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Ranking the Best Sportsbooks for Betting College Basketball Futures

Neil Parker

Last Updated: January 1, 0001 12:00 AM EST • 2 min 36 sec read.

The men’s NCAA college basketball season begins in less than a week, so it’s a perfect time to look into which sportsbooks are offering the best futures odds for the national championship. 

Finding the best odds available should always be priority No. 1 for sports bettors, so having multiple sportsbooks at your disposal gives you the advantage of being able to shop for the best number.

After a deep dive into the futures odds available at our top-rated sportsbooks for the men’s college basketball national championship, I’ve ranked the top shops for bettors before the season begins Monday.

In particular, if you’re looking to wager on a specific team, I’ve highlighted which sportsbooks have outlier odds that are either the lowest or the highest in this betting market.

National Championship Futures Odds

TeamBetMGMCaesarsDraftKingsFanDuelPointsBet
Gonzaga+900+1000+900+850+1000
North Carolina+1000+900+900+1000+1000
Kentucky+1000+900+900+1200+1200
Houston+1000+1000+900+850+1100
Duke+1200+1800+1600+1300+1400
Arkansas+1400+1500+1500+2000+2000
Kansas+1400+2500+1300+1500+1600
Tennessee+1400+2500+3000+3000+2500
Baylor+1600+1600+1500+1200+1600
UCLA+2000+1200+1600+2000+2000
Arizona+2000+2200+2500+2000+2500
Creighton+2500+2500+2500+2500+2000
Texas+2500+3000+2200+2000+2000
Indiana+3500+3000+3500+4000+4000
Michigan+3500+3500+3500+3500+2500
Texas Tech+3500+4000+4000+4000+4000
Alabama+4000+5000+5000+5000+4000
Virginia+5000+500o+4000+3000+6000
Illinois+5000+5000+4000+3500+5000
Villanova+5000+5000+4000+4500+5000
TCU+5000+5000+4500+5500+4000
Auburn+5000+6000+4500+7000+6000
Oregon+5000+6000+5000+6000+6000
Michigan State+5000+8000+6000+7000+8000
San Diego State+6600+6000+6000+7000+8000
ConnecticutOTB+6000+8000+8000+8000
Florida+6600+8000+6000+7000+8000
Purdue+6600+10000+4500+6000+6000
Florida State+8000+10000+8000+10000+8000
Dayton+8000+10000+8000+5000+8000
Miami (FL)+8000+12500+10000+7000+8000
USC+8000+12500+7000+8000+8000
Memphis+10000+10000+12000+10000+10000
Texas A&M+10000+10000+12000+15000+10000
Xavier+10000+10000+8000+10000+6000
Seton Hall+10000+10000+14000OTB+12500
Ohio State+10000+12500+8000+12000+8000
Louisville+10000+12500+10000+12000+20000
Wisconsin+10000+20000+10000+10000+10000
Providence+10000+20000+11000+20000+10000
Iowa+10000+20000+10000+10000+12500
Notre Dame+12500+25000+10000+7000+10000
Saint Louis+15000+20000+10000+10000+10000
Syracuse+20000+15000+12000+10000+12500

Odds as of 1 p.m. ET on Thursday, Nov. 3.

Best Sportsbooks for Betting College Basketball Futures

1. Caesars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Outlier High Odds: Duke (+1800), Kansas (+2500), Texas (+3000), Purdue (+10000), Dayton (+10000), Miami (FL) (+12500), USC (+12500), Ohio State (+12500), Wisconsin (+20000), Iowa (+20000), Saint Louis (+20000), and Notre Dame (+25000).

Outlier Low Odds: UCLA (+1200), Indiana (+3000), and Connecticut (+6000).

Credit to Caesars for hanging the best number for more teams than any other sportsbook. Additionally, it’s not just well down the odds list. It has competitive odds from betting favorites through the middle tiers and all the way down to the longshots.

It’s also worth highlighting just how much better the odds are for Duke, Kansas and Texas at Caesars.

Read our Caesars Sportsbook review.

Check out Caesars Sportsbook bonuses (U.S. players only)

2. PointsBet ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Outlier High Odds: Houston (+1100), Virginia (+6000), San Diego State (+8000), and Louisville (+20000).

Outlier Low Odds: Creighton (+2000), Michigan (+2500), TCU (+4000), and Xavier (+6000).

The odds at PointsBet are competitive, and bettors aren’t going to find many rouge numbers. In particular, I value that you won’t find the shortest odds on any of the top-tier teams in the country at the sportsbook.

Furthermore, if PointsBet wants to be wary of Creighton becoming too much of a liability, that’s just fine with me.

Read our PointsBet Sportsbook review.

Check out PointsBet Sportsbook bonuses (U.S. players only)

3. DraftKings ⭐⭐⭐

Outlier High Odds: Memphis (+12000), and Seton Hall (+14000).

Outlier Low Odds: Kansas (+1300), Villanova (+4000), Auburn (+4500), Purdue (+4500), Florida (+6000), and USC (+7000).

While DraftKings rarely offers the best odds for a program, it’s competitive at the top of the odds list. Kansas is the only high-end school trading at the lowest number.

The lack of value down the odds list is the biggest knock on DraftKings, though. It offers the shortest odds on a number of middling teams and doesn’t compensate enough with available value for other schools.

Read our DraftKings Sportsbook review.

Check out DraftKings Sportsbook bonuses (U.S. players only)

4. BetMGM ⭐⭐⭐

Outlier High Odds: Syracuse (+20000).

Outlier Low Odds: Duke (+1200), Arkansas (+1400), Tennessee (+1400), Texas Tech (+3500), Michigan State (+3500). 

Hanging the highest price for Syracuse doesn’t make up for having the shortest odds for multiple teams hovering at the top of the odds list. BetMGM is generally competitive, but there isn’t enough value to be plucked.

I would like to see better numbers from the middle tier or a couple favorites trading at higher odds, if BetMGM is going to be offering the lowest price on multiple top programs.

Read our BetMGM Sportsbook review.

Check out BetMGM Sportsbook bonuses (U.S. players only).

5. FanDuel ⭐⭐

Outlier High Odds: TCU (+5500), Auburn (+7000), and Texas A&M (+15000).

Outlier Low Odds: Gonzaga (+850), Houston (+850), Baylor (+1200), Virginia (+3000), Illinois (+3500), Dayton (+5000), Miami (FL) (+7000), Notre Dame (+7000), and Syracuse (+10000).

FanDuel just isn’t offering enough value, and it has the lowest odds on more teams than its competitors by a notable margin. Even worse, it is listing three of the betting favorites with the shortest number on the board.

I genuinely appreciate the team jerseys next to the school name on FanDuel’s odds list, though. It’s both aesthetically pleasing and helpful when trying to find a particular team.

Read our FanDuel Sportsbook review.

Check out FanDuel Sportsbook bonuses (U.S. players only)

Written By:
Neil Parker
A lifelong Cowboys, Cubs, Maple Leafs and Gators supporter, Neil has been covering sports in print and online since 2011. His past stops include USA TODAY, theScore, DraftKings Playbook and RotoWire among others. He's a graduate of St. Thomas University and Acadia University and spends ample time at KenWo Golf Club.