Wizards Draft Pick Named Early ROTY Favorite

The Rookie of the Year award is usually one of the easier awards to predict the winner of before and during each season. It follows a fairly reliable script, usually just going to one of the leading scorers among first-year pros.

For a prospect to find themselves in the position to win top rookie honors, they'll need to be able to provide early impact, as well as the opportunity to show off. This can arrive through several different means, whether they be appearing in bad lineups that need someone to score, or entering with a respectable enough pedigree to earn a rotational spot in year one.

Tre Johnson checks all of those boxes, potentially lining him up perfectly to win Rookie of the Year should things fall into place for the Washington Wizards' newest guard. Betting organizations know it, too, already calling Johnson as one of the betting favorites nearly a year away from when the Wilt Chamberlain Trophy is set to be handed out.

Initial NBA Rookie of the Year betting odds have Wizards guard Tre Johnson in 2nd behind Cooper Flagg. Makes sense, ROY is usually an offensive award that goes to a top scorer and that's what Johnson does best.

via @BetOnline_ag pic.twitter.com/jFjEM7OFEM
— Chase Hughes (@chasedcsports) June 26, 2025

Cooper Flagg is the obvious choice to win Rookie of the Year, the can't-miss first-overall pick that the Wizards dedicated this most recent tank job towards. He's one of the most versatile prospects the league's ever seen from someone as young as he is, enough to draw some cautious LeBron James comparisons, and has the chance to play some competitive basketball immediately with the Dallas Mavericks.

But right behind Flagg sits Johnson, albeit in a wildly different situation. This Wizards team could desperately use someone like the Texas prospect, a pure scorer who can impress early with his rehearsed jumper and deep back of tricks out by the perimeter.

The Wizards just recently made the choice to ship Jordan Poole out to New Orleans, bringing in a few older veterans who'll give the young talent a bit more room to breathe. Johnson and Carrington are looking like the potential back court of the future, with ample opportunities for Johnson to demonstrate what he can bring to the league alongside a recently-named All-Rookie Second Teamer sure to follow.

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