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We will explain both sides of the argument and you can decide what’s best for you if you’re considering adding this to your basketball betting portfolio.
The Case For Betting Basketball Teasers
As opposed to a parlay, betting teasers can place your odds on two or more games for one wager in a more advantageous position to beat spreads.
The most common numbers used for basketball teasers are 4, 4.5, and 5. What that means is adding or subtracting to the bookmakers’ odds of an underdog or favorite respectively.
Four points at most, but certainly not all sportsbooks are like a standard bet, wagering $11 to make a profit of $10. For each half point, the price goes up a $1.00, for the same payout.
When to Play Teasers
There are definitely better situations to play teasers. For example, home favorite teasers are less effective, even if you go through the key numbers of two through six points. The numbers show it is more advantageous to lower a home fave of -10 to -14 four points lower than a six-digit home fave by approximately three percent.
Road favorites tend to do better than home favorites particularly if you tease them down from -6 to -7.5 on four-point teasers to -2 to 2.5, going through the key numbers. This can also be where using 4.5 can add value, getting the half point. Can you still lose, of course, but at 4, matched with full point spreads (-6, -7, -8, etc.), a Push wipes out your teaser, where the half point is just as likely to get a win as a loss.
With road underdogs, generally, they usually do best when you can move them from single to double digits. How many times have you had a 9.5-point home favorite that is up 13 points with 90 seconds, the game is over, but the visitor keeps firing three-balls, makes a couple and your team is just trying to run out the clock and wins by nine points or less.
That is the advantage of taking one half a teaser from +9 to +13 or +13.5, securing a random win.
The Case For Not Betting Basketball Teasers
First, the one aspect of teasers that most bettors think about initially is how can I lose having this many points away from the spread. That is the allure of teasers, they provide a false sense of security.
Compared to football, the suddenness and variance of basketball in the pros or college at the end of games is impossible to predict. For the most part, it’s hard enough to win against the spread in basketball, because your team could be up 10 points as a 4.5-point favorite with 30 seconds left. The squad trailing comes out of a time-out, makes a quick three, steals the inbounds pass, throws the ball to an open shooter who drains another three-ball in all of five seconds and now you are behind the number and need a score.
Having more or less points doesn’t make that scenario disappear. The randomness is too unpredictable and paying for a half-point or full point still doesn’t get you over two possessions on the points.
The Risk of Adding Games
Paying for more points usually comes with adding games, which lowers your chances of winning. Having more points at 6.5 doesn’t outweigh the risk of adding that extra game. It’s a sucker bet plain and simple.
In truth, NFL teaser bets give you the best chance to win any teaser in any sport. That’s not to say you can’t make money betting basketball teasers, but before you place a single wager, spend one full season of trial and error to understand the process for betting basketball teasers.
