The 2025-26 season is entering its final stretch. Alongside the race to clinch playoff berths, attention is turning to the league’s major awards, including the NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
According to Kalshi, the race has two clear frontrunners: Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren. While that may make the market look less enticing at first glance, volatility in the odds suggests significant value could shift week to week through the end of the regular season.
If you want to get in on the action and make a prediction on who will win this year’s NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Kalshi allows users in most U.S. states to forecast outcomes and potentially win real money. We wrote a full explainer on how it works here and have a Kalshi promo code to help you get started.
2025-26 NBA Defensive Player of the Year Odds
Evan Mobley became the first player in Cleveland Cavaliers history to win the award last season. He averaged 18.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 0.9 steals and 1.6 blocks, helping Cleveland finish atop the Eastern Conference before a surprising semifinal exit against the Indiana Pacers.
The heavy favorite to claim this year’s honor — holding roughly 73% of the odds on Kalshi — is Wembanyama. The French star leads the league in total blocks this season and is averaging 9.3 defensive rebounds per game as he looks to build on last year’s production.
Just one month ago, his odds hovered near 17%, underscoring the market’s volatility.
After recovering from knee injuries early in the year, Wemby has emerged as the franchise cornerstone of the San Antonio Spurs, who are pushing to challenge the Thunder for the top spot in the Western Conference.
No surprises, the primary challenger comes from Oklahoma City: Holmgren.
He opened the season as the favorite amid Wembanyama’s injuries, at one point holding nearly 63% of the odds before slipping to 21%, with his numbers impacted by the absences of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams.
Even so, Holmgren remains among the league’s top three players in total blocks and ranks in the top four in blocks per game.
The third contender, with roughly 7% of the odds, is Rudy Gobert. The Minnesota Timberwolves center leads the league in rebounds per game and ranks second in total rebounds, anchoring the paint with an average of 7.5 defensive boards this season.
What is Kalshi?
Different than a traditional sportsbook and available in most of the 50 states, Kalshi allows users to make predictions across several unique markets, including sports, entertainment, elections, and even weather.
Kalshi operates on a contract-based system where users buy "contracts" (priced between 1-99 cents) based on whether they believe a specific event will happen. The price of each contract fluctuates in real time based on market sentiment and like the stock market, traders can sell positions early to lock in profits (or minimize losses).
