he’s listed at around -7000 to be selected first overall.
Things get much more interesting after the top choice, though. There are several quality players in this year’s class, so there shouldn’t be any shortage of trades.
Teams are looking to move up to grab some elite talent, while others attempt to move back to acquire more draft picks.
Let’s break down the available odds for the 2021 NBA draft and see how Thursday night’s festivities might shake out.
2021 NBA Draft Odds At WV Sportsbooks
If you somehow believe that Cunningham won’t hear his name first, then you can capitalize on some favorable odds for the other players.
Jalen Green, from the NBA’s G League, has the second-best odds at DraftKings Sportsbook WV. He’s available at +1500.
The online sportsbook lists only two other players with odds even worth considering for the top spot.
USC’s Evan Mobley and Gonzaga’s Jalen Suggs both have odds of +2500 for the first overall pick.
You can take each of these players for the second and third picks as well.
Green is the clear favorite at -400, with Mobley at +350 and Suggs with odds of +800.
If those results hold true, Mobley is likely to get drafted with the third choice. DraftKings has him at -245, while Green is +275 and Suggs is at +350.
Naturally, lots of mock drafts differ, but most have some variation of these four going with Thursday’s first few picks.
Betting odds for the fifth selection get really intriguing. Through trades, which occur much more often than in the NFL, plenty of players could go here.
Even though Florida State’s Scottie Barnes is logical at -230, there’s lots of value elsewhere.
FanDuel Sportsbook WV shows the following odds for which other players could be taken fifth overall:
- James Bouknight +320
- Suggs +380
- Jonathan Kuminga +400
- Green +2300
- Mobley +2300
- Moses Moody +2900
- Keon Johnson +2900
- Alperen Sengun +3400
- Josh Giddey +3400
- Franz Wagner +3400
WVU Basketball In The NBA Draft
Despite WVU not having a player projected to get drafted in the lottery, Miles McBride will likely provide lots of production at the next level.
The former Mountaineer confirmed his status at the beginning of the month, while Sean McNeil chose to stay in Morgantown for another season.
McBride heads for the NBA after taking the reins as one of the team’s leaders this past campaign. He led WVU in scoring and assists last year, totaling nearly 16 points and five dimes per game.
At DraftKings, McBride is available for a couple of different markets.
His draft position is slated at 29.5 for Thursday night. You’re able to take the under on that at -135, compared to the over with odds of +100.
Although it might seem a little weird, betting the under for this market means that McBride is taken within the first 29 picks.
With so many trades typically happening on draft night, it’s very difficult to project where he might go. At the moment, the Phoenix Suns own the 29th selection, while the Utah Jazz are at No. 30.
One of the potential benefits of going later in the opening round is that McBride could land on a competent team.
This could drastically affect how his rookie season, and beyond, might turn out. According to DraftKings, McBride’s odds to win the Rookie of the Year are +6000.
It’s always tough to predict how college players will perform in the pros, but McBride has the skill to make it in the NBA. He’s able to create his own shot for himself and his teammates, and that usually translates well at the next level.
2021 NBA Draft Props
In addition to choosing who gets drafted at the beginning of the night, most sportsbooks are offering some other props.
Currently, DraftKings has more than 50 different players available under its Player Draft Position market. You can bet on all of these prospects’ over/under for where the online sportsbook sees their draft spot.
First-round guys like Baylor’s Davion Mitchell are posted at pick 12.5, with the under at -125 and the over with odds of -105.
Others, like Texas’ Greg Brown, are slated for much later in the draft. He’s available at -115 for both the over and under at pick 45.5.
Bettors can even put action down on a couple of head-to-head matchups for who will get drafted first.
The online sportsbook has Stanford’s Ziaire Williams (-130) as the slight favorite over Kentucky’s Isaiah Jackson (+100).
You can also take Duke forward Jalen Johnson (-125) over the Longhorns’ Kai Jones (-105).
Other common props up at WV sportsbooks include deciding the first three or four picks in exact order.
The grouping of Cunningham, Green and Mobley is the favored choice, but just a slight variation involving an underdog could net you a quality payout.
