NBA Quarter Betting Odds Explained There are also what are known as quarter betting lines for the NBA. These operate just like point spreads for the whole game, only broken up into the 12 minute quarters. These Lines are obviously much closer than the overall game line, but wagers are made on teams covering the spreads. If you were betting on the Patriots and their 3/1 odds, you would win $3 for every $1 you spend. So if you bet $50 on the Pats and they ended up winning the Super Bowl, you’d win $150 (plus your.

NBA lines are easy to read! If you’ve ever bet on NFL action, you know that the National Basketball Association is a similar cash play on a straight pick, point total or ATS.

But wait – what if you’ve never wagered on football either? Or what if all of it seems confusing anyway?

NBA Playoffs Odds. NBA Playoff odds show which teams are most likely to secure one of their conferences playoff berths. The Eastern Conference has, for a long time, been considered to be the weaker of the two conferences and this can be shown in the records for teams entering the playoffs.

Here are some basic explanations of how basketball lines work.

Betting the NBA Against the Spread

Let’s start off with an example of a pro hoops game with the point spread listed:

Chicago Bulls +6 (-110)
LA Lakers -6 (-110)

In these lines, Los Angeles is a 6-point favorite over the Chicago Bulls. Remember, the team with the minus (-) sign is the favorite and the number listed after is how many points they are favored by. That means you could bet on L.A. to best their opponent, but they must prevail in the contest by more than 6 points for your wager to pay off. ‘

If the Lakers prevail by less than 6 points, your bet would be a loser, and if Los Angeles prevails by exactly 6 points, your wager would be a “push” or tie, meaning your wager would be nullified.

On the other side of the ledger is Chicago at +6, this means the Bulls are “getting” 6 points (or are 6-point underdogs). A wager on Chicago would score for you if the Bulls either prevail outright, or lose by less than 6 points (e.g. Bulls 101, Lakers 105 would give you a winning bet if you took the Bulls +6).

The next number, after the point spread, represents the “vigorish,” or juice, that the book requires to place your bet. In the example above, both numbers are -110 (which is fairly typical). This means you must wager $110 to win $100 (or $55 to win $50, etc.). This number does change on occasion, so be sure you check it before placing a wager.

Basketball Money Line Odds and Betting

Betting the “ML” simply means picking who you think will win out-right. The only caveat is that you will need to wager more on a favorite to receive a substantial payoff, while a winning underdog comes with a better payout. Here’s an example:

Miami Heat -260
Charlotte Bobcats +220

The Heat are the favorites here, so a gambler would need to put up $260 just to win $100 on Miami. If she wanted to take on more risk for a bigger reward, she could bet $100 on the Bobcats. If the Bobcats prevail, payoff is $220.

National Basketball Association Over/Under Wagers

Bookies always set a number that represents how many points the teams will combine to score in the game, called the Over/Under, or O/U. You simply pick whether the final score will be greater than (over) or less than (under) the number the odds-makers set. Here is an example:

Atlanta Hawks vs. Miami Heat – OVER/UNDER 190.5

Remember that over/under bets will also always have some kind of vigorish (usually -110), so be sure to take that into account when placing this type of wager.

To determine what the scoreboard will look like after 4 quarters, take a look at schedules and injury reports for each side. If a team is in midst of a long road trip or suffering from injuries, they are more likely to have a slow-paced, half-court offense worked into their game plan. But if they’re coming in with fresh legs and/or playing at home, you can expect a lot more running than usual. It’s never a sure-fire prediction, but it’ll help get you above 50% accuracy.

Another scenario that leads to more fast-break basketball is when a coach is trying to play his team into shape in the earliest stretch of the preseason or regular season. However, that tends to happen more often in prep and NCAA basketball than in pro action.

Also, be sure to investigate both squads’ tendencies in “garbage” time. When a contest is a blow-out, pro coaches like to substitute their bench onto the floor. Depending on what type of youngsters are playing out the minutes and who is coaching them, there could be a lot of running – or a more low-scoring half-court game.

But if a strong defensive team manages to rout an opponent, the score will often be something like 91-72 – easily falling under the O/U line on most nights.

Basketball bets are some of the most straightforward in Las Vegas, but still require skill and research to get your handicap above 50%. Happy stakes!

In the world of sports betting, a money line bet is simply betting on which team you expect to win. It doesn’t have anything to do with a spread. You may also see a money line bet listed as “Money Line” or “ML” in different spaces.

Money lines are represented in negative and positive values.

Negative money line: -145, -220, or anything similar

When you see a minus (-) sign in front of a price, it shows you that team is the favorite to win the game.

Nba Betting Lines Explained

That number also indicates how much money you need to bet/spend in order to win $100.

For example, a -220 money line means you need to bet $220 in order to win $100 provided the team you bet on actually does win.

Heavy favorites are known in sports betting as a “chalk” pick. A heavy favorite usually has a number pushing +300 or more. Here, you’re wagering a lot on the favorite to win a little. Don’t assume that a heavy favorite, or chalk pick, is a guaranteed winner…

Sports Line Betting Explained

Positive money line: +145, +220, or anything similar

When you see a plus (+) sign in front of a price, it shows you that team is the underdog. Higher numbers like +400, +500, +5000, etc. represent how much of an underdog the team is in the game. The higher the number the more likely the team is expected to lose in the eyes of the oddsmakers.

The number also indicates how much money would win in comparison to every $100 you wager.

For example, a +150 money line means you would win $150 for each $100 wager you place should that team win the game.

Money line examples:

Lets use an NFL example here:

New England Patriots -240

Miami Dolphins +220

To bet the New England Patriots to win on the money line, you would need to spend $240 on the bet for a chance to win $100 if the Patriots beat the Dolphins. Your return would be $340 – the original $240 stake (bet) and the $100 bet profit.

To bet the Miami Dolphins to win on the money line, you would spend $100 on the bet for a chance to win $220 if the Dolphins, as the underdog, beat the Patriots. Your return would be $320 – the original $100 stake (bet) and the $220 profit.

In both situations, it doesn’t matter if the team you bet on wins by one point or 100 points. You’re purely betting on the team you believe will win the game. As Al Davis said, “Just win, baby.” That’s exactly what you’d be looking for out of your selection. It doesn’t have to be pretty, it just has to happen or your original stake is lost.