Sports betting can get a little confusing if you are new to it. Even if you absolutely love basketball and have watched it for all of your life, there are still some little quirks of gambling that you might not understand.
Maybe you live in an area where betting on basketball has only recently been allowed, or you just want to try your hand at it for the very first time.
There are some things to get used to, odds change due to many different factors, but you can check the latest NBA betting odds today to see what value is available, since this could always be different by tomorrow!
Point spread betting
The point spread could be a source of value, especially if there is a favorite for the matchup. If you are new to gambling then it is natural to be wondering what on earth the point spread actually means.
Let’s say you look at a point spread for the Cavs at -4.5 – this means they are favored and more likely to win by over 4.5 points (the decimal is placed there to ensure there’s no confusion).
If the Cavs played the Celtics and you bet on the Celtics in this market, they would cover the spread if they lost by either four or two points.
The points spread can also be bet on as a number of points in the game. For instance, if you bet on “202” then you’d be betting on either “over” or “under” this market. Exactly 202 points scored would refund your money, but 203 would win an “over 202” market.
You can get some pretty good odds betting this way.
Futures and outrights
Within your gambling app, you might find that there are options to bet on futures and outrights. For example, you might be able to bet on the winner of the NBA championship in the coming season.
You can sometimes get good odds on these types of bets if you feel like you know who is going to come out on top of a whole competition. These bets can change a lot over the course of the season and you’re definitely playing the long game if you go for these markets. You may also be able to bet on individual awards, such as Rookie of the Year – if you can call the next basketball dynasty correctly then you might make significant returns!
Betting by quarters
A lot of gambling companies will allow you to bet on the individual quarters of a game, so if you have an inkling of what is going to happen in each quarter this can be another viable market.
For instance, if you think that one team is going to start really strongly then you can bet on them to be ahead in the first quarter, or if you think a team is going to stage a comeback, you could try and bet on them to do so at a particular point in the game.
These sorts of markets are opened up more on a lot of the basketball sportsbooks, which are aiming to offer the pro and experienced gamblers good odds on more interesting markets.
In-play betting
What does in-play betting mean? There are lots of lines and options that stay open while the game is in progress – both on individual and team markets. So, if a team that you think is going to win should fall behind, you can back them to come through that, and often get better odds in the process.
In-play betting on an app has become really popular, as people have access to the internet and the use of their devices pretty much wherever they are.
Parlay betting
Parlay betting is where you combine the outcomes of multiple events on one bet slip, betting on everything you think is going to happen on a day or a weekend, for example. If all the teams you have backed come in then you will get a big return (usually). However, remember that all it takes is for one of these teams to fail and your bet will not come in.
This is a high-risk, high-reward strategy, so if you are going to use parlay betting then rather go with smaller stakes and make sure you are always betting responsibly. Like all bets, there is an element of risk involved, but to profit from these bets you rely on a lot of events following your predictions to bring you the win.