Betting Odds to Win the Men’s Wooden Award 2024

College basketball is about to be back in action, which means that the men’s 2024 Wooden Award odds are available. The honor that recognizes the most outstanding collegiate male player every year. You can now bet on several talented candidates.

Will Purdue center Zach Edey claim the Wooden Award in back-to-back seasons? Can Duke center Kyle Filipowski or anyone else challenge him? I want to analyze the main favorites and share my Wooden Award predictions.

• School: Purdue
• Position: Center
• Age: 21

It’s no surprise that the best basketball betting sites favor Edey to win the Wooden Award. The 21-year-old center put up massive numbers during his junior season for Purdue, averaging 22.3 points and 12.9 rebounds per game.

Edey opted to spend another year in college instead of entering the 2023 NBA Draft. Purdue’s lackluster performance in the NCAA Division I tournament was likely a factor in his decision. His team became just the second No. 1 seed in history to lose during the first round.

Last season, Edey was the recipient of several prestigious honors. He was the winner of the Pete Newell Big Man and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Awards. Edey was also voted Big Ten Player of the Year in 2022-23.

The center should be just as good this year as he was in 2022-23. He’s tall, efficient, and makes minimal mistakes on both ends of the court. Edey isn’t the most versatile player on offense, but he can score a lot of points consistently.

Unfortunately, recent history doesn’t favor Edey’s chances of winning it again. No one has captured consecutive Wooden Awards since the early 1980s. Ralph Simpson was the last player to go back-to-back when he won in 1981 and 1982.

• School: Duke
• Position: Center
• Age: 19

Kyle Filipowski is the second most likely player to win the Wooden Award in 2024, if we trust the bookies. However, the odds indicate that he won’t have it easy with Edey returning to Purdue. Filipowski also opted to remain in college instead of entering the NBA Draft.

During his freshman year at Duke, Filipowski played extremely well. He averaged 15.1 points per game and earned Second-Team All-ACC honors. Filipowski also showed potential as a shooter, converting 28.2% of his three-point attempts last season.

Retaining Filipowski also benefits the Blue Devils immensely this season. The roster now is dynamic and good enough to contend for a Division I title. Filipowski will need help from his teammates and better splits from outside, however, to be a candidate for the Wooden Award.

• School: Kansas
• Position: Center
• Age: 22

Hunter Dickinson decided to leave Michigan and take his talents to Kansas. He now plays for a much more competitive college team with aspirations of winning a Division I title. The center will likely see his production increase under head coach Bill Self.

Dickinson averaged 18.5 points per game in 2022-23 when he played for the Wolverines. He also shot 42.1% on three-pointers, which is very efficient for a player at his position. While in college, Dickinson earned two First-Team All-Big Ten selections.

Defensively, the new Kansas center showed a lot of improvement during his junior season. His career-highs included rebounds (9.0) and blocks (1.8) per game. Similar to Filipowski, Dickinson will also have a strong supporting cast around him.

Michigan wasn’t good last season, which raises questions about Dickinson’s role in the team underperforming. He’s obviously in a much better situation playing for Kansas. However, I also wonder if the Jayhawks will give him enough minutes to contend for the Wooden Award.

• School: North Carolina
• Position: Center
• Age: 23

Armando Bacot is behind in the betting odds to win the Wooden Award in 2024. However, he still has an outside chance of claiming it if he puts together a spectacular season. The center enters his fifth season at North Carolina, having played 132 college games in his career so far.

The numbers from Bacot were pretty solid in 2022-23. He averaged 15.9 points and 10.4 rebounds per game. Bacot earned First-Team All-ACC honors but also dealt with ankle injuries throughout the season.

I also have my doubts about Bacot, and that’s because North Carolina didn’t perform well in 2022-23. The team couldn’t get past the quarterfinal of the ACC tournament despite having a talented roster. Ultimately, it was a forgettable season.

Can Bacot play a big role in getting North Carolina back on track? I think the Tar Heels will play better this year and contend for a conference title. However, for Bacot to win the Wooden Award, he would have to set career-highs in scoring and rebounding.

• School: Marquette
• Position: Point Guard
• Age: 22

Tyler Kolek is a long shot to claim the Wooden Award but just had a breakout season in 2022-23 that earned him several impressive accolades. The PG won Big East Player of the Year and was a Third-Team All-American selection.

During the Big East tournament last season, Kolek was sensational. He averaged 18.7 points per game and won the Most Outstanding Player award for the tournament. Marquette also won a conference title, which was largely due to Kolek’s efforts.

Here’s my issue with Kolek: he didn’t put up the biggest numbers in 2022-23. He scored 12.9 points per game, which didn’t even rank in the top 100 of all Division I players. The guy needs to improve his statistical output significantly to contend.

• School: UConn
• Position: Center
• Age: 19

Donovan Clingan is another tall player in the mix to win the Wooden Award. The young sophomore center stands at 7-foot-2 and has a 90-inch wingspan. The center also became a Division I champion after just one season in college.

During his freshman year, Clingan didn’t start a single game, although he was UConn’s best bench player. He averaged 6.9 points and 5.6 rebounds despite playing just 13 minutes per game. Clingan played his best while protecting the rim and finished the season with 70 blocks.

The center’s opportunities will increase dramatically during his sophomore season. He could easily average over 20 points and 10 rebounds per game as a starter. I expect UConn to maximize his potential and feed him the ball a lot more often.

Could Clingan win the Wooden Award this year if he’s a full-time starter? I think it’s possible, but bookies don’t appear to be very confident in his chances. I would keep an eye on Clingan as the odds begin to shift around.

I’ll be honest — betting against Edey is hard to justify. He’s the safest option because he’s a dominant force in college basketball. Winning back-to-back Wooden Awards is rare, but I think Edey’s the one player who can make it happen. At the same time, the odds are simply abysmal, and I don’t recommend placing a wager on him.

I thought about picking Dickinson because he’s in a really great position to win the Wooden Award. However, he’s also made it clear that his desire is to claim a national championship. I just think that Dickinson’s main incentive is to win games rather than winning awards.

That leaves me with one good option – Donovan Clingan. The odds of +3000 are insane for a player who was insanely productive in his first year. If the center can keep the same efficiency for 25+ minutes per game, he has a realistic shot at collecting the Wooden Award 2024.