Pistons draft: A big shift in the odds for the 5th pick

The Detroit Pistons have the 5th pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, but that is the only thing that is certain.

What they will ultimately do with the pick is anyone’s guess, as there have already been reports that they are “aggressively” shopping the pick in a trade.

But if Troy Weaver can’t find a trade that makes the team better without harming their long-term future, then he will likely just choose from one of the talented forwards who will be on the board with the 5th pick.

In a recent poll of NBA Mock Drafts, the consensus had Detroit taking Cam Whitmore with the 5th pick, and he is starting to get some real buzz after reportedly having very impressive workouts at the NBA Combine where he flashed an improved jumper.

It may have been this showing that caused a big shift in the odds of who the Pistons are going to take with the 5th pick.

Detroit Pistons draft: A big shift in the odds for the 5th pick

Last week, we took a look at Fanduel’s odds for the 5th pick and they had Ausar and Amen Thompson as the favorites with +260 and +270 odds, respectively. They were followed by Jarace Walker (+300) and Cam Whitmore was 4th, with just +440 odds.

Just over a week later, the odds have shifted fairly dramatically according to Fanduel:

• Cam Whitmore +270
• Ausar Thompson +280
• Jarace Walker +320
• Amen Thompson +390
• Taylor Hendricks +1600
• Anthony Black +1800

Whitmore jumped all the way from +440 to +270 in just over a week, which doesn’t mean he’s going to be the pick, but that there is enough buzz about it to lower the odds to protect the sports books from an onslaught of Whitmore bets.

If you are into long shots, Hendricks is not a bad bet at +1600, as he is a very good two-way player who the Pistons could have interest in if Whitmore is already off the board when they choose.

It will be interesting to see how much of this is just getting the bets to even out and how much is legitimate buzz about Whitmore, who appears to be the frontrunner right now.