How to approach betting on the NBA

The end of October is normally the start of the NBA season, which in the world of sports is one of the most advantageous leagues for high-volume betting as there are more than 1200 games involving just 30 teams. 

That in itself makes following, analyzing and betting much less time consuming and I could argue much easier in terms of consistently finding value. 

It allows me to narrow my focus which is a tenet of sensible gambling, as no one individual can cover all aspects of a sport or multiple sports. 

Betting on things you don't understand is a key rule in our article how to bet sensibly and gamble responsibly.

What I mean by this is that the number of teams involved and needed researching in relation to the markets available is much more favorable than standard football leagues.

In football leagues, the variables influencing selections are much more complex in nature while the number of games for a league or country specialists are often not enough to allow high-volume betting.

In order to get the best out of NBA, there are several very simple rules and methods for those, who are familiar with basketball betting but lack deep knowledge or expertise on the topic and those, who are just starting. 

1. Undertake research ahead of the NBA season

What is great about the NBA is that there is a huge abundance of constantly updated information.

There are projections, player analysis, team depth charts and basically everything even a person, totally unfamiliar with basketball can use to gain knowledge - quickly 

It is usually sufficient to start betting almost immediately.

It literally does not take more than a few hours to cover the consensus expectations for each of the 30 NBA teams and once you have that, you can consider yourself half-an-expert on the topic.

American journalists are always very detailed and that is what makes the NBA so much easier to master than European basketball leagues or tournaments.

2. Get to know all the basketball betting markets

Basketball betting is nothing difficult if you already bet on football on a regular basis. 

The major markets are where most bets are placed.

• Moneyline
• Points Spread
• Totals
• Parlay

Just like the over/under market in football, the points market is often easier, but unlike football the odds rarely deviate, so you will be getting 1.80 or 1.90 on both options, but it is the actual suggested points that change as the game approaches. 

In terms of value, there is a term I have seen on many US sites, which is "buying points" or respectively "selling points" if you are looking for security. 

That is equivalent to picking a different over/under in football than the standard 2.5 if you feel more confident or if you need extra security when accumulating bets. 

This is very often used when trying to get that little bit more out of the bookies when they are not paying enough attention.

 If you have the standard points line at 192.5 but you have strong arguments in favor of a higher-scoring affair, you can add up to twice the odds and moving your line to 198.5 for example

Getting to know the markets and their specifics is very important if you want to master basketball betting.

3. Specialise

This is pretty much the same as having a football team that you closely follow and know all about, It is a guideline for any sport, but with NBA it plays a huge part as weak teams are generally weak all season and contenders contend all season. 

A team that is projected to lose more than 60 games of 82 in total early on will probably lose close to that number rather than shock everyone by losing just 30! 

Having a team or two you research more and have more in-depth knowledge about how they play, who are the important players there and how they match-up with the others can really help when trying to beat the bookies.

The bookies can sometimes miss little bits of info or are late to reflect it on the lines and odds, you with your specialist knowledge can profit

One fresh example from a previous season,  was when some bookies were almost 2 hours late to reflect on the handicaps that San Antonio Spurs will be resting all their regular starters in the midst of a serious winning streak. 

That day the line moved almost 13 points in one direction, which is very rare, but for those who were on their toes, it spelled profit.

4. Do not bet on too many games or markets

I mentioned before, there are more than 1200 games in a season merely 6 months long, so there is a lot to chose from. 

The only real threat is jumping on too many games night after night. 

Being focused on your strategy is the only way to get serious profits as the risk of going all "Las Vegas" style rarely pays off, if you need a reminder of this please do check out the aforementioned how to bet sensibly and gamble responsibly article.