NBA Odds and Sports Betting
The RotoGrinders team developed the NBA odds tool as a resource for comparing odds among legal US online sportsbooks. The page you are on now shows all legal US online sportsbooks that have made their NBA odds feeds available to us. You can also sort to view New Jersey NBA odds.
With the fall of PASPA in 2018, we’ve experienced an influx of visitors searching for information on legal US sports betting. For sports bettors in New Jersey, we have a page dedicated to determining which NJ sportsbook is right for you. We also have PA online sports betting information at your disposal.
Anybody looking to use NBA odds for sports betting purposes should also check out some of our NBA betting articles:
NBA Odds Glossary
Spread – The most popular way to bet NBA basketball is taking a team against the spread (ATS). This involves making a wager on either the favorite or underdog to cover the point spread. The point spread is how much the better team (favorite) is projected to beat the weaker team (underdog) by for the bet to win.
For example, in a match up between the Indiana Pacers (+6.5) and Boston Celtics(-6.5), the Pacers are the underdog and the Celtics are the favorite. If you place a spread bet on the Celtics, Boston would need to win by 7 or more points. If you bet on the underdog, the Pacers would need to outright win or lose by 6 or less. You will also see a whole number spread at times (-6,+6). If the Celtics win by exactly 6, it is considered a push and your bet will be refunded in full.
Odds on spread bets are typically between -105 and -120. The “juice” as it referred to results in you having to wager between $105 and $120 in order to see $100 profit on your bet. Different sites will offer less juice, and various sites will offer more friendly lines (spreads) so shopping around — which is made easy with our NBA odds tool — can help you save some money and tilt the advantage your way with a smaller spread.
Moneyline (or Line) – Bettors can also wager on the moneyline, which simply states the odds a bettor most lay to bet on a basketball team to win straight up. For example, a -140 moneyline means a player would have to lay $14 for each $10 they’d like to win. If the underdog is +130 in that game, the bettor would win $13 for every $10 they lay.
Total – A totals bet is placed on the total number of points scored by both teams. The bettor can either go Over or Under the given total.
Favorite – The team laying the points (ex: Golden State -12) and with the higher moneyline. The favorite will always be minus money (ie -140) and minus points.
Underdog or dog – The team getting points (ex: Knicks +12) and with the lower moneyline. The underdog will always be plus points and plus money (ie +120).
Over – A bet made for a team or game to score more points than the game total. (ie Over 112.5 points).
Under – A bet made for a team or game to score fewer points than the game total. (ie Under 112.5 points).
Vigorish (Vig or Juice) – The fee or commission a player has to pay to the house, ex: Lakers -6 (-110). In this case, a bettor is wagering $11 to win $10. Typically the vig is (-110) on both sides, but sometimes oddsmakers will increase the vig on one side instead of increasing the points spread; ex: Lakers -6 (-120), Celtics +6 (-100).
Parlay – A bet that combines a number of teams, all of which must win for the bet to win. The attraction is a larger payout. Two-team parlays typically pay out 2.6 to 1, three-team parlays pay out 6 to 1, and four-team parlays pay out 4 to 1.
Round Robin – A special kind of parlay which makes betting combinations for every team listed in the bet. For example, a three-team round robin would feature a three-team parlay and three two-team parlays. Bettors signify how much they wish to risk or win for each leg of the parlay.
Sportsbook (Book or House) – The entity offering the bets.
Shopping – Using several books to look for the best lines.
Live Betting – When action is offered after a game starts, while it’s in progress.
Proposition (or Prop) – These are individual bets within a game, usually centering around a team, player or the game itself. For example, what team scores first? Will it be a 2-pointer or a 3-pointer? Will LeBron James have Over or Under 28.5 points?