After getting snubbed for a spot on the NBA‘s Western Conference All-Star team, Los Angeles Clippers guard Norman Powell has since moved to the top of the leaderboard for betting odds in the Most Improved Player race at -105, just slightly ahead of Detroit Pistons guard Cade Cunningham at +105 as of February 1, 2025.
Here’s a look at the updated odds for all contenders vying for the George Mikan trophy.
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2025 NBA Most Improved Player Odds
| Player | Team | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Norman Powell | Los Angeles Clippers | -105 |
| Cade Cunningham | Detroit Pistons | +105 |
| Tyler Herro | Miami Heat | +800 |
| Evan Mobley | Cleveland Cavaliers | +3000 |
| Amen Thompson | Houston Rockets | +3500 |
| Victor Wembanyama | San Antonio Spurs | +8000 |
| Jalen Williams | Oklahoma City Thunder | +8000 |
| Dyson Daniels | Atlanta Hawks | +8000 |
| De’Andre Hunter | Atlanta Hawks | +10000 |
Odds as of February 1, 2025 at BetMGM
NBA Most Improved Player Favorite: Norman Powell, Los Angeles Clippers (-105)
A player like Powell defines what the purpose of this award should be. He’s in the 10th year of his career and playing the biggest role he’s ever had as the leading scorer on a 28-20 team which was left dead in the water with Kawhi Leonard perpetually injured, and Paul George having departed for the Philadelphia 76ers over the summer.
Powell’s 24.1 points per game are by far his highest ever, placing him 18th overall amongst his peers. The leap he’s taken on a still successful Clippers roster deserves just as much consideration as what Cunningham has accomplished in the Motor City, and with talking heads like the crew at “Inside The NBA” and even ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith having strongly advocated for him to be an All-Star replacement, Powell’s ascension can no longer be ignored.
NBA Most Improved Player Contender: Cade Cunningham, Detroit Pistons (+105)
Cunningham possessing some of the shortest odds is more so a testament to the Pistons’ success rather than his personal statistics seeing a dramatic boost. His current numbers of 25.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 9.2 assists aren’t substantial increases over what he contributed during the 2023-24 campaign (22.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 7.5 assists), certainly when compared to some of his other competitors. However, Detroit finds itself holding down a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference with a 24-24 record, which is already 10 more wins than it achieved all last season, and Cunningham deserves a world of credit for that.
Most end-of-season hardware is narrative driven, and it doesn’t get much better than Cunningham lifting the Pistons to the postseason after tying the longest losing streak in league history a year ago.
Past 10 NBA Most Improved Player Winners
| Year | Player | Team | Opening Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Tyrese Maxey | Philadelphia 76ers | +1050 |
| 2023 | Lauri Markkanen | Utah Jazz | N/A |
| 2022 | Ja Morant | Memphis Grizzlies | +3000 |
| 2021 | Julius Randle | New York Knicks | +2000 |
| 2020 | Brandon Ingram | New Orleans Pelicans | +4000 |
| 2019 | Pascal Siakam | Toronto Raptors | N/A |
| 2018 | Victor Oladipo | Indiana Pacers | +2500 |
| 2017 | Giannis Antetokounmpo | Milwaukee Bucks | N/A |
| 2016 | CJ McCollum | Portland Trail Blazers | N/A |
| 2015 | Jimmy Butler | Chicago Bulls | N/A |
Most Improved Player winners tend to come out of nowhere, and the opening odds never lean heavily in favor of one player because it’s such a crapshoot in the end.
As seen here with winners from the last decade, Tyrese Maxey in 2024 was the only player to win after opening with odds greater than 11-to-1.
NBA Most Improved Player Winners By Team
| Awards | Team | Years | Most Recent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Indiana Pacers | 2000, 2002, 2009, 2013, 2018 | Victor Oladipo (2018) |
| 5 | Orlando Magic | 1991, 1999, 2001, 2008, 2012 | Ryan Anderson (2012) |
| 3 | Washington Wizards | 1992, 1994, 1996 | Gheorghe Muresan (1996) |
| 3 | Phoenix Suns | 1989, 2006, 2014 | Goran Dragic (2014) |
| 3 | Portland Trail Blazers | 1988, 2004, 2016 | CJ McCollum (2016) |
| 2 | Miami Heat | 1990, 1997 | Isaac Austin (1997) |
| 2 | Golden State Warriors | 2003, 2007 | Monta Ellis (2007) |
| 2 | Philadelphia 76ers | 1995, 2024 | Tyrese Maxey (2024) |
The Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic currently share the record for the most winners of this honor at five apiece, although neither franchise has won since 2018.
NBA Most Improved Player Winners By Position
| Position | MIP Wins |
|---|---|
| Power Forward | 10 |
| Point Guard | 9 |
| Shooting Guard | 8 |
| Small Forward | 7 |
| Center | 5 |
There’s no massive gap between any two positions as far as which has had more winners of Most Improved Player, with power forward leading the way at 10 players and point guard right behind at nine.
NBA Teams With Zero Most Improved Player Winners
The following teams have never had an NBA Most Improved Player winner: Brooklyn Nets, Los Angeles Lakers, Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, Charlotte Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, and Sacramento Kings.
How To Read NBA Most Improved Player Odds
When you visit your NBA betting site of choice, you’ll notice 2024-25 NBA Most Improved Player odds laid out like this:
- Jonathan Kuminga +1000
- Evan Mobley +1100
It’s like a moneyline bet where favorites are shown by the minus sign (-) and underdogs have a plus sign (+). In this scenario, Jonathan Kuminga is favored despite being at plus money. If you were to bet $100 on Kuminga in the NBA Most Improved Player betting odds and it hits, you would win $1100 – your $100 is returned and you would get $1000 in profit.
If you were to bet on which player will be named Most Improved Player, you would make a futures bet.
What Is A Futures Bet?
This is a bet made on events that will happen in time. In this case, it’s Most Improved Player. To make a futures bet, you would first use the handicapping info on this page to make your decision. Our Odds Calculator can give you an idea of how much you’d win based on the Most Improved Player odds and the amount of money you bet.
