Basketball is a hugely popular sport in North America, thanks to superstar players such as Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Lebron James - just to name a few. However, the popularity of professional leagues throughout the rest of the world has grown exponentially, leading to a rise in online basketball betting.
This article will provide you with a better understanding of betting on basketball online as a beginner.
National Basketball Association (NBA)
The NBA is the number one basketball league in the world. 30 teams from the United States and Canada competing for the highly coveted championship (not to mention the ring!). Players from around the world aspire to play in the NBA, from the pioneering Vlade Divac (from Serbia) to the current MVP Giannis Antetokuonmpo (Greece).
College Basketball (NCAA)
Colleges throughout the United States compete to become divisional champions, and to receive their invitation to ‘March Madness.’ March Madness is a single elimination tournament made up of 32 Division 1 champions and 36 teams chosen by an NCAA selection committee. The collegiate teams fight it out to be crowned National Champions. The ‘March Madness’ bracket challenge has become a fascinating spectacle for analysts, workplaces and of course the beginner and experienced bettors.
European Leagues
Many European countries have professional basketball leagues, including:
The best teams from domestic leagues around Europe compete annually in the Euro League and Euro Cup. These tournaments have become very popular with online basketball bettors.
Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and European Women’s Basketball League
Professional female basketball players competing in competitions across America and Europe.
Basketball sportsbooks offer a wide variety of markets (usually 100+), however, the most popular markets when betting on basketball online are:
There are also a number of other intriguing markets to look at when deciding on how you are going to bet on a game, a selection include:
When you are a beginner in the world of betting on basketball online, there are a number of considerations to take into account:
Please keep an eye on the odds that basketball sportsbooks offer on a money line bet. If a team is highly favoured, they will have very short odds (-300). I wouldn’t recommend backing a team at such short odds, as there is minimal upside to doing so. I would suggest looking into the spread total market, or even adding that team into an accumulator bet.
A guide to basketball betting would not be complete without mentioning some of the top players. Knowing some of the players in the team, their advantages, and disadvantages are sometimes all you need to make a winning bet!
Stephen Curry - the only thing you need to know about this guy is that he's probably the best three-point shooter currently active in the NBA.
James Harden - another 3-pointer to keep an eye on, what makes him interesting is that he is left-handed!
After conducting in-depth analysis into each game on tonight’s slate, it is time to place your bets on your favorite sportsbook.
Thankfully, a basketball season is very long (1230 games, and playoffs, in the NBA alone), so you can take your time and practice betting on a number of different markets with low wagers until you have refined your research techniques and gained more knowledge in the game.
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