NBA basketball odds and basketball betting lines updated multiple times daily. Includes updated point spreads, money lines, and totals lines. Get the latest NBA odds, spreads and betting lines from this week's games, as well as full coverage of the National Basketball Association from USA TODAY. The NBA point spread is an equalizer, using the projected final margin between two teams to set a handicap. The point spread favorite is indicated by the minus (-) before the spread and must win. Get the latest NBA odds, point spreads, money lines and over/unders for popular sportsbooks and view SportsLine's expert analysis of each upcoming game.

While not as popular as betting against the point spread in sports gambling, betting the “over/under” isn’t that far behind. Sometimes you may see this as O/U, over-under, over under or simply referred to as “the over” or “the under.”

William Hill Sportsbook lists Team LeBron as a 2.5-point favorite, while the over-under, or total number of points Vegas thinks will be scored, is 308.5 in the latest 2021 NBA All-Star Game odds.

What does over under mean in betting?

Simply stated, it is the total of the points scored by both teams. While all sports employ an over/under betting option, by far the most money wagered on this bet is in football and basketball. Sports like baseball and hockey offer over/under options, but the vast majority of bets on those sports in based on the established “money line” to pick a winner at a set price.

Unlike a point spread bet in which you are aligning yourself with one team, you’re betting on both teams – either their offenses or the defenses – when betting the over/under. Sports books set over/under scores on games based upon numerous factors.

In the NFL, most over/under scores are set in the low-to-mid 40s.In college football, over/under scores are usually in the high-40 to low 50s – in the Big 12, the land that defense forgot, it can hit the 60s.In the NBA, a typical over/under tends to hover in the 210 range. In college basketball, a standard over/under is between 140 and 155.

The hidden factors that come into play in determining a point spread vary by sport, but have common themes. Recent team history is a primary factor that sports books like to exploit. Sports by their nature are a reflective business based on developing trends from previous games (“getting on a roll”) and, if a football team has scored 40-plus points in three straight games, the over/under is going to be higher because sports bettors tend to believe that trends are going to continue. It’s human nature…until they don’t.

If a critical player – a quarterback in football or a dominant scorer in basketball – is out or playing injured, the over/under will drop.

Other factors critical in setting the over/under number include weather (where applicable), an undefinable history between teams (you know Steelers-Ravens games are going to be physical bloodbaths) and injuries that may not jump out to casual fans that mean a lot sports books are all factors that go into creating and setting an over/under line that will draw an even number of fans to both sides of the number.

The key to betting the over/under is to look at a slate of games without knowing what the over/under is and set what you believe it should be based on your knowledge of those two teams. The ones that differ the most from what you think should be are the ones to place your bets on.

One final note that has been a mantra of those who bet the over/under with some consistency – every game is under until it goes over.

If you’re new to sports betting, start with picking and choosing games you’re convinced should go under and get an understanding of how late-game fireworks can botch your plans.

How to read NBA Odds—Lines, Spread and Totals

If you check out the free NBA odds comparison page or at a specific sports book and have any questions about what you are looking at then this is the perfect article for you. In this article, we’ll explain each part of an odds listing for professional basketball. Once you know what each number relates to in NBA odds and how the lines are set up, you’ll find that you’ll be able to understand the odds on each and every game that’s posted.

We’ll cover the rotation number, point spread, moneyline and over/under. Be aware that these elements go by other names. The rotation number may be called the rotation mark or number, the point spread is the spread or is often referred to as the line. In fact, sometimes odds themselves are generally called the line. When it comes to the over/under a common term you’ll find is the total.

Whatever sportsbook you go to all NBA odds are listed in a fairly similar manner. However there will be minor variations in how teams are posted. Many books will give you the odds on a game with one team on top of another, while others may list one team on the left and the other on the right. Whatever the case may be the first team listed is always the visitor and the second is the home club.

The first thing you’ll see will be the date and time of the game. This is on the far left of the odds listing. Just to the right are the names of the teams that are playing. In between the date and time and the team names is the don best rotation number.

The numbers run sequentially. If the Boston Celtics are playing the Miami Heat in Miami, and the Celtics, who are listed first as the visitor, are number 101, then the Heat will be 102. In the next game that’s listed on the odds sheet, the teams will be 103 and 104 respectively. The sequence of games continues for that day with each team in a game being given a rotation number.

