A Beginner’s Guide to NBA Betting

The schedule for the teams is rotated every year, reaching a full circle every 5 years, meaning that after 5 years the teams will have played an equal number of games against the other teams in their divisions. The teams are ranked in their own league by their performance, and the team at the top of the division rankings at the end of the regular season wins the division.

The action does not stop there, as the teams are also ranked in the Conference tables, and the top teams qualify for the post-season playoffs. In the playoffs, the teams play against the other teams from their conference in knockout rounds, and the two teams that win the elimination rounds in their conference are crowned champions of their respective conferences. The two teams then head to the NBA Finals, where the winner of the game becomes the new NBA Champion.

NBA Betting Guide

Betting on NBA games has never been more popular. There are many options when it comes to betting on games in the regular season, playoffs and NBA finals. These range from the simplest bets, such as which team will win, all the way to bets on how many 3-point field goals a certain player may score in a game. For newcomers, it is best to start with the basics, and here is a guide to all of the bets that you need to get started with NBA basketball betting.

Basketball Bets

Full Time Result

This is simply a bet on which team will win in a game. For example, in a basketball game between the LA Lakers and Boston Celtics, punters can bet on either the Lakers or the Celtics to win the game. Bettors will be able to see which of the two teams is favourite to win, as they will have shorter odds than the other team.

Handicaps

Handicap bets allow bettors to set point handicaps on either team. This will either lengthen the odds but also increase the risk, or to reduce the risk and shorten the odds. There will be multiple point handicaps available, so bettors can pick the one with the preferred odds to risk ratio.

For example, there may be a game between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the LA Lakers. If the Lakers are the favourites to win, there may be point handicaps of -6.5, -7.5, -8.5, and so on, available. A bet on the Lakers would then only win if the team wins the game by a points margin larger than the handicap.

If a bettor wanted to place money on the Cleveland Cavaliers, they may find handicaps of +6.5, +7.5, +8.5, and so on. A bet on the Cavaliers would win if the team wins the game once that number of points have been added to their final score.

Total Points

This bet relates solely to how many points both teams will score during a game. It does not matter which team wins the game or when the points are scored, as long as the number of points scored during a game fall into the range that is bet on.

The market presents a number of betting lines, such as 158.5, 159.5, 160.5, and so on. A bettor chooses one of these betting lines and then bets on whether the total points will be over or under that value.

For example if a bettor bet on a game to end with over 159.5 points, then they will require the game to finish with at least 160 points scored between both teams. A bet on under 159.5 will require the game to finish with 159 points or less.

Halves or Quarters

All three bets mentioned above will also be available for individual halves or quarters. This allows bettors to divide a game of basketball into two separate halves or four separate quarters, meaning there are potentially twice or four times as many bets that can be placed on the same game.

One important thing about betting on a half or a quarter is that the points scored in the previous half or quarter will not be carried over. To put this into an example, if the Lakers win the first quarter against the Cavaliers 16-10, and a bet is placed on the Cavaliers to win the second quarter, then they will not need to win by 7 points or more for the bet to win. However, a bet on the Cavaliers to win the first half will require them to overcome the 6 point deficit.