How to bet on the NBA Finals?

The season of the world’s premier basketball league has headed into the final straight! The five-time champion Golden State Warriors face one of the most titled clubs in the association, the Boston Celtics, to fight in the last series for the Larry O’Brien trophy! How many games will be needed to determine the winner? Will the North American basketball’s main ‘magician’ lift the trophy again? We’ll find out soon enough! And now it’s about time to concentrate sports betting efforts on the denouement of the league!

When it comes to NBA betting, the Finals are a separate basketball universe with its own laws and rules. Sometimes standard logic does not work here, and you cannot predict anything based on previous seasons, previous rounds, or previous games. Betting on the winner of a playoff tournament turns out to be a lottery, especially when teams are roughly equal in strength. So how to punt on this stage of the league and derive maximum profit? Cyber.bet will help you out!

How do the Finals work?

To qualify for the NBA Finals, a team must win a first-round series, conference semifinal and final rounds. Then champs of Eastern and Western Conferences (the playoff winners of each conference) meet to play a best-of-7 series, with the higher-seeded participant playing four of those seven games at home. The club that won more games in the regular season starts with two home matches. Next, the other team plays at home twice, after which the last three games are rotated again. The first competitor that gains four victories in the series is declared the champ.

NBA betting options and odds

When it comes to this championship phase, the lines are always wide and rich in options, ranging from future victor and MVP to the individual stats of an opponent in a separate match. Here are the most popular markets.

• League winner

You simply wager on the competitor that you think will win the series as a whole.

• Match outcome

It’s the simplest market – you just need to predict the winner of the entire match.

• Handicap

The market allows you to increase the odds on the favorite or back up the underdog. It is literally an advantage (handicap) that is given to one of the sides and is virtually added (or deducted) to the total score of the match after it is over. 

• Totals

It is a wager on the number (over or under) of productive actions in a match or its period. Thus, you can expect match, half, quarter, and individual totals.

• Overtime

Here you need to predict whether there will be overtime in the match or not.

• Express bets 

It’s a combination of several different picks from different markets to form one large bet with greater odds.

As the championship of such a scale is at the center of attention, and all changes which can influence the outcome are closely monitored, the odds on most markets usually fully reflect the real situation on the court. Yes, the values may seem fairly low, but you can increase your potential winnings by choosing such options as a favorite’s victory with handicap or combo stakes.

NBA Finals betting trends and tips

The home advantage plays a really important role here and shouldn’t be disregarded when punting. Thus, ten of the last 13 Finals have been won by a team with a home-court advantage. And it is on the Warriors’ side now. However, you should not ignore the statistics on the history of meetings between the opponents, especially in a decisive round. Say, in the last six games against the Warriors, the Celtics have five wins, with three ones gained away, speaking of home-court advantage! This time, much will depend on the first two games. If Boston can win at least one of them, the rest will be a tough fight… 

In the history of the MVP awards, the winner has been within the triumphant club in all but one season – 1969, when Jerry West was awarded even though the LA Lakers lost the series. With that in mind, it’s important to bet on the player whose team you think will win the series; the chance of a losing team rep being awarded is pretty low.

You’d be surprised to know that lots of punters bet on an underdog in search of better value. But it isn’t the best decision here. Since 2009, bookmakers’ favorites have gained victory in all but three editions: Dallas Mavericks (2011), Cleveland Cavaliers (2016), and Toronto Raptors (2019). And who is the favorite this year? With their great experience and home advantage, Golden State Warriors are heavily favored. However, in the first confrontation, the favorite has failed against all the odds! What happens next? You can probably guess, can’t you? Make your predictions and enjoy successful online basketball betting on Cyber.bet! Best of luck!