NBA Betting Sites – Legal Sportsbooks to bet on NBA

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league for men based in North America. The league features 30 basketball teams, 1 in Canada and 29 in the United States. The NBA is considered the premier professional basketball league for men in the world.

The National Basketball Association is an active member of United States Basketball (USAB), recognised by the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) as the national governing body for the sport in the United States.

The National Basketball Association is one of the four major professional sport leagues in both the United States and Canada. Players in the NBA are the world’s highest-paid athletes when looking at the average annual salary.

The NBA was established in 1946 and is situated in New York City. The 30 basketball teams are divided into two different conferences that comprise of three divisions in each conference with five teams in every division. The Eastern Conference includes the Central, Atlantic, and Southeast divisions, while the Western League includes the Pacific, Northwest, and Southwest, divisions. The regular NBA season starts in early October and ends in early April with a total of 82 games.

In my article, I will provide popular basketball leagues that are similar to the NBA, look at the different types of betting markets you will find at legal sports betting sites, and offer valuable strategies and tips surrounding NBA betting to boost your chances of making a winning bet. In addition, I will take an in-depth look at the legality of NBA betting, including the most frequently asked questions about the NBA, and tell you why I think betting on the NBA is advisable.

If you already understand how betting on the NBA works, and simply want to find a reputable, reliable, and legal sportsbook that offers NBA betting, you can register with any of my recommended sports betting sites listed below. However, if you are new to NBA betting and would like to understand the different betting markets, as well as gain a few additional tips and strategies, you will find loads of information further down in my article.

List of Sports Betting sites accepting players from the USA:

Rank Rooms Expert Score Signup Bonus Licensed Features Play Now
BetOnline

110 user ratings
Read Review

Deposit $25, Get up to $2500

(T&Cs apply, 18+)

mga  
  • Very high betting limits offered to customers
  • All major sporting events covered
  • Betting markets go live very early
Get Bonus!
Everygame

93 user ratings
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50% up to $200

(T&Cs apply, 18+)

kgc  
  • Strong promotions available
  • Well-designed website
  • Mobile compatible
Get Bonus!
3

SportsandCasino.com

30 user ratings
Read Review

300% Casino Match / 50% Sports Match

(T&Cs apply, 18+)

mga  
  • Good choice of games
  • Quick withdrawal process
  • Plenty of assistance for newcomers
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Bovada

107 user ratings
Read Review

50% up to $250+$100 Welcome Bet

(T&Cs apply, 18+)

kgc  
  • Full audit trail of all bets placed and settled
  • Three different language option settings
  • One of the most popular US Sportsbooks
Get Bonus!
5

GTBets

109 user ratings
Read Review

100% up to $500

(T&Cs apply, 18+)

curacao  
  • Long experience in the industry
  • Cool promotions for major sports
  • Quality customer support
Get Bonus!

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Similar NBA Events

The National Basketball Association might be the most popular basketball league in the world, but there are also several other basketball leagues across the globe that bettors can take advantage of. I have included a couple of the most popular leagues around the world, as well as how each of them operates and what they consist of.

Basketball Bundesliga

The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL), is the highest ranked professional basketball league in Germany. The league features a total of 18 teams that are split into a regular league stage, followed by a playoff stage.

After the league stage, the top 8 teams advance to the playoff stage in a best-of-five format. The best basketball team after the final round is crowned the German Champions. The BBL starts in late September and ends in late June.

EuroLeague

The EuroLeague also referred to as the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, is a top-tier European professional basketball competition organised by EuroLeague Basketball. Established in 2000, the league features a total of sixteen teams with a total of thirty games.

The top eight teams advance to the playoffs after a regular season, which is played over four individual five-game playoff series.

The winners advance to the Final Four, featuring a third-place game, two semifinals, and a championship game. The EuroLeague start in early October every year and ands at the end of May.

Liga ACB

The Liga ACB, also referred to as the Liga Endesa, is a top-tier professional basketball division in the Spanish basketball league system. The Liga ACB featured a total of 18 teams and was established in 1983. The regular Liga ACB season starts in October and ends in May, consisting of 32 games in total. Teams receive a point for each win, and the top 8 teams with the most points at the end of the regular season play in the playoffs to determine the champion.

Types of NBA Bets

There are several types of betting markets available in the NBA, and to make a profit with any bet, you will first need to understand how each betting market is displayed, and how much you can potentially earn. I have included the most popular betting types you’ll find in the NBA and provided examples to help you understand them.

Point Spread

In point spread betting, you are not predicting if a team is going to lose or win the match, you are betting on how many points a team may lose or win by. Point spread betting lines can be identified by the + and – symbols. When seen with a + sign, it will indicate that the team is expected to either win the game outright or simply lose the match by less points than what is shown in the point spread line. When a team is shown with a – sign, it will indicate that the team is required to win the game by more points than the total point spread line displays. For instance:

Golden State Warriors +2.5 (-160)

New York Knicks -2.5 (+125)

The point spread line is set to 2.5. This means the Warriors need to win the game outright or lose by less than 2 points to cover the spread. On the other hand, the Knicks need to win by at least 3 points to cover the spread. Your payout is determined by the moneyline attached to the point spread. You need to risk $160 to profit $100 on the Warriors and risk $100 to profit $125 on the Knicks.