Date/Time	Rotation Number	Team	Point Spread	MoneyLine	Total
Jun 12th	101	Boston Celtics	+2.5	+120	186.5
7:00	102	Miami Heat	-2.5	-140	186.5

These numbers are universal. That means that every sportsbook will list the Celtics and Heat with the same rotation numbers. This makes it easy to identify what team a bettor is going to wager on, especially when placing your bet at a land-based book or over the phone. It serves as a type of shorthand for bettors and bookies alike as you refer to the number and not the team name when making your wager.

Thus, the first parts of the line read from left to right in the following manner—date and time of game, rotation numbers and the teams. These establish the game on which you are going to bet. Everything to the right of the team names is related to the actual odds on the game. To the right of the game, in this order, you’ll find the point spread, moneyline and over/under.

The point spread is designed to, in essence, make it tougher for bettors to make the right choice on a game and to even out the odds. In a big mismatch between a top team and bottom team chances are 4 of 5 times most of us can pick the outright winner. With the spread, a team either has to win by a certain number of points to payoff or it can lose by a certain number of points and still pay the bettor.

Spreads work in the following manner—the favorite team is listed with a negative number and the underdog has a positive number. The Boston and Miami matchup may be listed with the Celtics at +2.5 and the Heat at -2.5. Simply put Boston is a small dog and Miami is a small favorite. If you wager on Boston, you’ll make money if they win outright or lose by two or less. Bet on Miami and you’ll make cash if they win by three points or more.

More times than not a spread will be listed as a fraction or decimal. This is to prevent a tie in the spread, which would result in a push where all bets are off and all money is returned to the bettors. In our example if the spread has Miami at -2.0 and the final score was Miami 102 and Boston 100, the result would be a push.

The stake, the amount of cash you have to bet when the spread is in effect, is usually the same for both clubs and looks like this: -110. This tells you how much you have to bet to win $100. With the spread, you usually have to wager $110 to win $100. This can be translated into other wagers. If you bet $11, you’d win $10 or $220 to win $200.

Although many people contend the spread bet pays even money, it does not. If it did, your $110 wager would payout an equal amount, but instead if pays $10 less (10%). That means a spread bet is not an even odds wager, which would be shown as 1:1. It has less than even odds and is actually 0.90:1.00. Where does that 10% go? It is taken by the sportsbook in the form of a commission, which is known as vigorish or vig.

Nba Point Spread Over Under 50

To the right of the spread you may see the moneyline (some sites list moneylines separately from the point spread). With the line, the team that wins the game outright pays off. Instead of using a spread, the bookmaker charges more to bet on the favorite and pays out less and less to wager on the dog while paying out more.

Using the Boston and Miami game, the moneyline would have the underdog Celtics at +120 and the Heat at -140. This line directly corresponds to the 2.5 point spread. With the moneyline, if a team is listed on the plus side that tells you how much you will win on a $100 wager. When a club is posted in the negative that tells you how much you have to bet to win $100. With Boston at +120, you would bet $100 to win $120 and with Miami at -140, you must wager $140 to win $100.

The moneyline and point spread have a direct correlation to one another. Below a chart lists the point spread and moneyline equivalents from 2.0 up to 10.5.

Point Spread Moneyline

Point Spread	Money Line
-1	-120/+100
-2	-130/+110
-2.5	-140/+120
-3	-155/+135
-3.5	-175/+155
-4	-200/+170
-4.5	-220/+180
-5/-5.5	-240/+190
-6	-270/+210
-6.5	-300/+220
-7	-330/+250
-7.5/-8/-8.5	-360/+280
-9/-9.5	-400/+300
-10	-450/+325

Nba Point Spread Over Under Armour

The final number you’ll see in a NBA odds listing is the over/under or total for that game. Again, to prevent a push, this number will usually be expressed as a fraction or decimal and not as a whole number. The over/under is a projection of the total number of points that will be scored in the game by both teams. The sports bettor is wagering on the point total for that game as either being over or under the number on the odds listing.

Nba Point Spread Over Under

In the Celtics/Heat game, the total could be listed around 186.5. If the total is 187 or better, then the over wins, if it is 186 or lower, that mean the under is the winner. Bookmakers create the number based on various criteria related to recent matchups between the teams, the points for and points against each team has averaged and other factors. Like the spread, this is a number that is not merely made up; it’s based on past performance and projected outcomes.

Nba Point Spread Over Under 30

When you look at odds, the date and time, the rotation number and the team names establish the game on which you’re going to bet and the point spread, moneyline and over/under are the three basic bets related to that game. These are the basics of any NBA odds listing that you need to know and understand before you place a wager.