Who’s the March Madness Favorite if Zion is out for Duke?

• Zion Williamson averages 22.4 points per game, 9.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists.
• The Duke Blue Devils had been 23-2 and the No. 1 team in the country before losing on Wednesday night to North Carolina.
• If Zion is out for a prolonged period, should Duke still be the NCAA Tournament favorite?

The Duke Blue Devils have long been favored to win March Madness 2019. Their hopes took a big hit on Wednesday, though, as star freshman Zion Williamson was lost to a knee injury a minute into their contest against No. 8 North Carolina.

Williamson’s timetable for return will be determined on Thursday.

If he’s out indefinitely – and possibly permanently – should Duke still be favored to win it all? As exhibited by the odds below, there’s a huge gap between Duke and the next teams in the odds.

2019 NCAA Tournament Odds

Will Zion Williamson Return at All?

One of the key aspects of this news is that it’s possible Williamson may have played his last game for the Blue Devils. That has to be factored as a possibility.

Williamson was always going to be a one-and-done; he has already proven what he needs to prove to be the top pick in the 2019 NBA Draft. NBA scouts are already salivating at getting their hands on the National Player of the Year favorite.

At worst, he’s a top-three pick. So that raises the question: why return?

Live look outside Zion Williamson’s dorm as students prays for his recovery… ?? pic.twitter.com/kq7dUIf339

— The Greek Sportsbook (@BetTheGreek) February 21, 2019

We saw a similar story play out with Nick Bosa of the Ohio State Buckeyes in college football. He got hurt early on and decide to save himself for the NFL. Williamson could decide that it’s not worth risking a serious injury – one that would cost him millions of dollars. He’s being paid nothing to play at Duke, so he has little to gain, but he does have quite a bit to lose.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski Says Injury Is Minor Knee Sprain

The best news of the day might have been the fact that Coach K reported after the game that Williamson suffered a minor knee sprain. More details are to come but the knee is stable, which is great news.

Coach K on Zion Williamson injury: “I’ve seen guys bust through shoes, but not sprain their knee. … The shoe burst.” Also said it wasn’t clear whether injury happened before or after shoe burst. pic.twitter.com/j5Aci5nJvc

— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) February 21, 2019

If that’s in fact true, Williamson might be out a maximum of a month. While that’s speculation, we tend to know that minor knee sprains take one-to-two weeks to recover while medium sprains take two-to-four weeks.

Should Duke Be Favored?

The answer lies in the medical report. If Williamson is to be out for a month or less, that means he’ll be back in time for the NCAA Tournament. The ACC Tournament starts on March 12^th and the Round of 64 matchups of the NCAA Tournament start on March 21^st. That means he’s got about a month.

Here’s the knee injury that ended Zion Williamson’s night…. pic.twitter.com/2gkKTq7gTl

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 21, 2019

If it’s a month or shorter, not much will change in the way of the betting lines. Duke still deserves to be favored. When healthy, they’ve been significantly better than the competition.

If Williamson is out a month or longer, that’s a game-changer and the field becomes wide open. It will be too big of an adjustment for the Blue Devils to lose the centerpiece of their offense and be expected to win the NCAA Tournament.