Basketball Betting Odds Explained

Betting odds are supposed to be easy but for betting beginners they are not presented as such. Given that there is an ever-increasing number of online betting sites which offer different odds, sites that explain them in the style of this theScore review are of great help. If you want a more general intro, today we are going to explain how betting odds work. If you are new, visiting your favorite online betting operator and you are looking to place some bets, you will see numbers such as 0.1 or 1.0 or 2.0 and so on. These numbers represent something very important in the betting world. They are showing the probability.

Probability

As you might know, probability is showing how much something is likely to happen. When it comes to betting, you are basically placing a bet on something that has a certain probability of happening. 0.10 odds means that there is about a ten percent chance of that event happening, or a certain result to be achieved at a certain sports event. So 1.00 odds means there is 100% of some result being achieved.

Odds

So for your highest profits, you want some really good odds on your side. You will get them by comparing a few different operators and choosing the one with the most profitable odds. To do this, you will need to know how to calculate odds so you can keep an eye on the best ones. Let’s say you bet 10 euros. You put these on a certain game and that game has 9.0 odds, that means if you turn out to be right, you will win nine times your money. You will get 90 euros back. This is really great, right? If you find odds that is of 2.5 value, you will only earn 15 euros if you are actually right with your prediction.

Basketball Point Spread Betting

In this kind of betting, you are not betting if someone will win or lose or finish the game with a draw. This time you are betting on what score will the teams win or lose with. It is more tricky and the odds get very interesting here.

Now that you know the basics of sports betting and odds comparisons, let’s take a look at another example of basketball spread betting and analyze it:

LA Lakers +7 (120)
Sacramento Kings -5 (-105)

The team with a minus sign in front of it is the favorite and in the brackets is the number of points they are favored by. So if you bet on Kings their score must always prevail by 5 points for your bet to become a winning bet. If it’s any less than that, your bet will become a losing bet. And that is not what you want.

So always keep your eye out for what makes sense and what doesn’t. Be smart and look for the odds that work for you. You don’t have to place the bet if you don’t agree with the odds or your chances to win. Take the safe route and keep the win in the focus. Some people say that it is only important to participate, not to actually win the game. In betting, winning is what matters.