How To Bet In Nba
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Read our how to bet on the NBA betting guide for a full overview of the NBA. We’ll provide our best betting tips, how to pick a winner, a preview of the 2017/2018 season and the best Australian bookmakers for betting on the NBA. Continue reading our How to bet on the NBA guide below.
Best NBA betting sites
If you’re looking for the best NBA betting sites, we’ll provide the best options for below for NBA betting.
Bookmaker name | For more info: | Our rating | How to bet on the NBA |
---|---|---|---|
Ladbrokes | Check bookmaker’s site | 4/5 | |
Bet365 | Visit bet365 | 5/5 | |
Betstar | Visit site | 4/5 | |
Betfair | Check bookmaker’s site | 4.5/5 | |
PlayUp | Visit site | 4.5/5 | |
Unibet | Check bookmaker’s site | 5/5 | Coming soon >> |
PoinstBet | Check bookmaker’s site | 4.5/5 | Coming soon >> |
NBA background
Betting on single games during the NBA season is the most popular way to bet on the league, but bets can also be made on playoff series or future bets. Prop betting is another popular way to bet on the league, and the All-Star Game offers some unique betting opportunities as well. In terms of NBA betting, we’ll review the betting opportunities available in this section. Win betting – Just simply pick an NBA winner per game. Multi betting – Rather than picking a single winner, betting via a multi-bet provides better value odds. We recommend sticking with around 3-5 teams in a multi, as anymore will be a tougher bet. Betting opens well before the preseason and remains open throughout the season, all the way through to the finals, and NBA betting predictions will take into account the form of teams, and other factors such as injuries to crucial players.The NBA Championship odds would rise and fall throughout the season so it is important for the punter to. Following these NBA betting tips will help you make smarter, more profitable wagers and provide insight on how to pick which NBA games to bet on. How to Bet on Basketball Like a Pro Professional basketball bettors have a shrewd ability to spot value in betting lines that comes from hundreds of hours of practice and a strong aptitude for math.
The NBA stands for “National Basketball League” and is known as the best Basketball competition in the World. The league was formed in 1946 and was named the NBA in 1949. The league currently has 30 teams registered and the teams are split by two conferences.
The Eastern Conference consists of 15 teams from around the East coast of the United States. While the Western Conference also has 15 teams and they’re located on the West coast. The NBA season starts in early October and finishes in late-June.
The regular season is 82 games per team and the eight best teams by record in each Conference will qualify for the NBA playoffs. The playoffs format in each Conference is: 1st team vs 8th team, 2nd team vs 7th team, 3rd team vs 6th team and 4th team vs 5th team.
Each playoff series has 7 games allotted and the team to reach 4 wins first, wins the series. The team with the best record will play four home games if required in a seven-game series.
The Boston Celtics currently own the record for most NBA championships at 17 from 1957 to 2008. The Los Angeles/Minneapolis Lakers aren’t far behind on 16 championships, although they’ve lost 15 of 31 appearances. The Chicago Bulls have a 6-0 record in the NBA finals, mainly thanks to Michael Jordan.
But they haven’t won a championship since the Jordan playing days in the 90s. There are seven teams (Hornets/Bobcats, Nuggets, Clippers, Grizzlies, Timberwolves, Pelicans, Raptors) that have never played in the NBA championships. While four teams in the NBA have reached the finals but haven’t won, they’re the Nets, Jazz, Magic, Suns and Pacers.
Betting opportunities
How To Bet On Nba Games Reddit
In terms of NBA betting, we’ll review the betting opportunities available in this section.
Win betting – Just simply pick an NBA winner per game.
Multi betting – Rather than picking a single winner, betting via a multi-bet provides better value odds. We recommend sticking with around 3-5 teams in a multi, as anymore will be a tougher bet. A multi can include straight win, line, total points, first basket and more.
Line/Spread betting – A line is a number that determines which team is the favourite or the underdog. The line number will need to be reached for the bet to win. The line is represented by a – sign and a + sign. The team with a minus sign is the favourite and the larger the number, the better chance they have of winning. Whereas, the plus sign is used for the underdog. The line is also available for betting on per quarter and per half.
