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USA TODAY > Betting > Sports > NBA Picks and Parlays: How to Find NBA Expert Picks and Tips

NBA Picks and Parlays: How to Find NBA Expert Picks and Tips

NBA picks and parlays from reputable handicappers can improve your chances of earning a profit over the course of the season. This guide will explain where to source NBA expert picks and how to verify the credentials of a handicapper. We will also highlight the best sportsbooks for placing your NBA picks and showcase some of the best bonuses you can claim today.
by Martin Green | Gambling.com
Updated Jul 19 2023, 06:25PM EDT

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Affiliate Disclosure: At USA TODAY, we want to ensure that players are matched with the right casino and sportsbook offers for them. For this reason, some of the recommended site links are affiliate links. This means that if you visit a website through our link and make a deposit, Gambling.com will receive a commission payment at no extra cost to you.

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Best Sportsbooks for NBA Betting Picks

We have reviewed every licensed online sports betting site and mobile app in exhaustive detail. These are the four best online sportsbooks for placing your NBA betting picks today:

Bet MGM Sportsbook App

BetMGM

BetMGM is the best overall sportsbook for NBA fans. It offers a huge selection of betting options, competitive odds, world-class software and secure payouts. It is the only online sportsbook to offer live NBA streaming, and you can also benefit from detailed pre-game stats to help you come up with successful picks and parlays.

NBA fans can earn a first bet offer worth up to $1,000 by activating the BetMGM bonus code USATODAY. There are lots of recurring bonuses, too.

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Caesars Sportsbook

Caesars Sportsbook is another excellent option for anyone armed with expert NBA picks. It offers market leading odds on certain bet types, and it has more odds boosts than any other sportsbook, along with the largest welcome bonus in the industry.

The Caesars Sportsbook promo code USATODAYFULL will earn you up to $1,250 back as a bet credit if your first bet loses. You will also receive 1,000 Reward Credits and 1,000 Tier Credits via this promo code offer.

DraftKings

DraftKings is another elite sportsbook for anyone making NBA bet picks. It has a popular DFS site too, allowing you to make NBA Fantasy picks and NBA sports betting picks in one place. DraftKings often has early lines, which is helpful for anyone seeking early value before NBA consensus picks move the market.

The DraftKings promo code provides new customers with a generous “Bet $5, Get $150” welcome bonus. You can take part in free-to-play NBA pools each week too.

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FanDuel

FanDuel is the country’s most popular online sports betting brand. It also started out as a DFS operator, but it is now even more famous for its high-quality sportsbook, which offers very quick payouts, appealing promotions and a user-friendly interface. FanDuel also recently unveiled a TV network, which sometimes sees handicappers give out free picks and parlays.

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Where to Find the Best Free NBA Picks

USA Today regularly provides NBA bettors with expert picks. NBA fans can also check out Bookies.com for NBA picks free of charge. YouTube is another strong source of free NBA picks, but it is important to establish the credentials of a handicapper providing picks and to conduct independent research to check you agree with the plays.

NBA Expert Picks

Professional handicappers provide expert picks NBA throughout the regular season and the playoffs. Some of them charge for their services, while others give out free picks. NBA bettors should seek out cappers that are fully transparent when providing their records over the course of the season, as that allows you to identify successful experts that are performing well.

These handicappers typically use a combination of gut instinct and detailed analytics when producing their NBA free picks and parlay recommendations. It is also important to seek out the best NBA odds, place bets when you feel you have an edge, pounce upon arbitrage opportunities and identify interesting opportunities to fade public NBA consensus picks at advantageous terms, as they are common traits shared by pro NBA bettors.

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NBA Expert Picks vs. NBA AI Picks: Pros and Cons

Expert Picks Pros
These picks use a combination of stats and gut instinct.
They are often more nuanced than NBA computer picks.
Pro handicappers can seek the best odds and lines on their NBA picks and predictions.
Expert Pics Cons
Human biases can cause expert NBA picks to falter.
They are often less mathematically rigorous than NBA computer picks.

AI Picks Pros
These NBA picks and parlay recommendations remove any human bias or emotion.
A computer can analyze far more data than any human handicapper.
There are sometimes vast discrepancies between the computer’s result and the sportsbooks’ lines, presenting compelling betting opportunities.
AI Picks Cons
They can only assess past performances and cannot take nuance into account.
They are not as helpful after key roster changes and at the start of the season.

Types of NBA Picks

Most expert NBA picks focus on which team will cover the point spread. However, you will often find NBA over/under picks, too, along with moneyline picks in tight games, plus prop picks and future picks at the start of the season. Understanding your options is one way to learn how to bet on sports.

