Chet vs. Jabari: Who's The Betting Odds Favorite For Magic's No. 1 Pick?

It's a back-and-forth affair.

Jeremy Brener | May 24, 2022

Chet vs. Jabari: Who's The Betting Odds Favorite For Magic's No. 1 Pick? /

Chet Holmgren and Jabari Smith are in a two-horse race to become the Orlando Magic's No. 1 overall selection in next month's NBA Draft.

Chet Holmgren

Jabari vs. Chet

Jabari Smith

It's one of the tightest races we've seen in a while, as both players have pros and cons to becoming the newest member of the Orlando Magic.

Holmgren can play the four or five and could complement Wendell Carter Jr. well as a high-low combo. He also has a very strong defensive IQ that could make him one of the league's best defenders once he puts on a little more weight. He also has proven success with last year's top pick Jalen Suggs, his former high school teammate.

Smith is more NBA-ready than Holmgren and can be the exact 3-and-D player that every team in the league wants. In his lone season at Auburn, Smith averaged 16.9 points per game while shooting 42 percent from the perimeter. Smith is also a full year younger than Holmgren, which could be a reason to lean his way.

According to the DraftKings Sportsbook, Smith is a slight favorite over Holmgren with -125 odds. Holmgren isn't too far behind, sitting at +125 odds, but both big men have created quite the gap between them and the field, with the next-closest player being Duke's Paolo Banchero at +600 odds.

Jamahl Mosley

Both Holmgren and Smith can succeed with the Magic, but neither are locks to be the No. 1 pick. This means the Magic have a very interesting month of back-and-forth ahead of them, with Smith taking the early lead.

Published May 24, 2022

JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.