The NBA is one of the best sports leagues to bet on. With an unpredictable pace and intense atmosphere, it’s hard to turn away from the action.
And while there are plenty of ways to bet on the league, there are even more ways to make money off of the game. This guide covers everything you need to know about betting on the NBA.
Ways To Bet
There are multiple ways to bet on the NBA. You can place bets on individual players, teams, conferences, and even entire seasons.
You can bet on the NBA season as a whole, with different markets offering different types of wagers.
For example, you could bet on whether a team will win the championship, or you can bet on the total points scored over the course of the regular season.
You might also want to bet on the number of wins or losses a particular team will accumulate throughout the season.
Whether you’re betting on a single player or a team, finding the best sites to bet on the NBA is important.
Some places offer better odds than others, so it;s best to do lots of research for online bookies for NBA betting.
These include both major offshore bookmakers and smaller local platforms, such as Unibet, William Hill, Paddy Power, Bet365, 888Sport, and more.
Opening An Account
If you want to place bets on the league, you’ll need to open up an account with one of the many online sportsbook sites out there.
Once you’ve opened an account, you’ll see a list of events throughout the season. Each event corresponds to a game played during the regular season.
If you want to bet on the outcome of a particular game, just select the event corresponding to that game.
You can bet on a single team, like the Los Angeles Lakers, or multiple teams, such as the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets.
Individual Players
As we’ve mentioned you’ll also be able to wager on individual players. For example, you could bet $100 on LeBron James to win MVP honors.
Or you could bet $200 on Kevin Durant to score 50 points in a given game.
As always, you’ll have access to lines on both sides of the spread. So, for instance, you might see the Miami Heat listed as -4.5 favorites over the Milwaukee Bucks.
This means that the bookmaker thinks Miami will beat the Bucks by four points or less.
If you don’t like the odds offered by the bookmakers, you can change the odds yourself.
Just go to the market screen and enter the amount you wish to bet. Once you hit the big green button, the price will update automatically.
Moneyline Strategy
You’re probably familiar with the term “moneyline,” which refers to wagering on whether the home team will cover the spread or not. For example, let’s say the Chicago Bulls play the Cleveland Cavaliers.
If the game is close enough, you could bet $100 on the Cavs covering the spread ($120). However, if you think the Cavs are going to blow the Bulls away, you might want to bet $150 on the underdogs ($180).
In basketball, the home team is typically favored over the visitor. So, if you bet on the home team, you’re essentially betting against the spread.
On the other hand, if you bet on an underdog, you’re betting in favor of the spread.
So, what does this mean for us?
Well, it means that we don’t have to worry about whether the Bulls are going to cover the spread or not; we can focus on finding good value plays on teams that are likely to lose.
And, since most people tend to lean toward the favorites, we end up making money off of the weaker teams.
Here are some examples of how this works:
- Boston Celtics vs. Brooklyn Nets – The Celtics are the clear favorites here, but the Nets aren’t far behind.
- San Antonio Spurs vs. New Orleans Pelicans – The Pelicans are the big favorites here, but the Spurs are still capable of pulling off upsets.
- Los Angeles Clippers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder – The Clippers are a popular pick to win the West, but they haven’t been playing well lately.
- Golden State Warriors vs. Utah Jazz – The Warriors are one of the best teams in the league, and they should be able to beat the Jazz.
- Houston Rockets vs. Dallas Mavericks – The Rockets are another favorite to win the West, while the Mavs are coming off a disappointing loss to the Lakers.
- Memphis Grizzlies vs. Phoenix Suns – The Suns are a trendy sleeper pick to make the playoffs, but the Grizzlies are more than capable of beating them.
You get the idea!
Over/Under Strategies
The over/under betting strategy involves placing bets based on how many points each team scores during the course of a basketball game.
If you bet $100 on the over, you’re saying that you think there will be more points scored in the game than the current projected total of 110.
Conversely, if you bet $100 on under, you’re saying that fewer points will be scored in the game than what’s been predicted.
A few factors influence the outcome of games, including injuries, fatigue, foul trouble, and the quality of the opposing players.
However, most people bet on the over because it’s easier to predict than the under.
In recent seasons, the over/under spread has become increasingly popular among sports fans, especially those who follow professional football and college basketball.
In fact, NFL and NCAA basketball games have seen record numbers of bets placed on the over/under in recent years.
Point Spread Strategies
The point spread is the preferred betting method for some sports bettors because it eliminates the advantage of one team over another.
Oddsmakers look at each team based on what they believe about how well they will perform against the opponent.
They calculate the total points scored by each team and determine whether the favorite has a better chance of scoring more points than the underdog.
If the favorite wins by more than the point spread, the bettor wins; if the underdog wins by less than the point spread, bettors lose (Check Out Bet Without Losing).
When calculating the perceived point spread, oddsmakers take into account factors such as the venue of the game, recent performances, injuries, and other factors.
A team that performs poorly in games recently might be seen as having a lower probability of victory than a team that has been playing well lately. In addition, the home team usually plays better than the away team.
Underdogs don’t always play badly against favored opponents. Sometimes they even beat them. This happens when the underdog has a good matchup.
An example is the New York Knicks vs. Miami Heat in the NBA Finals. The Heat had no answer for LeBron James’ ability to score and dominate the ball.
But he didn’t do anything special. He just played his game. And the Knicks won.
Keeping Track Of Statistics
For the best chance of getting your betting choices right you should keep track of statistics throughout the season.
You don’t necessarily need to follow every single game, but knowing where your favorite players stand in terms of stats is important.
For instance, LeBron James leads the league in scoring, but he doesn’t lead the league in assists. Knowing that helps you decide whether he’s worth betting on.
Conclusion
Betting on basketball is an exciting way to make money. It can also be very frustrating if you don’t know what you are doing.
By following the tips above, you should be able to get started with basketball betting without too much difficulty.
A favorite of mine is golf gambling. Such a relaxing game can win you big when you bet on the right people. Plus, betting makes watching it much more fun, too!
If you’re looking for a new hobby, gambling can sound like a risky venture. But it doesn’t have to be. Stick with my knowledge of the business and I’ll help you navigate the tricky waters that are gambling online sites.
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