Tyson Walker is top 5 in Wooden Award bettings odds

Tyson Walker is top five in the nation in terms of Wooden Award betting odds. Can he bring home the hardware?

Tyson Walker is off to an outstanding start this season for Michigan State. This year he is averaging 19.8 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. He’s also shooting 48.6% from the field which is the best in his career, but has taken a small step back from 3-point range currently sitting at 37.8%.

The only negative to his season so far is his shockingly low free throw shooting percentage. This year he is making 64.9% from the charity stripe which is almost 15 percent lower than a season ago.

Tyson’s excellent start to the season has placed him firmly in the race for this year’s Wooden Award. The Wooden Award is the Player of the Year award in college basketball, similar to the Heisman Trophy for football.

Here are the current betting odds for the top award in college basketball.

Wooden Award betting odds

As it stands today, Tyson Walker has the fifth-best odds of winning the Wooden Award. Here are the top nine in the race for the Wooden Award today.

Current Wooden Award Odds:
(Via DraftKings)

Zach Edey -180
Hunter Dickinson +380
Tristen Newton +2500
Kyle Filipowski +2500
Dalton Knecht +2800
Tyson Walker +2800
Tyler Kolek +2800
Oumar Ballo +3000
Max Abmas +3000

Edey and Dickinson then the rest.

— College Basketball Report (@CBKReport) December 24, 2023

A couple of interesting names top the list, with Purdue’s Zach Edey and former Michigan big man Hunter Dickinson. UConn guard Tristen Newton and Duke big man Kyle Filipowski are the only others ahead of Tyson currently.

The above post however puts it best by saying “Edey and Dickinson then the rest.” Both Edey and Dickinson have a substantial lead over the rest of the field and it would be kind of surprising if one of them didn’t win it. However, things like this can change fast as it only takes a few elite performances for Tyson to shoot up this list. So anything is still possible this early in the season.

What would it take for Tyson Walker to win?

Although Tyson’s stats are very good this year, they are going to have to improve if he wants to win this award. To have a shot, I think he needs to get his average points up to 25. A 5-point increase will be difficult considering we’re already 12 games into the season, but that’s likely what it will take.

As a guard, his rebounding numbers don’t really matter. But his assist numbers do and 2.5 is nowhere near good enough for a guard, so I think that at least needs to double if not slightly more to have a chance.

Lastly, Michigan State as a team needs to finish the year strong. This award is handed out before the NCAA Tournament, so we don’t have to think that far ahead. But a Big Ten regular season championship is a requirement to win this award. It also can’t be a shared title with Purdue, because Zach Edey’s stats are going to be better than Tyson’s so he needs to separate himself with the championship. A Big Ten Tournament championship would also help as well, but I don’t think it’s a requirement.

Performance in marquee matchups

Tyson Walker and MSU need to win the big games on their schedule. Most notably their one matchup with Purdue in West Lafayette. The Spartans travel to Purdue near the end of the season on March 2. College basketball’s eyes will be all over this game, so Tyson Walker needs to take over. Winning this game by one point would be good enough, but Tyson needs to go nuclear in this game. I’m talking a 30-point game with close to 10 assists to stand out. If he can have that type of game in potentially a Big Ten championship-clinching scenario, his chances of winning this award would skyrocket.

A few other games stand out on the schedule as well that MSU will need to win along with a great performance from Tyson. Illinois is the second-best team in the conference right now, so those two matchups are critical. A revenge game at Wisconsin is another pivotal moment as well. And lastly, dominating Michigan twice this season wouldn’t hurt his chances either.

Unfortunately, no player from MSU has won this award before. I honestly wouldn’t pick Tyson to win it this year either, but it could be fun to put $5 on it and hope for the best.