Two things that go together like peanut butter and jelly are Kentucky basketball and the NBA.
No college has more former players in the NBA right now than Kentucky, thanks to John Calipari’s ability to recruit top players and turn them into NBA-ready prospects.
The funny thing about Kentucky’s players in the NBA is that most of them are dominant forces in the league rather than role players. This was made obvious by how many former Wildcats were in Indianapolis partaking in the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities.
If you look at the betting odds for all of the top NBA Awards, a Kentucky Wildcats is top five for literally every single award.
Let’s take a look at all of the most cherished NBA Awards and see which former Wildcats are in the top five for betting odds.
*All odds come from FanDuel Sportsbook
For the MVP Award, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has the second-best odds at +480.
For the Defensive Player of the Year award, Bam Adebayo has the fourth-best odds at +8500 with Anthony Davis right on his tail, fifth overall at +10000.
For the NBA Most Improved Player Award, Tyrese Maxey has the best odds at -170.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has the third-best odds for the NBA Clutch Player of the Year Award at +3400.
Lastly, for the Sixth Man of the Year Award, Malik Monk has the best odds at -1100.
After looking at all of this, it is evident that the Kentucky Wildcats run the NBA. When the season ends, former Kentucky players will be bringing home a ton of hardware.