Welcome to SportsMemo’s guide to Best Basketball Betting Strategies! Check out three top-notch basketball betting strategies, good as both NBA betting strategies and college basketball betting strategies. If you just want to know the basics of betting on basketball, click here to jump straight to them.
Remember! Sportsmemo offers free NBA picks and premium expert college basketball betting picks all year long.
SportsMemo Basketball Betting Strategies
Big-name star players, fast-paced action, and a long list of games while in season, there's a lot to like when people put their interest in wagering on basketball. Between the NBA and college basketball, every night offers different levels of competition and there is a lot to choose from, giving customers multiple chances throughout a day or night to make a play of their choosing. There's no shortage of ways on how to wager on basketball with legal sports betting growing across the country, and below are some tips and tricks to survive a lengthy season-long basketball betting endeavor.
Basketball Betting Strategy #1: Wager Early
In basketball, the NBA in particular, players (even the best ones) are notorious for earning a day of rest or load management during the week. This is especially the case with teams playing back-to-back nights when the focus is on the long term and not the short.
Wagering on a game when an initial line is released in the morning has a chance of providing benefits to bettors if they are in tune with a team's schedule. If the Lakers are -6 favorites against the Knicks with LeBron James being questionable, a bettor paying attention to the Lakers' schedule can take an educated guess on if James will suit up.
If he or she believes yes, wagering on -6 in the morning before the official report comes out that James is confirmed playing, may look better than the -8 final spread after the public jumps on the Lakers. Be wary however, as this can have the opposite result.
SPECIAL OFFER FOR FIRST TIME SUBSCRIBERS
Sign up for Sportsmemo news alerts and get free picks, discounts and
Basketball Betting Strategy #2: Live Betting
Using live betting or in-game betting can be a fruitful endeavor if a customer can get over the mental hurdle of a team coming back from being down 10-15 points. Basketball is a game of runs, meaning teams trade 8-0, 10-0 runs in a few possessions and the score can flip in an instant.
Being down 10 points may have sounded worse a decade or two ago, but with the emergence of quicker pace and more three-point shots, every team is two defensive stops away from making a mini run. If the Lakers were -6 to open a game against the Knicks and start slow, they can find themselves down 10 points at the end of the first quarter.
The Lakers, who were a -6-point favorite, may now be -1 or -2 at the end of the quarter. With so much basketball remaining and the quick point swings, bettors can see this as value compared to the opening line if one assumes the game will go how the original line dictates.
Basketball Betting Strategy #3: Try Being A Contrarian
Taking the contrarian position means going against the general public, as everyone knows casinos and sportsbooks weren't built on winners.
Some sportsbook operators allow bettors to view what other bettors have been wagering on and in addition to this, there are plenty of sports betting tools to analyze percentages of wagers on each side and the amount wagered on each side. This lends itself to taking more underdogs money line, as the volatility in the NBA is hard to pin down.
Customers tend not to win in the long run by simply betting on the favorite, and it isn't smart for bankroll management either. One underdog money line win can be as valuable as winning two or three money line bets on favorites.
Remember! Sportsmemo offers free NBA picks and premium expert college basketball betting picks all year long.
Basketball Betting Strategies Basketball Betting Basics
Night in and night out, basketball games will display the most wagered on markets in a six-pack display with a money line market, a point spread market and a totals market.
These are the tried-and-true markets for basketball games that will be the most popular every day.
Money Line
If a customer is not familiar with these usual suspects, the money line market is picking a winner between two teams, with the odds associated with each team.
If the Los Angeles Lakers have -200 odds against the Brooklyn Nets with +140 odds, a customer will have to risk $200 to win $100 if selecting the Lakers or can win $140 from risking $100 if selecting the Nets.
Point Spread
The point spread tries to balance the difference between the two teams. For example, the Lakers are -6 point spread favorites hosting the +6 underdog Nets. For the Lakers to cover the spread, they must win the game by 7 points or more.
For the Nets to cover the spread, they must either win the game outright or lose by 5 points or less. Winning or losing by 6 is a push, in which the customer would receive their wager stake back.
Totals
The totals market focuses on how many points are scored in the game. For example, the over/under total between the Lakers and Nets is 232.5 points. A bet on the over needs the game’s final score to total 233 points or more to win, while a bet on the under needs 232 or fewer points.
Basketball Betting Strategies: Basketball Individual Player Props Markets
Basketball prop markets include selecting over/under for a specific players' stats during a game. Examples of these selections are picking the over/under for a players' points, rebounds, assists or some combination of stats like blocks + steals.
There are a plethora of options, and these can be combined to create same game parlays.
Looking for more free sports picks and sports betting tips?
- Latest Betting Odds and Public Action: Live odds updated in real time, including whom the public is betting on.
- Last Minute Handicapping Advice: Check out our extensive library of handicapping tips to help you become a better sports bettor. We also recommend browsing through our sports betting tips video library.
- Want an expert opinion? Check out the latest Free Sports Picks and Best Bets from our team of expert sports handicappers.
