Fresh off the first All-Star appearance of his career, Detroit Pistons center Jalen Duren finds himself back atop the betting odds leaderboard for 2026 NBA Most Improved Player recognition at minus money (-150), knocking off previous leader Jalen Johnson (+230) of the Atlanta Hawks.
Here's a look at where all contenders currently sit in contention for the George Mikan trophy.
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2026 NBA Most Improved Player Odds
| Player | Team | Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Jalen Duren | Detroit Pistons | -150 |
| Jalen Johnson | Atlanta Hawks | +230 |
| Ryan Rollins | Milwaukee Bucks | +1300 |
| Deni Avdija | Portland Trail Blazers | +1500 |
| Nickeil Alexander-Walker | Atlanta Hawks | +1700 |
| Keyonte George | Utah Jazz | +2500 |
| Anthony Black | Orlando Magic | +8000 |
| Jaylon Tyson | Cleveland Cavaliers | +10000 |
| Collin Gillespie | Phoenix Suns | +10000 |
| Michael Porter Jr. | Brooklyn Nets | +15000 |
| Neemias Queta | Boston Celtics | +20000 |
Odds as of March 5, 2026 at FanDuel Sportsbook
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Past 10 NBA Most Improved Player Winners
| Year | Player | Team | Opening Odds |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Dyson Daniels | Atlanta Hawks | +6600 |
| 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 |
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) |
| 2 | Atlanta Hawks | 1998, 2025 | Dyson Daniels (2025) |
NBA Most Improved Player Winners By Position
| Position | MIP Wins |
|---|---|
| Power Forward | 10 |
| Point Guard | 9 |
| Shooting Guard | 9 |
| Small Forward | 7 |
| Center | 5 |
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 2025-26 NBA Most Improved Player odds laid out like this:
- Deni Avdija (+1000)
It's like a moneyline bet where favorites are shown by the minus sign (-) and underdogs have a plus sign (+). In this scenario, Deni Avdija 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.
