Where Mavs’ Jaden Hardy Ranks in ROY Betting Odds

The 20-year-old guard may have been drafted in the second round, but Vegas thinks he’s a top-10 candidate for Rookie of the Year.

When it comes to promising young prospects, 20-year-old Jaden Hardy might be the best one on the Dallas Mavericks’ roster — Luka Doncic is 23 years old, but he’s already a bonafide superstar and not considered a “prospect” anymore.

Despite being the No. 37 pick in the NBA Draft, many are expecting Hardy to perform at a lottery-pick level during his rookie season with the Mavs.

According to FanDuel Sportsbook, Hardy currently has the seventh-best odds to win Rookie of the Year. The confidence being shown in Hardy shouldn’t come as a surprise for two reasons:

1) He was the No. 2 overall ranked player and No. 1 ranked guard on ESPN’s list of top recruits in 2021.

2) He landed on a team that might actually need him to produce early and often. With Spencer Dinwiddie moving up to the starting lineup with Doncic due to Jalen Brunson joining the New York Knicks in free agency, Hardy will have a real opportunity to carve out a spot for himself in coach Jason Kidd’s rotation.

Here is the Rookie of the Year betting odds list, which was impacted on Thursday with the news of Oklahoma City Thunder’s Chet Holmgren suffering a foot injury that will sideline him for the entire 2022-23 season:

1 (+200): Paolo Banchero - Orlando Magic

T2 (+500): Jaden Ivey - Detroit Pistons

T2 (+500): Keegan Murray - Sacramento Kings

3 (+600): Jabari Smith - Houston Rockets

4 (+1100): Bennedict Mathurin - Indiana Pacers

5 (+3000): Shaedon Sharpe - Portland Trail Blazers

T6 (+3300): Johnny Davis - Washington Wizards

T6 (+3300): Dyson Daniels - New Orleans Pelicans

7 (+4000): Jaden Hardy - Dallas Mavericks

Hardy got his first taste of Mavs basketball during the NBA’s Las Vegas Summer League. The Mavs didn’t win any games, and Hardy struggled with his efficiency, but he showed many flashes of his potential throughout his time there.

“What I feel like I improved on the most is becoming a better playmaker, making the right play, making the right reads, and then challenging myself defensively to be a better defender, being in the right places, being in the right spots where I’m supposed to be on defense. And playing the right way,” said Hardy after .

“This is a team that just came from the Western Conference Finals, so we want to be right back there and compete for a championship. And I want to do whatever I need to do to help the team win.”

Despite losing Brunson, the Mavs still improved their roster in the offseason with the additions of Christian Wood and JaVale McGee … and perhaps with two-way signee Tyler Dorsey as well, given how he’s been playing for the Greek national team.

If Hardy can become a consistent contributor in a limited bench role this season, the Mavs will closer to being a true title contender than many believe.

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You can follow Dalton Trigg on Twitter at @dalton_trigg

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