Moneyline

Moneylines are not very popular in basketball betting, but they are easy to learn and understand. You will essentially use a moneyline bet to predict which basketball team will win the game outright. For instance:

Boston Celtics -120

Chicago Bulls +150

In my example, the Boston Celtics are considered the favourites over the Chicago Bulls as indicated by the – and + signs. You will need to risk $120 to make a profit of $100 when betting on the Boston Celtics and will need to risk $100 to make a profit of $150 on the Chicago Bulls.

Over/Under (Game Totals)

When placing a bet on NBA game totals, you will only focus on one statistic of the match – the total combined points scored in the match by both teams. For instance:

Miami Heat o-135

@ 195

Brooklyn Nets u+115

In my example, the game total for the match between Miami Heat and Brooklyn Nets is set at 195 points. If the Nets win the match 99-97, the final combined total will be 196. If you bet on the Over, your bet will be graded as a win. If the Heat wins the game 97-95, the final combined total will be 192. If you bet on the Under, your bet will win.

Props

Prop betting in the NBA allows you to make a wager on a range of outcomes that are not associated with the outcome of the game. For instance, you can place a wager on a specific player scoring the most points in a game, or wager how many points a team will score during a game.

Futures

Future betting in the NBA is also extremely popular, and you can place a wager on who you think will win the NBA Championship. Future bets are usually posted before the start of the regular NBA season, offering very attractive odds for bettors. Future bets remain during the regular season and constantly gets updated as the season progresses.

NBA Betting Tips and Strategies

Once you are familiar with the wide range of betting types in the NBA, you can turn your attention to useful betting strategies and tips to further improve your chances of making a winning bet. I included the most popular strategies and tips that you can incorporate while betting on the NBA that hopefully leads to winning wagers.

Constantly Check Injury Reports

I highly suggest that you continuously check injury reports before making a bet on an upcoming match. As basketball is a high scoring and fast-paced game, you will need to be aware of the top scorers in each team, as well as who plays a key role in the team’s success. If any of the key players are injured, it will have a significant impact on the outcome of the next match. Also, keep an eye on the replacement player and know their statistics to determine if the team will still be able to play on the same level without their star player.

Winning Streaks

You will notice that NBA basketball teams and NBA players usually go through hot and cold streaks throughout the regular season. If you can identify a winning streak before it happens, you will allow yourself to gain an extra edge over bookmakers that will lead to very profitable winning possibilities.

Study Away vs Home Games

Each NBA team will play 41 home games and 41 away games. It should come as no surprise that playing with home advantage makes a huge difference in a team’s performance. NBA teams tend to be more motivated in front of a home crowd, and with the fans cheering them on, it can lead to players playing at their best. On the other hand, away games will bring a host of other aspects that you need to consider. You will need to find out how far a team needs to travel, and if the time zone will affect their internal body clocks where they are travelling to. Is the away team getting enough rest before they play against their opponents? These are very important factors that need to be considered before placing your bet.

Legality of NBA Betting

NBA betting is extremely popular in both Canada and the United States. However, several laws and regulations prohibit online sportsbooks from offering their services to the citizens of Canada and the United States. In Canada, multiple inline sportsbooks are government approved in each region, but they don’t offer half of the betting markets I mentioned above, and the odds are nowhere near as competitive as other leading sportsbooks around the world. In the United States, the state and Federal laws are against any U.S-based sportsbooks from offering bets to U.S citizens.

Fortunately, the laws and regulations in both countries are only valid within their borders, allowing bettors to register with offshore sports betting sites from around the world. These sportsbooks are completely legal as they are licensed and regulated by the country’s governing bodies. Therefore, players in Canada and the United States are more than welcome to register an account that will allow them to get the best odds in NBA, as well as claim terrific bonuses and enjoy faster processing times on their transactions.

Conclusion

While NBA betting is a challenging proposition when compared to other leading sports in the online sports betting industry, it still offers huge rewards for astute bettors around the world. Keep in mind that locating an online sportsbook that provides a wide range of betting markets and competitive odds is highly recommended, it’s the ability to translate statistical information that will be your key to transforming those wagers into long-term profits.

NBA FAQ Section

When was the NBA established?

Who has won the most NBA championships?

Who are the current NBA champions?

What are the court dimensions in NBA?

What is the size of a basketball in the NBA?

Why I Recommend NBA Betting

Do NBA players enjoy a wealthy lifestyle after retirement?

How many kids do NBA players have in general?

How much money do basketball players earn?

Ryan Knuppel Author

Ryan (aka Knup) has been writing sports betting content for over a decade now. He covers anything and everything related to United Stats sports including football, basketball, baseball, golf and more. He has finished first place in several gambling related contests over the years which gives him instant credibility in the betting world. Ryan is a die-hard St. Louis...

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