Lauri Markkanen given 33/1 odds to be NBA Rookie of the Year

Not much love for the 7th overall pick

After seeing the rookies perform in NBA Summer League, Bovada has updated its odds for the Rookie of the Year award.

Lauri Markkanen is in the conversation — barely.

The former Arizona Wildcats forward was given 33/1 odds to win the award, tied for the worst odds among listed players.

Here is the full list:

Lonzo Ball, Los Angeles Lakers — 5/2

Dennis Smith, Dallas Mavericks — 3/1

Ben Simmons, Philadelphia 76ers — 7/2

Jayson Tatum, Boston Celtics — 5/1

Markelle Fultz, Washington Huskies — 9/1

De’Aaron Fox, Sacramento Kings — 9/1

Josh Jackson, Kansas Jayhawks — 16/1

Malik Monk, Charlotte Hornets — 16/1

John Collins, Atlanta Hawks — 33/1

Jonathan Isaac, Orlando Magic — 33/1

Justin Jackson, Sacramento Kings — 33/1

Lauri Markkanen, Chicago Bulls — 33/1

Markkanen, selected seventh overall by the Chicago Bulls, averaged 14 points and 9 rebounds per game on 29.3 percent shooting in three Las Vegas Summer League games, before sitting out the final two games with a toe injury.

The Finn’s stats are skewed negatively because he shot 1-13 from the field in one game. The other two, he shot a respectable 11-28 from the field (6-15 from 3).

Markkanen should have plenty of opportunities to see the floor for the rebuilding Bulls in his rookie season, but evidently expectations aren’t that high for the 7-footer.

In fact, on BlogABull.com — SB Nation’s Chicago Bulls site — they are already debating if the Bulls made the wrong pick.

So are folks in the national media.

“This is going to shock you, but a player whom most draft experts thought wasn’t one of the seven best players in the draft class … didn’t look like one of the seven best players in the draft class,” wrote Henry Bushnell of Yahoo! Sports.

“Markkanen converted less than 30 percent of his shots, was a minus offensively, and generally didn’t look comfortable on either end. That’s to be expected, to some extent, but it shouldn’t make Bulls fans feel much better about what was already a questionable pick.

“It’s possible we’re falling victim to confirmation bias here, and judging Markkanen’s performance harshly simply because we’re looking for evidence that the pick was a mistake. On the plus side, Markkanen did pull down nine rebounds per game. And the poor shooting is as much a product of the small sample size as anything. But the Finnish big man didn’t stand out like other top-10 picks did.”

When Bovada first released its Rookie of the Year odds on June 23, Markkanen was listed at 22/1.

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Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

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