Total points – Betting on the total points in NBA betting has two options – overs and unders. Betting on the over total points means the final total must reach over the number of points for the game. The number of total points is determined by the bookmaker.
Nba Betting Picks Today
Generally, when the total points are 200 or more points, both teams are expected to score well over 100 points in the matchup. The total points can also be available for each half or by quarter.
First basket – The first basket markets come with value odds on the first scorer in an NBA game. The best NBA betting options for the first basket are usually the point guard, shooting the guard and small forward.
Propositions – The type of propositions bet types can include markets by player. The proposition NBA betting markets can include: how many points by the player, how many rebounds by the player, how many assists by player and more.
NBA 2017/2018 preview
The Cleveland Cavaliers and Golden State Warriors have been the two best teams in the NBA over the last few years. They’ve played against each other in three straight NBA final series. The Warriors are 2-1 and they won the championship in 2017. The Cavaliers are led by LeBron James and with him on the court, they’re always in the running for the finals.
In the 2017/2018 season, the Warriors and Cavaliers will start as the favourite in each conference. The Warriors have Steph Curry and Kevin Durant, two of the best shooters in the NBA. While the Cavaliers have the best player in the NBA in LeBron James. If they both reach the finals in 2017/2018, it will be the fourth straight time.
In the teams to watch, the Oklahoma City Thunder have the current MVP, Russell Westbrook. They also added Paul George from the Pacers in the offseason. They’ll be expected to improve next season and challenge the Warriors in the Playoffs.
How To Bet On Nba Champion
In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics are the best challenger for the Cavaliers. They finished with the best record in the East but the Cavaliers knocked them out in the playoffs. They added Gordan Hayward in the offseason but they traded young star, Avery Bradley. But with Isiah Thomas leading the way, the Celtics will be a team to watch in 2017/2018.
Thanks for reading our How to bet on the NBA – Betting guide.
How to Bet On Sports > How to Bet on the NBA
“You can practice shooting eight hours a day, but if your technique is wrong, then all you become is very good at shooting the wrong way. Get the fundamentals down and the level of everything you do will rise.” – Michael Jordan
Introduction
For over a decade Sports Insights has been a leader in the sports information industry and our “How To” articles are designed to help our members to grasp the fundamentals of sports investing. This article will focus on the ins and outs of wagering on the NBA. The seemingly eternal NBA season starts in late October and the Finals occur in early July. The long season provides many opportunities to build your bankroll, but before you can become a sports investor, you must learn how to bet on the NBA. This article discusses the different wager types the NBA has to offer, including: Spread, Moneyline, Parlay/Teaser, 1st Quarter/1st Half, Halftime, and Futures.
Spread
Any fan of the NBA will tell you that games can become high scoring affairs as teams are only given 24 seconds on every possession to score. Due to these high scores, bookmakers use a spread, or line, to equalize the chances of either team winning a wager. It is not uncommon to see 15+ point spreads, something that is rarity in the NFL. The example below from the SI Archive should help clear things up:
Team | Opening Line | Final Score |
Celtics | -2 -110 | 96 |
Knicks | +2 -110 | 86 |
The example above demonstrates the opening line for a regular season match-up between the Celtics and Knicks. The -2 indicates that the Celtics are the favorite, despite the Knicks playing at home. The ‘-110’ next to the line is what’s known as the vig, or juice, which is simply a fee the sportsbooks charge to use their service. A bet of $110 on Boston would improve your bankroll $100 as the team covered easily by 8 points. A ‘+’ symbol always indicates an underdog, whereas a ‘-‘ always indicates a favorite. A two-year study on NBA point spreads concluded that games fall within .5 points of the spread 5.5% of the time, which is why shopping for the best line is crucial to the smart sports investor.
Moneyline
The Moneyline is a type of wager that provides different odds based simply on who will win. The Moneyline (ML) odds can be drastic when the powerhouses of the NBA face-off against the lower level teams who are struggling to stay above .500. The example below demonstrates a typical Moneyline wager in the NBA:
Team | Moneyline Odds |
Warriors | +600 |
Spurs | -850 |
The example above shows drastic moneyline odds, indicating that the Spurs are the big favorites in this contest. In fact, one would have to lay $850 on the Spurs to collect a mere $100 in profit. On the other hand, a wager of $100 on the Warriors would earn the bettor $600 in winnings. The Moneyline and point spread are not necessarily released simultaneously.
