In case you haven’t noticed, betting the NBA can be a challenge. It certainly is a lot of fun and the game is never boring with a buck or two riding on the outcome. Predicting the NBA with accuracy is a most difficult challenge and the handicappers that do hit 55% or more, those guys are students of the game. They live and die the NBA, handicapping the sport really is their life and they are good at it. Some even hit in the mid 60 % range. This is outstanding in any sport. If a gambler gets even a slight whiff of 70%, that’s an amazing run.
Where’s the Money – Betting on NBA or MLB?
The “old school” days of betting on sports have thankfully been replaced by folks with innovative ideas for drumming up business and for keeping their clients engaged in the betting process. Betting used to be very limited, it was limited to straight bets, parlays–not all bookies but some would take round robins as well as teaser bets. Back in the day, nobody took reverse action, most books didn’t even sell points. The bookies of today offer it all, literally every possible way that can be thought of to bet; it’s available.
Sportsbooks make big money on prop bets but they also lose big. Prop bets can be a money maker for one reason; the bookies simply don’t have the time and don’t take the time to research the bets. They throw them out there every day in hopes of across the board action. They want the money coming in and they don’t care what it’s on, straight bets, prop bet, parlays or teasers.
Where Are the Profits,, for the Gambler or the Bookie?
Thanks to the offshore book makers, we now have live lines (live in game wagering). Live wagering has ramped up the excitement level and taken sports betting to an entirely different place. If you bet on a Rockets vs. Wizards NBA matchup and you bet the total line before tipoff at O/U 223, you take the over, meaning that you need 223 points to push and get your money back or 224 points or more, to win the bet. The game starts and you see that things are not going so well, there is 1.30 left in the first half with 84 points on the board; the game is on pace to go dead under. With live lines, you have options and you can hedge your original bet.
Basketball Betting – First Halves vs. Second Halves NBA
You must be quick with math. Betting the live lines totals; and really the same can be said for the spread, betting this way puts you one on one with your bookie, your sportsbook. You are now playing poker but you have the power to cash in the chips without getting hurt. If that bet goes bad you still have the second half and live lines for the 3rd and 4th quarters. Live lines have changed the way to gamble on the NBA and it’s given the players a real chance to beat the house.
Be careful with live lines, they can bite you and you can lose your monthly betting budget in a day! Don’t chase bad bets. If you get screwed on one game, wait for another. It is fun to bet on the game or total lines before the tipoff of an NBA game and then see what the live lines are looking like with five minutes gone by. This is really where you can hit the sportsbook hard. It’s there guess against yours. They have no time to handicap, they are in the same position as you and you can beat them at their own game.
