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Despite Kentucky's recent struggles, Malik Monk is still strongly in the running for some national awards come season's end.
The latest odds from Bovada to win the AP Player of the Year Award have Monk coming in with the fourth-best odds, trailing only Kansas' Frank Mason, Villanova's Josh Hart, and UCLA's Lonzo Ball.
Odds to win the AP Player of the Year Award
|
Frank Mason (Kansas) |
5/2 |
|
Josh Hart (Villanova) |
4/1 |
|
Lonzo Ball (UCLA) |
6/1 |
|
Malik Monk (Kentucky) |
7/1 |
|
Justin Jackson (North Carolina) |
15/2 |
|
Luke Kennard (Duke) |
12/1 |
|
Bonzie Colson (Notre Dame) |
16/1 |
|
Ethan Happ (Wisconsin) |
16/1 |
|
Caleb Swanigan (Purdue) |
16/1 |
|
Nigel Williams-Goss (Gonzaga) |
16/1 |
|
Trevon Bluiett (Xavier) |
18/1 |
|
Lauri Markkanen (Arizona) |
20/1 |
|
Dennis Smith (NC State) |
20/1 |
|
Jonathan Motley (Baylor) |
22/1 |
|
Kelan Martin (Butler) |
33/1 |
Monk is averaging an SEC-high 21.9 points per game, which currently ranks 11th in the nation and is second among Power 5 Conference players. He's scored 20+ points in 14 games this season and has three games of 34+ points. Monk may need to improve his defense, but his offense has helped carry the Cats this far, and if he keeps this scoring pace up, he'll be right there in the running for multiple national honors by season's end.
The Associated Press College Basketball Player of the Year award was established in 1961 to recognize the best college basketball player of the year, as voted upon by the Associated Press (AP). The only Kentucky player to ever win the award was Anthony Davis in 2012. Last year's winner was Michigan State's Denzel Valentine.