NBA Prop Bets

An NBA prop bet is a side wager placed on an event within the game that doesn’t affect the final outcome of the game. These can be fun or unique happenings in the game that you wouldn’t normally think to bet on. A good example is choosing which team wins the opening tip-off or the first team to 10 points.

The prop bets can be tied to player performance, and we like to call these NBA player props. Player props won’t affect the outcome of the game at all, making them popular options for sports bettors to wager on. There are countless player props for any given NBA game, and many online sportsbooks offer a huge selection and update them in real-time, as the game occurs.

Many of these NBA prop bets will be in the form of an over/under – like betting on the number of points a player might get in the game. Another form is a yes or no question based on what a certain player might do.

A great example of an NBA player prop would be if we were betting how many points Lebron James would get in a game. The oddsmakers would set the lines as an over/under wager – and predict how many points Lebron would get against a certain team. The oddsmakers do plenty of research and they’re pretty good at getting close to the actual, after evaluating Lebron’s stats, and the opposing team’s defense.

Let’s say the line looks like this:

• Lebron James over 34.5 points (-110)
• Lebron James under 34.5 points (-110)

For this example, you have to determine how many points Lebron James will get in the game, and if your estimate is higher or lower than the projected 34.5. If you choose to bet the over, you are saying that you think that Lebron will get over 35 points that game. If you bet the under, you think Lebron will get less than 34 points.

You will notice the odds are evenly spread on both bets because the likelihood of both of these is relatively the same. Like we said, oddsmakers are pretty good at determining these over/under and the actual total usually isn’t that far off.

Some other NBA player prop bets you can bet on for any game include props for points, rebounds, assists, steals, turnovers, three-pointers, and even combinations of all of those. The NBA is so fast-paced and high scoring, making room for countless opportunities to bet on any aspect of the game.

In recent years, we’re seeing more and more teams recruiting more all-around, versatile players. Props have always been assigned based on position played, and now we can see some unique props (with juicy odds) for players to make a three-pointer that usually wouldn’t even get the opportunity to make that shot. If you bet on this prop, you would be rolling in cash.

Some props can sort of tie into NBA Futures betting, which means that a prop will be active throughout the duration of the season. You might bet on a unique outcome that will happen at some point in the season, as the overall over/under on a player’s season-long points total.

The other main category is what we call team props. In these, the main item on the betting line is the team. For example, you can bet if the Los Angeles Lakers or the Utah Jazz will be the first to score, or if they hold possession for more time.