Hawks’ De’Andre Hunter & Cam Reddish See Their 2020 NBA Rookie of the Year Odds Continue Worsening

• As the NBA season nears, De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish, both of the Atlanta Hawks’ 2019 NBA Draft lottery picks. have seen their average ROY odds plummet
• Hunter has gone from an average of +1800 to +2400
• Reddish has dropped from an average of +3500 to +4000

De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish were both selected in the top 10 of the 2019 NBA Draft, but of the two Atlanta Hawks rookies, only Hunter is barely hanging on to a top ten spot in the 2019-20 NBA Rookie of the Year odds.

In fact, each has seen their average odds to capture NBA ROY take a nosedive over the summer.

Hunter’s odds to win have gone from +1800 to +2400. The betting markets on Reddish taking the award dipped from +3500 to +4000.

2019-20 NBA Rookie Of The Year Odds

Odds taken on 08/28/19.

No Atlanta player has ever won the NBA rookie of the year award.

Hunter’s Resume Is Impressive

At Virginia, Hunter won an NCAA Championship. He was first team All ACC and third team All-American. Both the NABC and the ACC voted him their defensive player of the year in 2018-19.

Where Hunter falls off in NBA ROY consideration is in his offensive numbers. He was the #2 scoring option for the Cavaliers last season and posted just 15.2 points per game.

Those are solid numbers but aren’t going to get Hunter into a rookie race where individual stats are first and foremost always the determining force in the balloting for the award.

Hunter is a solid two-way player. But he’s joining a young team where sophomore point guard Trae Young (19.1 points per game), and third-year power forward John Collins (19.5 PPG) will drive the offense and put up numbers.

1⃣2⃣#TrueToAtlanta | @drehunter_ pic.twitter.com/Ux46Ol6CYM

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) August 5, 2019

Hunter figures to be a solid player but he won’t be offered the chance to do enough individually on the floor to be a factor in the NBA ROY race.

Reddish Is A Wild Card

No player was as capable to set one scout to salivating and another to seething than Reddish. You either loved him and were 100 percent on board, or you despised everything about him as a player.

Which rookie will have the best career?

Cam Reddish (19%)
Ja Morant (16%)
De'Andre Hunter (11%)
R.J. Barrett (5%)
Jaxson Hayes (5%)
Coby White (5%)
Zion Williamson (5%) pic.twitter.com/GtyHYTRtt9

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) August 19, 2019

Surprisingly, in a recent poll of NBA rookies, Reddish got the most votes to enjoy the best NBA career. Eight among the 42 rookies put the former Duke forward on top of this list, good for a poll-high 19 percent. Hunter (11 percent) also fared well.

Physically, Reddish is 6-foot-7 with a 7’1″ wingspan and 8’9″ standing reach. He’s equipped with a smooth shooting stroke, can defend numerous positions and score from almost anywhere on the floor.

What’s not to like? Well, for starters, his motivation. Critics insist that Reddish gets by on his natural talent and doesn’t possess the killer instinct to put in the work required to become an NBA star.

He’ll be coming off the bench for the Hawks. In a season rich with rookie talent, you can count out guys who aren’t starters.

Who Wins The NBA Rookie of the Year?

Here’s a stat to keep in mind when placing an NBA rookie of the year bet. Combine a player’s points per game, rebounds per game and assists per game. The player with the highest total of these three categories has won 15 of the last 18 NBA ROY awards.

A legends welcome back to @MSURacers ?@JaMorant pic.twitter.com/ZwTSm9F1Vb

— Memphis Grizzlies (@memgrizz) August 23, 2019

Based on last year’s numbers in those three departments, the best bet to win this season would be guard Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies.

He added up to 40.2 in those three departments last season, significantly better than both Zion Williamson (33.6) of the Pelicans and RJ Barrett (34.5) of the Knicks.