The Spread and Moneyline are contributing factors for Sports Insights’ Steam Moves and Smart Money plays, both available in our Sportsbook Insider Pro plan.
Totals
A total wager is one placed on the COMBINED score of each team. This number is determined by the bookmakers and the bettor places a wager on the over or under (O/U). The NBA is the highest scoring sport of all the major U.S. sports, so it is not uncommon to see totals in the +220’s. The example below should help makes things clearer:
Team | O/U | Final Score |
Heat | 197.5o -105 | 100 |
Pistons | 197.5u -115 | 94 |
The final total for this contest was 194 points, falling just 3.5 points short of the bookmakers’ predicted total. Due to the increased juice, a wager of $115 on the under would earn $100 profit. Totals lines can fluctuate from their time of release, so make sure you consult SportsInsights.com’s Betting Trends Data before placing a wager.
Quarter/1st Half Lines
A 48-minute NBA game is broken down into four 12-minute quarters, and bettors are able to place bets on the 1st quarter and 1st half lines before these contests begin. These bets can be best thought of as the game within the game. The 1st quarter line (generally ¼ of the entire game’s spread) lets you dictate who you think will be covering the spread at the end of one quarter of play. The 1st half lines are essentially the same, only they extend through the 1st half of play. Like other sports, some teams are known to jump out of the gate quickly and build an early lead, while others are “4th quarter teams” who like to play from behind. These situations are some of the inspirations for 1st quarter and half lines. (you can keep or delete this above sentence, I couldn’t decide)
Halftime Lines
For most people, the dawning of halftime means it’s time to change the channel, but for the avid sports investor, halftimes can become a thing of profit. Halftime lines are available DURING halftime only. The halftime lines take into consideration what transpired in the 1st half to create an entirely new spread for the remainder of the game. Think of the 2nd half as a completely new game with a new spread to accompany the remainder of the contest. The example below should shed light on this concept:
Team | Halftime Score | Halftime Line | Final Score |
Bulls | 58 | -4 -110 | 102 |
Pistons | 53 | +4 -110 | 90 |
If you were to think of the start of the 3rd quarter as 0 to 0, the final score would be 44 to 37, meaning the Bulls would have covered the halftime spread by 3 points. Halftime wagers are not nearly as popular as bets placed before the game, but a winning wager still creates the same profit.
Parlay/Teaser
Like any major American sport, you can parlay, essentially combine, your bets to increase the payout. For your parlay to hit, or win, ALL of the bets must cover. You can combine spread, totals, and moneyline bets to increase the payout of a parlay. A teaser bet is essentially the same as a parlay wager only the booksmaker gives you points to increase your odds of winning, but decrease your overall payout. For example, if you are wagering on a 4-point teaser and the Boston Celtics spread is -10, it would become -6. This 4-point advantage is included on each part of the teaser wager. The chart below shows payout structure for a typical spread parlay:
# of Teams | Payoff |
2 | 2.64/1 |
3 | 6/1 |
4 | 12.28/1 |
5 | 24.35/1 |
6 | 47.41/1 |
7 | 91.42/1 |
8 | 175.44/1 |
9 | 335.85/1 |
10 | 642.08/1 |
11 | 1226.70/1 |
12 | 2342.79/1 |
13 | 4473.51/1 |
14 | 8541.25/1 |
15 | 16306.94/1 |
Futures
Futures bets are proposition bets placed on which team will win what conference or the NBA championship. Futures are not only limited to teams. For example, you can place bets on who you think will the league’s MVP. There are even bets available at the beginning of the season as to the over/under win totals for a specific team. As the season progresses, the odds fluctuate, and once a team has officially been placed out of the running, they take down the odds for them to win in all. It is not uncommon to see teams fall from this list before the end of March. Despite the fact that only 8 different teams have won the NBA championship in the last 30 years, many bettors like to wager on a dark horse team due to the better odds these teams receive. A bettor may choose to place wagers on several teams to win the big game in order to increase the chance of a decent payout.