The John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual award in College Basketball, awarded to the nation's best player after each season.
The last player to win the award was Zach Edey, the 7-foot-4 Purdue Boilermakers center. He won it in both 2022/23 and 2023/24, becoming the first player to win it twice in a row since Ralph Sampson of Virginia in 1981/82 and 1982/83.
Edey averaged 22.3 points, 12.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 2.1 blocks on 60.7 percent shooting to win his first Wooden Award, and he averaged 25.2 points, 12.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 2.2 blocks on 62.3 percent shooting to win his second one.
Now, Edey is in the NBA, and a handful of players are among the favorites to win the Wooden Award in 2024/25 as a result.
Below is a look at all the current favorites to win the 2024/25 Wooden Award.
Johni Broome | -900 |
Cooper Flagg | +500 |
Duke forward Cooper Flagg had gotten his Wooden Award odds as short as -900 in late January, but as of late February, Auburn forward Johni Broome is once again the favorite for the award at -240.
Broome had missed a couple of games due to injury, but since he returned in a win over Tennessee on January 25th, he has averaged 20.2 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.3 blocks while shooting 46.0 percent overall. For the entire season, he's averaging 18.8 points and 3.4 assists while leading the SEC with 11.0 rebounds and 2.5 blocks.
The Auburn forward also has 17 double-doubles in 26 games. He has one 30-point game - he dropped 31 in a late February win over Georgia - and he has also led his team to wins over Houston, Iowa State, Purdue, Texas, Tennessee and Alabama.
Flagg is the +190 second-favorite for the Wooden Award, and he and Broome are the only contenders in the betting. The Duke star entered his first collegiate season with plenty of hype, and he has only improved since his first game.
He leads the Blue Devils in scoring (19.4 points per game), rebounds (7.6), assists (4.1), steals (1.5) and blocks (1.1), and he is shooting 49.1 percent overall and 37.5 percent from three in 28 games.
Even more impressive is how he's shooting 46.4 percent from three-point range since the start of 2025. He shot just 27.1 percent from deep in the first two months of the season. Flagg dropped a career-high 42 points in a win over Notre Dame, and he has also led the Blue Devils to wins over Arizona, Auburn, NC State, North Carolina, and Illinois.
Odds mentioned in this article were correct at the time of writing and are subject to change.
Year | Name | College |
2023/24 | Zach Edey | Purdue |
2022/23 | Zach Edey | Purdue |
2021/22 | Oscar Tshiebwe | Kentucky |
2020/21 | Luka Garza | Iowa |
2019/20 | Obi Toppin | Dayton |
2018/19 | Zion Williamson | Duke |
2017/18 | Jalen Brunson | Villanova |
2016/17 | Frank Mason III | Kansas |
2015/16 | Buddy Hield | Oklahoma |
2014/15 | Frank Kaminsky | Wisconsin |
2013/14 | Doug McDermott | Creighton |
2012/13 | Trey Burke | Michigan |
2011/12 | Anthony Davis | Kentucky |
2010/11 | Jimmer Fredette | BYU |
2009/10 | Evan Turner | Ohio State |
2008/09 | Blake Griffin | Oklahoma |
2007/08 | Tyler Hansbrough | North Carolina |
2006/07 | Kevin Durant | Texas |
2005/06 | JJ Redick | Duke |
2004/05 | Andrew Bogut | Utah |
2003/04 | Jameer Nelson | Saint Joseph's |
2002/03 | TJ Ford | Texas |
2001/02 | Jason Williams | Duke |
2000/01 | Shane Battier | Duke |
1999/00 | Kenyon Martin | Cincinnati |
1998/99 | Elton Brand | Duke |
1997/98 | Antawn Jamison | North Carolina |
1996/97 | Tim Duncan | Wake Forest |
1995/96 | Marcus Camby | UMass |
1994/95 | Ed O'Bannon | UCLA |
1993/94 | Glenn Robinson | Purdue |
1992/93 | Calbert Cheany | Indiana |
1991/92 | Christian Laettner | Duke |
1990/91 | Larry Johnson | UNLV |
1989/90 | Lionel Simmons | La Salle |
1988/89 | Sean Elliott | Arizona |
1987/88 | Danny Manning | Kansas |
1986/87 | David Robinson | Navy |
1985/86 | Walter Berry | St. John's |
1984/85 | Chris Mullin | St. John's |
1983/84 | Michael Jordan | North Carolina |
1982/83 | Ralph Sampson | Virginia |
1981/82 | Ralph Sampson | Virginia |
1980/81 | Danny Ainge | BYU |
1979/80 | Darrell Griffith | Louisville |
1978/79 | Larry Bird | Indiana State |
1977/78 | Phil Ford | North Carolina |
1976/77 | Marques Johnson | UCLA |
The Wooden Award trophy features five bronze figures that depict each of the five skills that John Wooden said a total basketball player must have: rebounding, passing, shooting, dribbling, and defense. The base of the trophy is made out of walnut, and the trophy weighs 25 pounds in total.
The winner of the Wooden Award is expected to be announced following the end of the NCAA Tournament in early April.
The media and fans can vote on the Wooden Award winner. Fans can vote through the award's website, while nearly 1,000 media members - representing all 50 states - vote on the award.