Best Online Basketball Betting Sites 2022

NBA (National Basketball Association)

The NBA is the pinnacle of basketball, the big North American league with the big players and the big bucks. Millions of fans across the world follow the fortunes of NBA teams, with games broadcast in over 40 different regions. Star players such as Michael Jordan, LeBron James and the late Kobe Bryant have enjoyed a level of fame that transcends the sport. You can visit our dedicated online NBA betting page here.

Did you know: More than $500million is staked every month on NBA games in the state of Nevada alone.

• 30 Number of teams
• 82 Games played per season
• Los Angeles Lakers 2020 champion
• Boston Celtics Most titles won (17)

Tournaments associated with the NBA:

NBA finals

Played in best-of-seven format between the champions of the Eastern and Western Conferences.

Play-offs

The top eight teams in each of the two conferences goes forward to the post-season play-offs.

Eastern/Western Conferences

Each conference has three divisions apiece and teams play a regular season between October and April.

All-Star Weekend

A three-day event in February featuring a game where the best players in the Western Conference face those from the Eastern.

NCAA (college basketball)

College basketball features the best young talent across the United States and is played to an extremely high and competitive standard. As one of the largest basketball leagues in the world, with hundreds of teams, NCAA presents a rich supply of betting opportunities for basketball enthusiasts.

Did you know: An estimated $8.5billion was staked in the United States on the 2019 edition of March Madness.

• Division I - 32 conferences
• Division II - 24 conferences
• Division III - 44 conferences
• Baylor 2021 champion
• UCLA Most titles won (11)

Tournaments associated with NCAA basketball:

March Madness

The month-long tournament featuring the best 68 schools that determines the national champion.

Division I Conferences

There are 32 across the United States, with the winner qualifying automatically for March Madness.

First Four

The eight lowest seeded teams of the 68 face off to bring the number of schools down to 64.

EuroLeague

Basketball’s equivalent of the Champions League in soccer. The finest teams from across the European leagues face each other in midweek, in between their domestic duties. It is enormously popular with European fans, and its average attendances are second only to the NBA’s.

Did you know: Although Israel is located in the Middle East, its teams play in the EuroLeague because its national federation is a member of FIBA Europe.

• 18 Number of teams
• 34 Games played per season
• Anadolu Efes (2020-21) Most recent champion
• Real Madrid Most titles won (10)

EuroLeague tournament structure:

Regular season

All teams play each other twice, once at home and once away.

Play-offs

The top eight advance to post-season play and have a best-of-five series against one other opponent.

Final Four

Two semi-finals, a third-place game and the championship game, all held over a single weekend.

NBL (National Basketball League)

The NBL was founded in the late 1970s and is now the premier men’s basketball competition in Australia and New Zealand. Thanks to a deal with Facebook, more than a million people in the United States now also watch live streams of NBL matches.

Did you know: One of the fiercest rivalries in the NBL is between Perth Wildcats and the Auckland-based New Zealand Breakers – even though the teams’ homes are more than 3,300 miles apart.

• 9 – eight in Australia, one in New Zealand Number of teams
• 28 Games played per season
• Perth Wildcats 2020 champion
• Perth Wildcats Most titles (10)

NBL season structure:

Regular season

Each team plays 28 games, 14 at home and 14 away.

Play-offs

The top six teams are paired in best-of-three series and are joined in the final four by the highest placed losing team from the first round.

NBL Finals

The semi-finalists play a best-of-three series and the winners advance to a best-of-five Grand Final.

Moneyline

This is an eternally popular choice of bet because it is the simplest. All you do is select the side you think is going to win.

In the US, moneyline odds are displayed as follows:

• The favourite has a number preceded by a minus. So, if the Chicago Bulls are -160, you have to stake $160 to win $100.
• The underdog’s number is preceded by a plus; if the Toronto Raptors are +140, you stake $100 to win a profit of $140.

In countries where decimal or fractional odds are preferred, instead of -160, you might see the odds displayed as 1.63 or 63/100, and instead of +140, you might see 2.40 or 7/5. This type of bet may also be referred to as a straight bet.

Total points

The sportsbook sets a number of points that the teams will score between them in a game. You have to decide whether the score will go over or under that number. Most over-under bets are settled at -110 (1.91 or 91/100).

If the sportsbook sets the total points between Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Warriors at 155.5, the total is 160 and you chose over, your return would be $190.91 for a $100 stake.

Handicap

This is also known as the point spread. The sportsbook sets a margin between the teams and, if you think the favourite team will win by more than that, you put your money on it.

But if you predict the underdog will win – or that the favourite will win by less than that spread – you put your money on the other way.

Outright winner

Who’s going to win the NBA Finals? If you believe you know, early in a tournament, which team is on course for glory, you can play on the outright winner market.

If the New York Knicks are +1400 (15.0 or 14/1) to win the Finals and you stake $10, you stand to collect $150 if the Knicks break a title-less streak that dates back to 1973.

Quarter-based betting

If you decide you can’t wait until the end of the match and have a strong sense one team will start faster, or have a particularly good quarter, this is a good bet to choose.

Odds will be quoted on the total points in each quarter, and on which team will score more points in it.

Half-based betting

This operates on the same principle as quarter-based betting. You decide which team is going to score more points in each half and bet accordingly.

Alternatively, if you think both sides will score between a higher total of points than the sportsbook predicts, you can have an “over” bet on that outcome.

Overtime – yes/no

An extremely straightforward bet. If you think a match between the LA Lakers and the Boston Celtics is simply too close to call and the teams will be tied at the end of regulation play, you will be able to bet “yes” on that outcome.

Both teams to score a specified number of points

The sportsbook will set a number that both teams have to pass for this bet to pay off. If you believe a high-scoring encounter is in the offing, and that both teams will score more points than that number, this is a bet for you.

Player to score a specified number of points

Many sportsbooks will accept wagers on individual players to score a certain number of points in a game. You may have spotted that one player in particular is on a hot streak of form. If you think he’s certain to hit nothing but net in his next game, this type of bet could be a great choice.