NHL 23 and NBA 2K23 cover athlete odds reveal favorites and dark horse contenders

Every major sports franchise is looking ahead to what's next, and the same is true for oddsmakers when it comes to NBA 2K23 and NHL 23.

Ahead of their reveals in the coming weeks, odds have now been revealed showing the favorites and contenders for NHL 23 and NBA 2K23 cover athlete.

NBA 2K23 cover athlete odds and top contenders

We're likely just about a month away from the NBA 2K23 cover athlete reveal, as they tend to kickoff that cycle in July ahead of a September release.

With the NBA Finals also wrapping up, that means a few players are making their final case to be on the cover of NBA 2K23.

Two of the contenders are in those very Finals, and a strong performance could be what's needed, but we already know who the favorite is.

According to SportsBetting.ag, reigning NBA MVP Nikola Jokic is the odds on favorite to be our NBA 2K23 cover athlete.

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Here are the top eight contenders for NBA 2K23 cover athlete and their odds (lower numbers mean higher odds of being chosen):

• Nikola Jokic +125
• Joel Embiid +200
• Jayson Tatum +400
• Steph Curry +500
• Ja Morant +600
• Devin Booker +2500
• LaMelo Ball +2500
• Trae Young +2500

Jayson Tatum and Steph Curry are currently fighting to see if their teams will emerge as this season's champions, but each could already be set for an NBA 2K23 cover.

NHL 23 cover athlete odds and top contenders

Meanwhile, EA Sports is likely a bit further out from an announcements, as we expect NHL 23 news to arrive in August with them once again targeting an October release date.

While the Stanley Cup Playoffs rage on, there are already some clear favorites to make it onto the cover of NHL 23.

Here are the top seven contenders for NHL 23 cover athlete and their odds (lower numbers mean higher odds of being chosen):

• Nathan MacKinnon +200
• Steven Stamkos +300
• Kirill Kaprizov +350
• Connor McDavid +400
• Nikita Kucherov +500
• Cale Makar +600
• Adam Fox +1200

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We saw with NHL 22 that EA wasn't afraid to repeat if the choice was worthy, as Auston Matthews graced the covers of both NHL 20 and NHL 22.

We could see another repeat of Connor McDavid is chosen, but right now it's Nathan MacKinnon holding the edge as most likely to be NHL 23 cover athlete.