2020-21 NBA Rookie of Year Odds: LaMelo Ball Favored over Edwards, Wiseman

Coming out of the 2020 NBA draft, LaMelo Ball is the odds-on favorite to be win the Rookie of the Year award next season. 

Per Max Staley of FanDuel, Ball currently has +390 odds (bet $100 to win $390), followed by Anthony Edwards and James Wiseman in a tie for the next-best odds at +480. 

Edwards was the No. 1 overall pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Wednesday's draft. Wiseman went second to the Golden State Warriors, followed by Ball to the Charlotte Hornets with the third selection. 

Wiseman is presumably walking into the best situation with a Warriors team that has Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. Klay Thompson will miss his second consecutive season after Golden State announced he suffered a torn Achilles during a workout Wednesday. 

Edwards is playing on a Timberwolves team that already has two established stars in Karl-Anthony Towns and D'Angelo Russell. The Georgia alum will fit right in with that duo as a capable scorer after averaging 19.1 points per game in his lone college season. 

Ball will be the face of Hornets basketball as soon as he signs his rookie contract. The franchise has some talent on the roster already, including Devonte' Graham and Miles Bridges, but Ball's ceiling and playmaking ability gives them a potential cornerstone player. 

It also works to Ball's advantage that the Hornets, unlike Golden State and Minnesota, are rebuilding and can afford to let him endure growing pains early as he develops throughout the year.