How To Win At Nba Handicapping

NBA handicapping is quite similar to NFL handicapping in the fact that many of the types of wagers are the same. There are the standard spread bets and over / unders. You can also wager upon more difficult bets like parlays and teasers. But this is where the similarities end. You might be a great NFL handicapper, but if you are not familiar with the NBA, you stand the chance of losing a great deal of money. This education might prove to be a costly lesson.

NBA handicapping involves a much larger share of statistics than the NFL merits. This is because of the length of the NBA season. Players that shoot for a 45 percent field goal completion rate for the first three-quarters of the season might have good games and bad games, but that number isn’t too likely to change by much. Any fluctuation is only going to affect the total numbers by a small amount.

What does this mean when you handicap NBA games? It means that the past performance of a player is more telling of the future than an NFL player’s past performance will be. The NFL currently has 16 games per season, while there are 82 in the NBA. With a larger sample size in the NBA, the past will have a heavier bearing on the future since a player’s true ability is more precisely conveyed. In the NFL, 16 games are not enough to get a clear picture of a player’s talent. A good NFL player could have a bad season because of a few things not going his way.

NBA handicapping is not easier than NFL handicapping, it is merely different. While the same basic format is similar, you need to take different things into account. Statistics do not paint the entire picture. You also need to look at psychological factors as well. One example of this can be seen when dealing with home court advantages. Each basketball court is primarily built the same, but when a team is playing at home, that team gains a slight edge in their chances of winning the game. Whether it is the fans cheering more loudly for them, or merely a familiarity with the lighting or atmosphere, home court advantage does exist. This does not mean, however, that talented teams cannot win on the road. There are always exceptions. This season, the Lakers lost to the Celtics in Los Angeles and the Celtics lost several weeks later to the Lakers in Boston. But the fact does not change that a team has a better chance at home than away against the same opponent.

In your NBA handicapping, these factors need to be addressed—both the statistical and psychological aspects of the game. If you are new to NBA wagering, don’t be afraid. You will learn the nuances of the NBA quickly.

By: John Torres

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