The Daily Sweat: Scoot Henderson overtakes Brandon Miller as the favorite to go No. 2
Brandon Miller’s status as the overwhelming favorite to go No. 2 to the Charlotte Hornets was apparently short-lived.
Miller opened Thursday morning at -700 at BetMGM to be selected after Victor Wembanyama in the 2023 NBA Draft. But his odds quickly got longer and longer as it emerged the Hornets may be interested in picking Scoot Henderson instead.
The betting market at BetMGM got so volatile that the odds for the No. 2 and No. 3 picks were briefly taken down before Henderson became the clear favorite. As of early Thursday afternoon, Henderson moved to -400 to be the No. 2 pick while Miller was -300 to go No. 3 to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Those odds will likely continue to change Thursday afternoon as the draft inches closer. But there does appear to be some odds certainty outside the top three given how Wembanyama, Henderson and Miller are considered to be the class of the draft.
Amen Thompson is now -350 to go No. 4 to the Houston Rockets while his twin brother Ausar is the No. 2 favorite at +375. Ausar Thompson is now the favorite at No. 5 as the Detroit Pistons appear to be looking away from Cam Whitmore with that selection if they don’t trade it away. Ausar is -150 to go No. 5 while Houston’s Jarace Walker is +300 and Whitmore is +450.
The Orlando Magic’s secrecy at No. 6 and the possibility that Ausar could still be on the board when the Magic pick means there are co-favorites here. Thompson and Anthony Black are both +135 to go No. 6. Black is still the favorite to go No. 8 as well, but his odds there (+185) are higher than they were because of the increasing possibility he could get taken by the Magic at No. 6.
Walker is now at even money to go No. 7 to the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers traded away the No. 29 selection to the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday and still have four picks in the 2023 NBA Draft.
Big men Taylor Hendricks and Dereck Lively II are the favorites to go at No. 9 and No. 10, respectively. Hendricks is +300 to be taken with the No. 9 selection (currently held by the Utah Jazz) while Lively is at +185 to go No. 10. The Dallas Mavericks currently have that pick but have reportedly been shopping that pick for a veteran to pair with Luka Doncic.
Eight MLB games on tap
Five of Thursday’s eight MLB games are getaway day games. The first two games at 1:05 p.m. ET feature the Atlanta Braves at the Philadelphia Phillies and the Arizona Diamondbacks at the Washington Nationals. The Phillies are slight favorites at -115 to win that game over the Braves (-105) while the Diamondbacks are -150 to beat the Nationals.
The biggest mismatch of the day comes in Tampa Bay as the moribund Kansas City Royals visit the Rays. Tampa is a 2.5-run favorite and betting the Rays to win by 3 or more runs is at +100. Straight up, the Rays are -350 to win while a moneyline bet on the Royals is at +275.
Who cashed bets Wednesday night?
The LSU Tigers forced a winner-take-all game with Wake Forest to advance to the College World Series finals on Wednesday night. The Demon Deacons entered the men’s CWS as the top seed. Wake Forest is +160 to win on Thursday night while LSU is -210.
