NCAA Basketball: 10 best bets to win 2021-22 Naismith Player of the Year
By Tommy Farmer
Kofi Cockburn +800
April Headline: Cockburn Dominates Mighty Big Ten; Leads Illinois to Another One-Seed
Sitting at +800 with the second-best odds in the field only behind Gonzaga’s Drew Timme, Kofi Cockburn’s path to the Naismith award is clear. He’s already proven he can produce monster numbers by averaging 17.7 PPG and 9.5 RPG last season. Now as he enters his junior season, he needs to show the country that he can be the best player on an elite team following Ayo Dosunmu’s departure while continuing that production.
Cockburn’s stats should see slight improvements with an expanded role and another year under his belt. It’s possible, I’d even say likely, that Cockburn averages at least 20 PPG and 10 RPG this year. Even in a conference with formidable bigs everywhere you look, Cockburn has made them look small in the past and proven his name should be mentioned at the top of that conversation.
Illinois also has a roster that is built around Cockburn’s game. With crafty point guard Andre Curbelo back in the fold, Cockburn will get his share of easy buckets in the paint. There are also a plethora of shooters surrounding him which will ensure he has enough space to work with in the paint. Even the power forwards for Illinois don’t primarily play in the lane which will give Cockburn time and room to punish his defenders one-on-one.
Cockburn’s player of the year chances will coincide heavily with how Illinois performs this year. Most experts have Illinois somewhere between the first and third-best team in the Big Ten and in the top fifteen teams in the country. Assuming his individual production is equal to or better than that of last year’s, he should have a great chance if Illinois is a one, two, or three-seed in the NCAA tournament.
The biggest concern surrounding Cockburn’s game has been his reluctance to kick the ball back out. He commits a decent number of turnovers and misses easy assist opportunities. If he has sizably improved this part of his game over the offseason, he will be the best player in America.