NBA Betting Money Management

When it comes to any type of sports betting, including NBA betting, the subject of money management is always part of the discussion. The problem for many sports bettors is that money management is not talked about or even thought about nearly as much as it should be.

For many people that bet the NBA, money management is not part of their thought process. There are a couple reasons for this. First, they may just be recreational gamblers that want action on the game and money management is irrelevant. Second, they may be like a large majority of sports bettors that just don't understand money management at all.

Money management with NBA betting is similar to that of other sports, but you need to remember there is a difference from football money management. NBA games are played on a nightly basis, unlike the NFL or college football that is played only on the weekend. This can present some problems for the average sports bettor. Betting in any sport can be streaky and with games every night in the NBA you are inevitably going to run into some bad streaks. You need to be strong and disciplined during those times and not vary from your plan. It is not easy to do when things are going bad, believe me. If you lose two or three nights in a row, the temptation may be very strong to up your wagers for that next night. Don't do it. You may have a whole week of bad luck in the NBA. Don't lose your focus. You may then run off three weeks of great action that more than makes up for the one bad week. But if you overreacted and bet more than you should during the bad week you might have put yourself in a hopeless position where you can't recover.

When it comes to money management in the NBA I recommend keeping it very simple. I am of the belief of the KISS method; keep it simple stupid. The more we think the more trouble we can get into. I believe keeping all of your bets the same amount is the way to go. I have seen and tried every form of money management known to be out there and have found the best way is to keep all of your bets the same. Let's say you have a $1,000 bankroll for the NBA. I recommend keeping your bets at 2% or $20. Now most of you are going to say 2%; that is way too low. Well I actually prefer 1% if you are a professional gambler, but can see 5% if you are not. Anything more than 5% can get you into trouble in a hurry. Let's take an example. Say there is a total of 10 NBA games on a night and you have found 5 plays. You have a rough night and lose all 5. If you were like many bettors who risk 10% of their bankroll on a game you would have just lost over half your bankroll on one bad night. If you were playing at 5% you lost just over a quarter of your bankroll, but look what happens at 2% or 1%. You lost only a small portion of your bankroll and can hit back hard the next day, and throughout the season. If you are at too high a percentage you will eventually run into a bad streak that will break you. If you can't be realistic enough to see that coming, then your bankroll will eventually be gone.

Money management is not an easy skill to develop. Some people never get it right. Others practice good money management most of the time, but occasionally slip. That is all it takes to ruin a season, one slip up. If you can remember that money management is critical to your success in any sports wagering endeavor, including NBA betting, you have taken a big step toward long-term success