2026-27 NBA Rookie of the Year Opening Odds: Cameron Boozer Favored Over AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson

The first round of the 2026 NBA Draft is in the books, and the top of the draft ended up being pretty chalky, with AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer and Caleb Wilson going at picks one through four.

However, that doesn’t mean that Dybantsa is the clear-cut favorite to win the Rookie of the Year award.

In fact, oddsmakers at FanDuel Sportsbook have set Boozer – the Wooden Award winner from the 2025-26 collegiate season – as the favorite to win Rookie of the Year.

NBA Rookie of the Year Opening Odds

Odds via FanDuel Sportsbook

Cameron Boozer: +240
Darryn Peterson: +400
AJ Dybantsa: +400
Darius Acuff Jr.: +450
Caleb Wilson: +950
Mikel Brown Jr.: +1500
Yaxel Lendeborg: +2000
Keaton Wagler: +3500
Brayden Burries: +5000
Nate Ament: +10000
Karim Lopez: +10000
Kingston Flemings: +10000
Morez Johnson Jr.: +10000
Dailyn Swain: +10000
Koa Peat: +15000
Cameron Carr: +15000
Ebuka Okorie: +20000
Christian Anderson Jr.: +20000
Joshua Jefferson: +20000
Labaron Philon Jr.: +25000
Chris Cenac Jr.: +25000
Jayden Quaintance: +25000
Aday Mara: +25000
Hannes Steinbach: +25000
Bennett Stirtz: +25000
Allen Graves: +25000
Zuby Ejiofor: +25000
Sergio De Larrea: +25000
Tarris Reed Jr.: +25000
Alex Karaban: +25000

Rookie of the Year often depends a lot on opportunity, and Boozer should have a lot of that joining a rebuilding Memphis Grizzlies team. Memphis has moved on from Jaren Jackson Jr. and Desmond Bane over the last year, and it could trade star guard Ja Morant before the start of the 2026-27 season.

Either way, Boozer figures to slot in as the starting power forward next to Zach Edey and Cedric Coward in the Memphis frontcourt. After a massive freshman season at Duke, Boozer has shown he’s an elite processor of the game for his age and could step in as an offensive hub for the Grizzlies on day one.

Dybantsa is third in the odds to win the Rookie of the Year, as he’s entering a team that has some established veterans in Trae Young and Anthony Davis (for now). Dybantsa should have a path towards a starting role, but the Wizards have a lot of young pieces and could be competing for a playoff spot. The No. 1 overall pick should be a big part of that, but he likely won’t be the No. 1 option over Young when the season starts. There’s no doubt that he could grow into that, though, especially since he averaged over 25 a game at BYU in the 2025-26 season.

The two most interesting players on this list – to me – are guards Darryn Peterson (Utah) and Darius Acuff Jr. (Sacramento).

The Kings are in a full rebuild and may hand Acuff the keys from day one, which could allow him to put up some huge offensive numbers. Since Rookie of the Year rarely hinges on team success, there’s a chance Acuff could put up some impressive scoring stats on a tanking Kings team that earns him the nod in this market. That’s why he is priced ahead of players like Wilson, Keaton Wagler and Mikel Brown Jr., who were all taken ahead of him.

Peterson may be the highest upside prospect in this draft, even though injury concerns dropped him to No. 2 on Tuesday night. The former Kansas guard is a fluid scorer that should make an impact on offense right away, but he is joining a Utah team that has Keyonte George, Lauri Markkanen and Jackson Jr. already as lead options.

That could open up more looks for Peterson offensively, but like Dybantsa, he may not walk into a No. 1 role from the start of the season.

The 2026 NBA Draft will continue on Wednesday with the second round, though none of the players picked on Wednesday will likely find themselves in the top-half of the odds for this award prior to the start of the 2026-27 season.

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Dewey's NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.

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