Important Tips to Master Basketball Betting

With a lot of basketball action played every year, whether it be in the US, Europe or Asia, there are a fantastic variety of betting options available for online punters. However, if you are new to betting on the sport of basketball, there are a few pointers to keep in mind before parting with your money.

Betting On Your Favourite Team

It’s very easy to be caught in the trap of logging into your betting account, checking out the basketball markets, seeing your favourite team listed and then betting on them to win because you feel that you just can not back against your own team.

Do not let your heart rule your head when it comes to placing your bets otherwise you can stand to lose a lot of money. Do your research, check out the statistics that are available to you and make an informed decision, not one based on emotion.

If you find that you really can not back against your favourite basketball team then the best thing you can do is find a different match to bet on, one where you can make a sound judgement.

Always Check The Team News

Although this stands true when placing a bet on the majority of sports, it is especially important when betting on basketball. In the game of basketball, it is possible for certain players to have a very big influence on the outcome of a game, with some players really being able to dominate on the court. Keep up to date with all the injury news coming out from each team, with so much basketball coverage available there is no excuse not to do so.

A key player missing from a team can have a huge impact on the whole flow of their match and ultimately the final outcome.

Main Types Of Basketball Betting

There are, as with a lot sports, a wide variety of exciting markets available within basketball for punters to get involved with. However, there are five markets which are most popular, mainly because they are easy to understand and literally anyone can use them to place a wager on a basketball match.

Match Betting – Also known as the ‘Money Line’ in NBA betting, this is simply a case of picking the outright winner of any basketball match.

Points Spread Betting – Slightly more complex then match betting, points spread betting involves picking a team to win with either a points advantage or disadvantage. This is very similar to what is known as handicap betting.

Winning Margin – This market, as the name suggests, gives you the chance to select the winning points margin in a particular match. The margins offered tend to come in brackets and you also have to pick the winning team.

Game Totals – Bookmakers will set a points total for the entire game and this provides the opportunity to bet on the final points total of both teams combined to be either over or under the amount set.

Race To 20 Points – Very easy to understand, with bookmakers offering odds on which team will reach the 20 point mark first in a game.

Always Check The Schedule

This can be vitally important and is relevant more so for the NBA than European or Asian basketball. It’s a possibility that some teams could be playing four matches in as many nights, which will lead to tiredness coming in to play, especially in the third and fourth matches.

Also, keep a look out for which teams are having to travel a lot during this period because this can also add to the tiredness factor, both physically and mentally and will result in the team that is considered to be stronger not necessarily living up to that potential.

Basketball is a very popular sport the world over and because of this, online bookmakers offer an extensive range of markets. However, do not be tempted to rush in and start betting before familiarising yourself with the nuances of the game and the markets being offered.