Dereck Lively NBA Rookie of the Year odds are on the rise after his show-stealing debut against Victor Wembanyama

Wednesday’s season opener between the Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs was Victor Wembanyama’s official introduction to NBA fans. However, the Rookie of the Year betting favorite had his time on the floor cut short by foul trouble and another rookie stole the show.

Mavericks big man Dereck Lively II posted a double-double in his debut, scoring 16 points on 7-of-8 shooting to go with 10 rebounds in 31 minutes off the bench. His surprise performance had social media buzzing with Rookie of the Year talk around someone who was previously a massive long-shot to win the award. Now, those odds are on the rise.

At BetMGM, where Lively’s odds were tied for 18th-best at +12500, he’s now up to +6600 to win the award, which are tied for eighth.

Wembanyama remains the favorite at -145 odds, which are actually better than they were just a couple weeks ago and shouldn’t be much of a surprise considering we only have a one-game sample. Wembanyama was still really good in limited action, scoring 15 points in 23 minutes, including 6-of-9 shooting and 3-of-5 from deep.

Lively is someone to keep an eye on going forward, though. The 12th overall pick from Duke was a five-star recruit and top overall player in the class of 2022, so he has the talent to deliver each game.