NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – As the Pelicans (5-25) find themselves at the bottom of the NBA’s Western Conference, one of their players continues to rise to the top.

Rookie center Yves Missi, who has only been playing organized basketball for about four to five years, is quickly rising to become one of the better starting centers in the league. According to BetGM, he is now the betting favorite for Rookie of the Year.

Missi’s best odds are +150 from BetGM. He’s also in a dead heat with Spurs guard Stephon Castle at +210 on FanDuel and +200 on Bet Rivers.

Since the start of the season, Missi has developed from the biggest project player in the 2024 rookie class to a permanent fixture. With season averages of 9.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, he is knocking on the door to maintaining a double-double average this season, making him the only rookie to come close to doing so.

The stat sheet also shows that Missi has been steadily improving since winning the starting center job in the fall. He averaged 12.6 points, 10.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in his last 10 games.

While there is still a lot of work to be done before the spring, the race’s front-runner, Jared McCain of Philadelphia, is out indefinitely due to injury.

As of last week, McCain’s injury to Spurs guard Stephon Castle had made him the new front-runner for rookie of the year honors, but Missi’s recent strong performance in a 132-129 overtime loss to Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets has suddenly hit him, even if that is the case, temporarily in the lead.

On December 22nd against the Nuggets, Missi posted statistics of 21 points, 9 rebounds, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 1 assist on 75 percent shooting from the floor.

By comparison, Castle’s lead in the rookie race reflects a statistical average of 11.7 points, 2.6 rebounds and 3.9 assists. He was drafted 4th overall and Missi was drafted 21st overall.

McCain, the former standout, averaged 15.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game before his injury.

Missi also leads the league in offensive rebounding, ranking in the top three in both average and overall scoring.

In a season that didn’t go according to plan, Missi is one of the few bright spots offering the Pelicans a path forward. As they begin to focus on a future franchise direction, it makes sense why they named him as one of three assets they won’t move as the February 6 trade deadline approaches.

The Pelicans return to New Orleans the day after Christmas to host a Boxing Day showdown against the Rockets on Thursday, December 26th at 7 p.m. To watch Yves Missi continue his campaign for Rookie of the Year, tune in to Gulf Coast Sports & Entertainment Network on Antenna Ch. 7 or Cox Cable Ch. 10. Streaming is available on fubo.

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