Why So Many People Bet on NBA over the Years

You can basically bet on any sport that you could think of, including football, horse racing, baseball, and basketball. Though the NFL is one of the most popular sports in America, the NBA has gotten more and more bettors attention when it comes to gambling.

Bets have a lot of legal baggage upon them. The laws between states vary a lot regarding the rules of online and in-person gambling since it was settled by the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), which was struck by the Supreme Court in 2018. The federal statute allowed states outside Nevada to legalize sports betting.

However, there are constantly evolving and getting new legalizations across the country. While Nevada, New York, and New Jersey have been known to allow betting on essentially any sport, a couple of things have improved over the years.

A new beginning

Basketball is one of the most played sports in America. Anyone can play it with Friends on the neighborhood hoops or look for local amateur leagues. For example, Denver basketball leagues offer a chance to people from all ages to have healthy competition tournaments with their peers. So, it is a sport that most people understand and therefore feel confident betting.

Before 2018, the NBA struggled to keep its fans away from illegal or unauthorized gambling. They were completely opposed to sportsbooks opening in Atlantic City; there was an alliance with the NFL, NCAA, MBL, and the NHL, where the organizations fought against sports gambling in New Jersey; however, when the sportsbooks opened, they saw an opportunity.

It wasn’t long until the NBA partnered with MGM Resorts for about $25 million. The deal stated that MGM had all legal rights to book NBA bets along with having access to the official data. The former president of MGM, Scott Butera, said at the time, “What’s really changed is the fan base and the way they’re changing how they consume sports.”

The deal with MGM caught NBA fans off guard; they were now odds, statistics, and everything to help the bettors. The NBA was concerned about people using unauthorized sportsbooks, “what we can do by creating an authentic experience is give the fans the type of experience with our sport that they’re used to, the official experience,” once stated Scott Kaufman-Ross, the NBA vice president and head of fantasy and gaming. Kaufman-Ross wanted to avoid unofficial data being distributed through bookers from the broadcast.

Similarly, the Dallas Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban, said to ESPN in 2018, “The authenticity and reliability [of the data feed] is first and then speed. If the data is real-time, no one has an advantage over someone else.” MGM created a real-time data offering for gamblers, as the games could be some seconds behind whether they are broadcast on satellite or cable, marking a disadvantage for some viewers.

MGM changed its platform, and the NBA became the first sporting organization to launch that kind of service, offering official, verified, and accurate data about the upcoming games and the statistics of the teams. This move was the beginning of the NBA betting market, which has only grown since.

The accuracy of the data allowed bookers to create more precise lines based on said information that bettors can use in over 30 teams across the 82 games played every season from October to April, increasing the gambler’s chances to win in more categories than other sports.

The betting options’ diversity and detailed official data make it a nice option for bettors. Of course, as there are only 15 players with all of their information and statistics online for everyone to see, it’s easier to build odds throughout the game.

On the other hand, basketball is a pretty popular sport worldwide. The bets are an international business that has created thousands of millions of dollars for the NBA thanks to partnerships and ads on the games, as viewers tune into the games, waiting for their predictions to become true.

Meanwhile, the NBA creates sports betting promos, which create several benefits for gamblers, like receiving bonuses or free bets. The deals increase the teams and organizations’ profits just by increasing the number of viewers every season. In 2021, the NBA reportedly generated almost $4.30 million only from bets.

The nature of the sport opens up the possibility of winning more, as it’s a very high-scoring game. It’s also a very fast and adrenaline-filled sport, which increases people’s attention and interest in the matches, and compared to other sports, such as football or baseball, the rules are more intuitive and easy to understand. Gamblers can even make changes as the game’s dynamic evolves, as everything is displayed in real-time.

On the same page, many games are happening at the same time, again increasing gambler’s chances. Of course, not everyone can immediately win when placing a bet; gamblers need at least a general idea of the teams and players to increase their chances, as long as they are updated on how the games and the season progress. Overall, NBA betting is a very friendly starter for people who are looking to get into sports gambling.