Robert Williams’ Defensive Player Of Year Odds Worth Second Look

Robert Williams has been given a much larger role this season and has made the most of it.

The Boston Celtics inked the big man to a four-year extension prior to the start of the 2021-22 NBA season and Williams has responded with a career year.

Prior to this season, the 24-year-old struggled with injuries and inconsistent playing time, but neither of those things have been an issue for him this campaign. Williams is averaging career highs across the board in points (10.0), rebounds (9.8), assists (2.0), blocks (2.2), free throw percentage (72%) and overall field goal percentage at 72.6% while also being a force to be reckoned with on the defensive end.

He’s playing at such a high level that when the regular season comes to a close, he’ll likely find himself on a NBA All-Defensive team for the first time. DraftKings Sportsbook currently has his odds at winning the defensive player of the year award set at +2000, good for seventh-highest in the league.

If there ever was a time to put some cash down on Williams, it would be now. If you placed a $100 wager on Williams and he won the award, you would walk away with $2,000 in profit. It seems very unlikely right now that he will win the award, but if he continues his impressive play and Boston stays hot, he very easily could rise up the board.

The Celtics have been the best defensive team in the NBA since Jan. 1 and Williams is one of the biggest reasons why. Boston has a league-best defensive rating of 102.7 since the new year and Williams has a defensive rating of 101.6 himself. Williams’ 2.2 blocks per game are good for second in the league behind only Rudy Gobert at 2.3.

The bet certainly is a longshot, but the odds might never be better than they are right now.