For any NBA championship team, there are always instrumental players on the roster who elevate their play and outdo their contract so much that the team has to make a hard choice when their contract expires: Keep them at a higher salary or let them move on to “greener” pastures.
Well, Fred VanVleet of the Toronto Raptors fits this description but according to the latest betting odds, he’s more likely to stay in the T-Dot than find another home.
The best basketball betting sites have released a new betting prop on which team VanVleet will play for in the 2020-21 NBA regular season, with the Raptors as the betting favorite at -220. Those betting odds imply a 68 percent chance he stays with the franchise next season.
The next teams on the oddsboard are the Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks at +450. Both clubs are devoid of high-end talent and could use a stabilizing force at point guard for the foreseeable future.
Before we dive into the odds, here are some important NBA betting resources if you need a deep dive on all basketball betting aspects:
NBA Futures | NBA Odds | Bubble Betting Records | How To Bet On NBA
What Team Will Fred VanVleet Play for in the 2020-21 NBA Season?
| Team | Odds |
|---|---|
| Toronto Raptors | -220 |
| Detroit Pistons | +450 |
| New York Knicks | +450 |
| Miami Heat | +950 |
| Phoenix Suns | +1500 |
| Cleveland Cavaliers | +1800 |
| Charlotte Hornets | +1800 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | +2000 |
| Atlanta Hawks | +2000 |
Odds as of September 25 at [Sportsbook not available for your region]
Why the Toronto Raptors Are The Favorite
The Toronto Raptors should be the favorite to re-sign Fred VanVleet because, from the start of his career, they were one of the few franchises that believed in his ability to be an NBA player.
He has just wrapped up his fourth NBA season with the Raptors, but VanVleet wasn’t exactly a household name entering the 2016 NBA Draft. Sure, he was on some strong Wichita State Shockers teams that were able to garner a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament and even went to the Final Four, but the majority of NBA scouts didn’t think his talent would translate well to the league. That’s why he ended up with the Raptors in the first place, signed as an undrafted free agent with virtually no guarantees of making the roster.
The Raptors, whether they want to admit it or not, are now invested in VanVleet. They’ve cultivated his talent, stuck with him when he was still making rookie mistakes in the G League and helped him blossom into one of the best sharpshooters from three-point range.
The issue is money. The Raptors were getting a massive bargain on him at $9.3 million this past season and he’s likely going to want an increase in yearly salary to the range of $18 million to $20 million. Raptors president Masai Ujiri will likely need to do some cap gymnastics to fit him in. But if Ujiri stands by his word that re-signing VanVleet is a top priority, the 26-year-old will be hooping it up in the 6ix for years to come and will be their heir apparent to current point guard Kyle Lowry.
Can The Motor City or Big Apple Lure VanVleet?
The Detroit Pistons and New York Knicks, both at +450 odds, look like two obvious teams that could use a player like Fred VanVleet and they both have interesting cases for acquiring his services.
Detroit Pistons
For the Pistons, it would reunite VanVleet and head coach Dwane Casey, who was his first coach with the Raptors and a big believer in his defensive abilities. When you look at the Pistons roster, the point guards, for lack of a better word, are trash.
I love(d) Derrick Rose but he can’t be a starting guard in the NBA anymore and the corpse of Brandon Knight shouldn’t even be in this conversation. VanVleet would be a decent pairing with forward Blake Griffin and could help spearhead an overdue rebuild in Detroit.
New York Knicks
Any free agent of VanVleet’s caliber would be a great signing for the joke of a franchise known as the New York Knickerbockers, because of how young they are and, most importantly, how dysfunctional they’ve been.
While the Knicks technically have a better guard rotation than the Pistons (just barely), VanVleet would instantly become the best shooter on the team and provide some veteran leadership for a squad completely lacking in that department. The Knicks are always looking to make a splash in free agency and considering most all-stars have avoided the franchise like the plague, this would be a huge get for New York.
