Top Promos and NBA Betting Offers for US Players 2023

The US Sun
 

THE NBA has continued to grow in popularity in the United States and across the world year after year. That said, it’s not without its issues, especially in the regular season and how much it truly matters to the players, load management, and how the game is officiated.

The involvement of sports betting with the NBA has been an injection of excitement into the league. Ever since 2018, a steady stream of states have introduced new laws to legalize sports betting within their borders. 

Sports betting is transforming how we watch sports in general. The NBA has jumped at the chance to create sponsorship deals with gambling companies like DraftKings and BetMGM, two of the biggest gambling companies in the United States.

Betting on the NBA is easy. You can place future bets on which teams are going to make the playoffs, what team will win the Eastern or Western Conference or who wins the NBA Finals. You can also bet on teams outright on the money line, the spread or the over/under on points scored between both teams. We’re covering all that and everything else you need to know about betting on the NBA on this page.

Top sites with NBA betting offers

Below you can see our list of the top betting sites with the best NBA betting offers and promos available in the United States. Each of these sportsbooks offers something different in terms of NBA deals and each one has a partnership with the NBA in some fashion. There are more sportsbooks that offer deals revolving around the NBA, but these ones stand out the most.

  • DraftKings (Available in: AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, IA, KY, LA, MD, MA, MI, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, TN, VA, and WY)
  • BetRivers (Available in: AZ, CO, CT, IL, IN, IA, LA, MD, MI, NJ, NY, OH, PA, VA, WV, and WY)
  • WynnBET (Available in: AZ, CO, IN, LA, MA, MI, NJ, NY, TN, and VA)
  • BetMGM (Available in: AZ, CO, FL, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, MD, MA, MI, MS, NV, NJ, NY, OH, OR, PA, PR, TN, VA, WA, WV, and WY)
  • Unibet (Available in: AZ, IN, IA, NJ, PA, and VA)
  • Desert Diamond Sports (Available in: AZ)

In which states is NBA betting legal?

Most states that allow sports betting have the majority of their bets made online. Upwards of 70% of all sports bets are made online in the United States, and that number will only grow when more states legalize sports betting. 30 states have legalized gambling right now, with more coming.

What are the biggest NBA events to bet on?

The NBA has one of the longest regular seasons in sports at 82 games. The biggest times of the year to bet on the NBA are opening day, Christmas Day, All-Star Weekend, the playoffs, and the NBA Finals. Those events are the best times to gamble on NBA basketball. 

The playoffs and the NBA Finals are the biggest events overall for the sport, and attract the highest volume of bets. You’re also more likely to find special offers and promos for the NBA around playoff time. 

What are the most popular NBA betting offers?

Betting offers on the NBA vary from site to site, and usually fall into a few different categories.

  • Risk-free bets: A risk-free bet is an offer where you’re refunded for your initial wager if it loses. This is capped at a certain number, often ranging between $200 and $1,000.
  • Deposit match bonuses: A type of promotion where a sportsbook will match a percentage of the amount you deposit with bonus funds.
  • No deposit bonuses: A bonus offered by an online sportsbook or online casino that allows you to place bets without depositing real money.
  • Odds boosts: The sportsbooks chooses some specific NBA markets to receive enhanced odds. 

Do sportsbooks have special NBA playoff betting offers?

Sportsbooks do have special NBA playoff betting offers, especially around the time of the playoffs. The specific promos depend on which sportsbook you are looking at. For example, the offers might be based around different players hitting the over on points, steals, rebounds, assists, blocks, or even the amount of three-pointers they hit too.

Depending on the outcome of the above stats, you might earn a free bet or a percentage of your money back on your previous bet.

Most books will have offers throughout the season as well, like weekly odds boosts. Still, the playoffs are when the NBA takes center stage for fans and primetime for the best NBA bonuses

How do I claim an NBA betting offer from US sportsbooks?

  1. in the United States. To sign up you need to have your state ID available to scan with your Driver’s License number. Also, have your social security number ready. These are both needed to verify your identity and age.
  2. Type in a promo code during registration, if required.
  3. Making a qualifying deposit.
  4. Placing a qualifying bet to trigger a risk-free bet bonus, or claim your bonus cash from a deposit bonus.
  5. Use the risk-free bet bonus if the bet loses, or use your bonus cash or free bets.

Are NBA betting offers safe to use?

NBA betting offers are safe to use if you’re using a regulated sportsbook in the United States. Any NBA betting offers coming from sportsbooks that are based overseas can be problematic. Legit NBA bonuses from licensed sportsbooks include risk-free bets, deposit matches, and no deposit bonuses. There can also be odds boosts or just boost tokens in general to let you increase the value of different bets or parlays.

The issue with sportsbooks not based in the United States is that they claim to be trustworthy, but there’s no guarantee they are telling the truth and no actual legal protection. There’s just no guarantee bettors can win real money from them or know that your personal data is safe.

Which bets can I make on the NBA playoffs?

In the NBA, you can bet on tons of different things in a single game including spreads, money lines, player prop bets, and over/unders. Bettors can also place wagers on what teams will win the championship or what players will win the season awards like the MVP trophy. Parlays are also very common ways to wager on the NBA too.

NBA lines & spreads

A moneyline bet is a straight-up prediction on which team will win an individual game. The point spread involves betting on the margin of victory in a game, with the favorites favored by a certain number of points. For example, the Denver Nuggets could be favored by 8.5 points against the Miami Heat in the opening game of the 2023 NBA Finals.