  • NBA Moneyline Picks: This is a straightforward bet on which team will win an NBA game. For example, you might find odds of -145 on the Boston Celtics to beat the Chicago Bulls, and +125 on the Bulls to win the game. Moneyline picks are normally only offered when the teams are evenly matched.
  • NBA Spread Picks: NBA picks against the spread (ATS) provide expert advice on which team will cover. A point spread arises when the stronger NBA team (the moneyline) favorite is given a handicap. For example, you might be offered -110 on the Golden State Warriors -4.5 against the Los Angeles Clippers, and -110 on the Clippers +4.5. The NBA picks ATS would either suggest you bet on the Dubs or the Clippers to cover.
  • NBA Over/Under Picks: An over/under bet is a simple wager on the total points both teams will score combined during a game. For example, you might find -110 on over 227.5 points when the Los Angeles Lakers take on the Portland Trail Blazers, and -110 on under 227.5 points.
  • NBA Prop Picks: These bets focus on individual events during a game, a player’s performance stats or a team’s stats. For example, you could bet on Kyrie Irving to score over 24.5 points for the Dallas Mavericks against the Toronto Raptors, or the second quarter to be the highest scoring quarter in that game.
  • NBA Future Picks: These are long-term bets that run throughout the season, such as a team to win the NBA Championship or the Eastern Conference. Other NBA futures examples might include the Sacramento Kings to win over/under a certain number of regular season games, the Washington Wizards to make/miss the playoffs or Nikola Jovic to be named NBA MVP.

NBA Picks and Parlays: Combining NBA Bet Picks

A parlay combines two or more NBA picks to form a single wager. The odds on each pick will be multiplied together to calculate your potential payout, so you can earn large profits from successful parlays at NBA betting sites. However, every pick needs to win for the bet to pay off. Some sportsbooks offer parlay insurance, whereby you are refunded with a bonus bet if one leg of your parlay lets you down.

Standard NBA Parlays

A standard NBA parlay combines picks on separate games. For example, you might like three picks:

  • Philadelphia 76ers -6.5 vs. Indiana Pacers (-110)
  • Atlanta Hawks +2.5 vs. Miami Heat (-110)
  • Denver Nuggets -75 vs. Toronto Raptors (-110)

If you had $30 to spend, you could wager $10 on each of those NBA picks against the spread. You would receive a profit of $27.27 if all three covered. However, if you rolled them into a $30 parlay with three legs, you would receive a $178.74 profit if all three covered, thanks to the power of compounding within the parlay.

You do not need to stick to the same bet type. For example, you could bet on the Lakers to cover against the Warriors, over 231.5 points in a game between the Knicks and the Nets and the Magic to secure a moneyline win against the Pistons as a three-leg parlay.

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NBA Single-Game Parlays

This type of bet combines two or more picks within the same game to form an NBA parlay. Picks from handicappers do not typically focus on same game parlays, but you can combine multiple picks from cappers to create your own same game parlay at NBA betting apps.

An example of an NBA same game parlay might be the Cleveland Cavaliers to beat the Boston Celtics, over 218.5 points in the game and Donovan Mitchell to score over 20.5 points.

NBA Daily Fantasy Picks (NBA DFS Picks)

Daily Fantasy Sports contests soared in popularity before the Supreme Court overturned a ban on traditional sports wagering in 2018. FanDuel and DraftKings, which operate the two most popular sports betting apps in the country, also dominate the DFS market. Making successful NBA DFS picks can be very lucrative, but it requires a different approach to producing standard free picks and parlays.

NBA fans need to focus on individual players’ prospects when compiling their fantasy lineups, building a strong team while staying under the designated salary cap. Sites like RotoWire can help by offering expert DFS picks. NBA bettors can absorb their expert advice when making their NBA daily fantasy picks, helping them construct a strong team.

Once again, there are standard DFS NBA picks and computer NBA fantasy picks. The latter can be helpful, as they are dispassionate, and the AI can gather a wealth of statistical information about each player before making precise projections and DFS picks NBA.

Must be 21+ to participate. Terms apply.

Get Started Placing Bets on Expert NBA Picks

You can boost your prospects of success as an NBA bettor by sourcing expert picks from reliable sources. Yet that is only half the battle. You also need to find the best odds on each pick, claim appealing sportsbook promo codes and stick to reputable sportsbooks.

Our experts recommend BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings and FanDuel when it is time to place your expert NBA picks. You can sign up with any of those sportsbooks by clicking the “BET NOW” button on this page. That will earn you the best sign-up bonus, so follow the link and get started today.

NBA Picks FAQs

Visit Bookies.com for the best NBA free picks each week. You will benefit from NBA picks against the spread, NBA parlay picks, DFS NBA picks and much more. NBA free picks and parlay tips are also available on YouTube and social media. Just try to establish the credentials of the handicapper providing NBA sports betting picks.
You can stick to the NBA picks and predictions you have the strongest conviction in when placing NBA bets. Sportsbooks allow you to bet on every game of the season, so it is important to be selective with your picks and parlays. NBA fans can look for expert advice from handicappers to guide their betting decisions, too.
Leading online sportsbooks allow you to bet on the NBA Draft each year. You can place bets on who will be picked first, the first position to be drafted and various other markets. These options will be located in the NBA futures section or a specific draft section at online sports betting sites and mobile apps.
NBA computer picks take all human emotion and bias out of the handicapping process. Advanced algorithms quickly study a wealth of past performance data on each team – processing it far quicker than a human could – and they provide some useful free picks. NBA fans can then conduct their own research to see if they agree with these NBA picks, parlays and so on.
NBA picks will not always win, regardless of who or what is making them. Many artificial intelligence programs can only make predictions about future events based on past performances, which is by no means a foolproof method when making NBA picks and parlay selections. However, any computer model that wins more than 55% of the time when making NBA picks ATS is very valuable.

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Martin Green  for USAToday.com
Martin Green Gambling.com 54 Articles written
Martin Green spent five years working at William Hill before becoming a journalist in 2009. He began working as a sports writer and professional tipster in 2014.