Kansas small forward Andrew Wiggins is the -140 favorite to be the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, set for Thursday night at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, according to an amalgam of offshore odds, analysis of mock drafts from around the Internet and expertise among The Linemakers and Sporting News staffs.
Las Vegas sports books do not accept wagers on the draft, but we’ll throw out some props on what will transpire tonight because this is the type of fun we like to have.
Jabari Parker, a forward from Duke, is the second choice at odds of +140 to be selected first overall.
Kansas center Joel Embiid, who the Cavaliers were understood to be considering with the top pick, sustained a foot injury last week and is falling down mock draft boards. A team general manager told Sporting News’ Sean Deveney he no longer sees Embiid going in the top five.
“I think there is a point at which you use a pick on him, where you’re hoping maybe these are just fluke things that are not going to be recurring,” the GM said. “But that point is not in the Top 5 or so. You can't use a Top 5 pick (on an injured player). I think there are too many other good options there to think about using the pick on one who has these injury problems.”
We’ll call Embiid a 15-to-1 longshot to be the No. 1 overall pick, and we’ll price the field at 20-to-1.
We also have several props on individual players’ draft positions, one of which, Creighton’s Doug McDermott, has the attention of The Linemakers’ Micah Roberts.
“The player I'm most exciting to see where he goes is Doug McDermott,” said Roberts. “Okay, so he doesn't play any defense, but he's got the size (6' 8"), shooting skills at a high success rate and smarts that should fare well at the next level offensively.
“Every team knows exactly what they're getting with him – a four-year college star – as opposed to drafting a green player with many unknowns who may have a better upside. But it's still a gamble.
"If I'm one of those teams in the lottery with picks in the five through nine range, most of whom shouldn't be in the gambling mode, I'm taking the player who you know exactly what you’re getting, and McDermott is the safest choice that can contribute right away.”
We have McDermott’s draft position set at 9.5, with UNDER the -140 favorite.
2014 NBA Draft mock odds
Who will be No. 1 pick of 2014 NBA Draft?
Andrew Wiggins -140
Jabari Parker +140
Joel Embiid +1500
Field +2000
Draft position – Dante Exum
OVER 3.5 +160
UNDER 3.5 -180
Draft position – Marcus Smart
OVER 4.5 -120
UNDER 4.5 +100
Draft position- Joel Embiid
OVER 5.5 +100
UNDER 5.5 -120
Draft position – Aaron Gordon
OVER 7.5 -120
UNDER 7.5 +100
Draft position – Doug McDermott
OVER 9.5 +120
UNDER 9.5 -140
Draft position – Nik Stauskas
OVER 9.5 +100
UNDER 9.5 -120
Who will be selected first Julius Randle or Noah Vonleh
Julius Randle -120
Noah Vonleh +100
How many college seniors will be selected in the first round?
OVER 4.5 +120
UNDER 4.5 -140
How many international players will be selected in first round?
OVER 4.5 -130
UNDER 4.5 +110