Over / Unders

This is a prediction of the total combined points between each team in any given game in the NBA. You simply need to bet on whether the total points are over or under the line set by the sportsbook.

Player props & other prop bets

These are bets based on different stats each player can hit, including points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and three-pointers to name a few. The NBA is great for player prop bets because of all the different stats players can accrue.

Championship odds

These are the different odds each team in the NBA has to win the entire NBA Championship. All 30 teams have championship odds and those odds vary depending on how much talent each team has.

Parlays

A parlay bet simply combines multiple wagers into one bet. You can combine spreads, money lines, over/unders, and player props altogether, normally for pretty attractive overall odds.

Player awards odds

Players in the NBA have odds to win the different individual awards. Betting on the winner of the MVP, Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, 6th Man of the Year, and Rookie of the Year are all examples.

Biggest rivalries

For lots of people, the best games to place wagers on are the rivalry games. The biggest rivalry in the NBA is arguably Celtics-Lakers, but there are other big rivalries like Celtics-76ers and Lakers-Spurs too. 

Plus, the NBA has a lot of historic rivalries, but the collective quality has dropped off somewhat. Bulls-Pistons is an example of a tasty rivalry that has faded a little as both teams’ performances have declined.

How do NBA betting odds work?

To take an example, a moneyline bet simply wagers that one team or player will defeat another. The amount of money you win is determined by the odds, which might look like this:

  • Denver Nuggets -150
  • Miami Heat +130

In this example the Nuggets are the favorite. The Nuggets’ odds of -150 mean that in order to win $100, you would need to wager $150.

The Heat are the underdogs at +130. This means a bet of $100 would win $130 in profit.

Some bets (like Over/Under or betting on the Spread) tend to have balanced odds of around -110 on each side, since it’s theoretically around a 50/50 shot. Odds of -110 mean you would need to bet $110 to win $100, so it gets paid out a little worse than if it were a true coin flip - which is how the sportsbook makes a profit. 

Which US sportsbook has the best NBA betting offers?

Fans of the NBA have a couple of options for NBA offers.

Our number one choice is BetMGM, which we’re calling the best sportsbook for anyone that wants to place basketball bets. They are quick to release its NBA betting lines and They have a great loyalty program for MGM customers, as well as a lot of bonuses and promotions around the NBA too. The interface is also very easy to navigate and is generally designed very well. You can browse stats on each NBA team and watch video footage while deciding your plays.

DraftKings is right behind BetMGM in terms of the best sportsbooks for NBA offers. It’s the best NBA betting site for sign-up bonuses and odds boosts. The ongoing promotions are usually very good too. It also provides competitive NBA odds and high betting limits.

Can I bet on the NBA playoffs on mobile?

The short answer is yes. Upwards of 70% of all sports bets are made online in the United States, and that number will only grow when . The way to place wagers is evolving because of how easy it is for bettors to just place bets on their phones compared with going to a casino or a kiosk at a sports arena.

The best NBA betting offers are found online too, and can be claimed via mobile. Sportsbooks like BetMGM and DraftKings are constantly offering new things for their customers, from bonuses to promotions, to odds boosts, and even giveaways too. The United States is a booming market for the sports betting landscape and it’s being dominated by online betting, and mobile betting is at the forefront. 

Our top tips for making the most of NBA betting offers

  1. Study scheduling advantages/disadvantages: The NBA has taken steps to roll back the amount of back-to-backs teams have, but they still happen. NBA teams averaged 13.5 games on no rest and those are spots bettors can take advantage of. It’s almost always smart to fade the tired teams in those spots.
  2. Study and react to injury reports: There might not be any sport that gets impacted more by injuries in sports betting than basketball. With only five players on the floor for any team, the impact of one player being out can be huge and more impactful than the majority of team sports with larger starting rosters. This is even more important today because of load management. Pay attention to what injury news comes out the day of the game because that can shift odds one way or another too.
  3. Study pace of play rankings: This is a great tip for totals bets. A team that likes to get up and down will have more possessions and will make it more likely to hit the over whereas it’s the opposite with a team that wants to slow the game down and be more deliberate on offense. Pace of play can also be situational. For example, take what we saw in the 2023 playoffs between the Clippers and Suns, when Phoenix made a commitment to play fast against the Clippers as a way to counteract the Clippers tactics.
  4. Bet early: The NBA has a constant stream of news that can affect odds, especially lineup changes and shifts that happen all the way up until a game tips off. Betting early can allow bettors to take advantage of mistakes that different oddsmakers may have initially made with a game spread, a total, or the money line odds. You need to pay attention to injury reports, but it can also be very profitable to take advantage of the early mistakes that can happen in the odds too.
  5. Avoid teasers: Teasers have become very popular bets to make with the NFL. However, avoid those in the NBA. An average NBA game has 100 possessions, so a spread of four points in the NBA can be just two possessions. Ultimately, there are too many possessions in an NBA game for it to be worth it for bettors to tease it.

Responsible gambling 

Remember to gamble responsibly
A responsible gambler is someone who:

  • Establishes time and monetary limits before playing
  • Only gambles with money they can afford to lose
  • Never chase their losses
  • Doesn’t gamble if they’re upset, angry, or depressed
  • National Council on Problem Gambling – https://www.ncpgambling.org/

For help with a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline on 1-800-522-4700 or go to ncpgambling.org/chat