Los Angeles Lakers Star Is Odds-On Favorite To Win 2020 NBA Award Over Giannis Antetokounmpo

While LeBron James tries to catch Giannis Antetokounmpo in the 2020 NBA MVP race, his Los Angeles Lakers teammate is the leading candidate to beat out the Milwaukee Bucks’ star for a different award. Anthony Davis is the top choice to be named this season’s Defensive Player of The Year.

Davis is the odds-on favorite at multiple sportsbooks. The All-Star has -175 odds at FanDuel Sportsbook and -152 odds at DraftKings SportsBook. Antetokounmpo is the next closest candidate with +300 and +275 odds.

Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert is third at +350. He’s won the award in each of the last two years.

No other candidate has better than +4500 odds.

Davis was dominant on both ends of the floor in Los Angeles’ 120-107 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers Tuesday night. The 26-year-old had two blocks and four steals in addition to his 37 points and 13 rebounds, 10 of which were defensive. Davis helped limit Al Horford to eight points.

In his first season with the Lakers, Davis is third in the NBA with 2.5 blocks per game. His 1.5 steals per game rank 13th among all players. Davis is 15th with 9.5 rebounds per game.

Antetokounmpo is fourth with 13.8 rebounds per game. He’s 25th in blocks (1.1) and doesn’t crack the top-50 in steals (1.0).

Milwaukee has the NBA’s best defense by a wide margin, allowing 101.2 points per 100 possessions. Los Angeles is third with a 105.8 defensive rating.

The Bucks have an incredible 96.6 defensive rating when Antetokounmpo is on the court. The Lakers give up 105.5 points per 100 possessions when Davis plays.

Antetokounmpo (2.28) is third in ESPN’s defensive real plus-minus. Davis (1.18) is 29th overall, ranking behind three of his Lakers teammates. James (1.97) is fourth in DRPM. Gobert (3.08) is first.

The award usually favors centers, who have been the Defensive Player of the Year in 12 of the last 15 seasons. Kawhi Leonard (twice) and Draymond Green have bucked the trend.