The Boston Celtics have a pair of players on the fringe of two important NBA awards for the 2020-21 season, as well as one player right in the thick of the race for another.
It has been a while since the Celtics have had a player on their roster in the race for the league’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, and while he isn’t a favorite by any means so far this season, Boston’s All-NBA small forward Jayson Tatum finds himself in the tenth-place position in terms of odds (23:00) to win the award early in the season, according to our online wagering partner BetMGM.
Boston’s Payton Pritchard gets high grade among his rookie peers https://t.co/WJ7gxkY0Iv
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) January 20, 2021
Similarly, first-year floor general Payton Pritchard finds himself on the fringes of the Rookie of the Year (RoY) odds picture (51.00) per BetMGM.
However, it seems unlikely FastPP will get the opportunity to move up too much with starting point guard Kemba Walker back in the fold.
Perhaps most interestingly however is where fifth-year forward Jaylen Brown sits in the Most Improved Player (MIP) race odds-wise in fifth place (21.00).
Stevens: Celtics have ‘a lot of room to grow and get better’ https://t.co/UDSEMY4MVf
— The Celtics Wire (@TheCelticsWire) January 20, 2021
With only the Houston Rockets’ Christian Wood, Detroit Pistons’ Jerami Grant, Toronto Raptors’ Chris Boucher and New York Knicks Julius Randle ahead of him, it is not inconceivable that Brown could overtake his peers to win the award by season’s end.
Though it would take the leap in production he’s already demonstrated and likely then some to do it convincingly.
