Just in case you are a casual basketball fan or bettor and didn't know, you can wager on NBA Summer League games. They have become increasingly popular every year, in large part because it's the first time that newly drafted rookies will take the court as professionals. The Las Vegas Summer League opens tonight at 10 p.m. ET with No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero and the Orlando Magic facing No. 3 overall pick Jabari Smith and the Houston Rockets. The Rockets are -1 at Caesars S portsbook.
I'm not sure that I've written about the NBA Summer League two consecutive days in my life, but on Wednesday we told you that Oklahoma City's Chet Holmgren, the No. 2 overall pick, had a spectacular NBA debut on Tuesday night in the Utah Summer League'and bettors noticed, jumping the former Gonzaga star into the second favored role for Rookie of the Year at +375. Banchero, a surprising first overall pick, is the +350 favorite and Smith, who most assumed was Orlando's target at No. 1, is +400.
Holmgren and the Thunder will play in Las Vegas as well and, yep, you can bet on the Summer League championship: Oklahoma City is the +700 favorite followed by Jaden Ivey and the Detroit Pistons at +750.
Duke and Auburn didn't play in the 2021-22 college basketball season, so Banchero and Smith obviously didn't face off at that level. However, recruits of their caliber always see each other on the AAU circuit or in other similar com petitions, and they met in the summer of 2020 before their senior high school seasons in the Pangos All-American Festival Championship Game.