How to Bet on Basketball: Pro Tips for Smarter NBA Wagers
24% of all respondents in Statista's survey had placed a bet on an NBA game. Sportsbooks are wise to the sudden uptick of interest in the NBA and offer more basketball props and odds than ever before. Following these NBA betting tips will help you make smarter, more profitable wagers.
Professional basketball bettors have a shrewd ability to spot value in betting lines. Professional basketball players have some habits that are easy for amateur sports betters to copy. Using a basketball betting strategy will allow you to approach betting on the sport through a more robust lens.
Amateur bettors tend to bet on their favorite teams. The first step to becoming a successful bettor is taking emotions out of the equation. The NBA is a serious business and requires you to use your head, not your heart.
Before betting on the NBA, take a look at how teams have fared in head-to-head matchups in the past. LandofBasketball.com has a great interactive chart that tracks the all-time head to-heads records of every team in NBA. ESPN’s team comparisons for the current season provide detailed pages with standings, head/head matchup statistics, stats leaders, offensive stats, and defensive analytics.
There are 1,230 games played in a typical NBA regular season. There are many ways to bet on NBA games.
DeMarcus Cousins and Brook Lopez were recently traded. They both had good performances in their first games since the change. They were playing against their former teams. NBA players are human and take getting traded very personally.
The NBA has tried to reduce the number of back-to-back games but teams still play 14.4 back to back games from October to April. Studies show that teams playing in the second game of a back in-and-out stretch win just 44% of the time. Net rating drops by 2.21 points per 100 possessions in second back game.
Golden State Warriors, Portland Trail Blazers, and Minnesota Timberwolves lead the NBA in miles traveled. Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers have the fewest air miles.
Home-court advantage is a huge advantage in the NBA. Home teams have won 61.2% of all NBA games since 1975. Denver and Salt Lake City have a strong advantage over visiting teams. Watch out for home underdogs who play in arenas known for their home-field advantage.
An injury to a star player can change the outcome of a game in basketball. The Golden State Warriors fell from five-straight NBA Finals appearances to last place and a .231 record in the absence of injured All-Stars Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. The Portland Trail Blazers experienced a 20-game drop-off of their own due to the injury of Brandon Roy.
How to bet on basketball is based on the overall game plan of the team and the tendencies of NBA coaches. Coaches can influence player statistics and their overall performance. Some coaches rest their best players during the fourth quarter of blowouts, while others ride their stars into the ground.
Before taking the over or under on a game total, you should consult the Pace Factor and Team Scoring stats. The highest-scoring teams are not always the ones with the highest Pace Factors. Fast pace often results in turnovers and erratic shooting. Teams with strong showings on both fronts will average a high number of possessions per game and score efficiently.
The highest-scoring teams are not always the ones with the highest Pace Factor.
Find the Story Behind the Numbers. Trends are valuable indicators, but they can be misleading if you don't consider the larger context behind the numbers. The fact that a team scored 110 points in its previous game doesn't necessarily mean its offense is firing on all cylinders. It's possible the other team was resting its starters in anticipation of a long road trip, or they were playing shorthanded due to injuries or suspensions.
Shop around for the best value on NBA games. Here are some of the most trusted sports betting sites. How to Bet on Basketball: Pro Tips for Smarter NBA Wagers.
Keep track of your betting results. Create a spreadsheet with the date, sportsbook, wager, odds, final score and profit or loss. Include another column for observations and insights from the action.
