Jalen Suggs Goes from +8000 to +825 in Wooden Award Player of the Year Odds

• Gonzaga freshman point guard Jalen Suggs’ odds to win the Wooden Award have improved from +8000 to +850 in the last week
• Iowa center Luka Garza remains the prohibitive favorite at -350
• Read below for the latest odds and betting advice

Jalen Suggs is making quite an impression on the oddsmakers during the early stages of his career.

The Gonzaga freshman guard’s odds to win the Wooden Award have improved from +8000 all the way to +825 in the span of just one week.

While Iowa center Luka Garza is still the prohibitive favorite with his Wooden Award odds at -350, Suggs is now clearly on the radar. Only Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu stands between Garza and Suggs in the latest odds.

Odds to Win 2020-21 Wooden Award

Odds taken Dec. 24 from FanDuel

Suggs’ Sensational Start

Suggs has played a big role in top-ranked Gonzaga getting off to a 6-0 start.

The 6-foot-4 native of West St. Paul, Minn., leads the team in assists (5.8 a game), steals (2.3) and is third in scoring (16.3) and rebounding (5.7). He’s also shooting 56.9% from the field and 50% from 3-point range.

In a 99-88 win over then-No. 3 Iowa last Saturday, Suggs stole the show in a star-studded matchup that included Garza, Iowa’s Joe Wieskamp and Gonzaga’s Corey Kispert and Drew Timme.

Jalen Suggs put the basketball world on notice today against No. 3 Iowa 🥶 @JalenSuggs2020

27 points (7/10 3PT)
7 rebounds
4 assists
3 steals
1 block

THE REAL DEAL 🗣

(via @CBSSportsCBB)pic.twitter.com/snBVLxowGZ

— Overtime (@overtime) December 19, 2020

Suggs made seven of 10 shots from 3-point range on his way to a career-high 27 points. He also had seven rebounds, four assists and three steals.

While Garza registered a double-double with 30 points and 10 rebounds, Suggs clearly made the biggest impression. In fact, in the days since that game, talk of Suggs being the first overall pick in next year’s NBA Draft has started to increase.

Suggs has scored at least 12 points in five of his six games. Even when West Virginia held him to four points on Dec. 2, Suggs still made an impact with six rebounds, five assists and three steals.

Garza The Favorite

Garza remains the favorite and rightfully so. He entered the season considered the best player in college basketball and has lived up to those expectations.

In helping Iowa start 7-1, Garza is averaging 28.4 points and 9.1 rebounds a game. He is also having an outstanding shooting season, connecting on 67.5% of his field goal attempts and 58.6% of his three-pointers.

🌧 @LukaG_55 rains down a 3 for @IowaHoops as the 2nd half gets underway vs Purdue pic.twitter.com/5jHuwkCnM4

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) December 23, 2020

Garza has surpassed 30 points four times and scored at least 22 points in seven games. His best effort was a 41-point game in a victory over Southern in which he was 14 of 15 from the floor, 3 of 3 from 3-point range and 10 of 10 from the foul line.

Dosunmu In The Mix

Dosunmu is certainly making his case for the Wooden honor in helping Illinois to a 6-3 record.

He leads the Fighting Illini with 23.4 points and 5.2 rebounds a game and is second in rebounding with a 7.8 average. Dosunmu is also a 51.6% field goal shooting and making 38.7% of his attempts from beyond the arc.

Ayo Dosunmu led Illinois with 30 points and got the W over Penn St. 😤 @AyoDos_11

The talented Junior guard is currently averaging 22.6 points, 5.3 assists and 8 rebounds this season 👀 pic.twitter.com/PhrzjYWkro

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) December 24, 2020

Dosunmu’s top scoring performance this season was 36 points in a loss at Missouri. He has at least 18 points in seven of eight games and recorded three double-doubles.

Overshadowed By Teammates?

One factor that could hurt Suggs in his bid to win the Wooden Award is that he plays on a star-studded team that also includes Kispert and Timme.

With so much talent on the roster, Suggs might not be able to compile the statistics needed to capture the national honor. Heck, he might not even wind up being the best player on his own team.

Kispert (20.8) and Timme (20.3) are both averaging over 20 points a game. Timme also has a 7.5 rebounding average and Kispert’s is 5.0.

It's crazy that Gonzaga has Jalen Suggs and Corey Kispert, who have been ridiculous on offense to start the year, but then they also have a big like Drew Timme who can just grab rebounds, push the pace himself, and make good decisions in transition. Such a great team. pic.twitter.com/0AG8m5AsHn

— Zach Milner (@ZachMilner13) December 22, 2020

Garza is still clearly the pick to win, but a potential value play is Arizona State senior guard Remy Martin at +8000. He’s coming on strong after a slow start and is the best player on a team with a good shot at winning the Pac-12.