The 2009-2010 NBA season is fast approaching, which means that thosetrying their luck in betting on NBA games can do so once again.

Betting on NBA games does not merely involve choosing who the winner will be against two teams pitted against each other. If that is the case, then the house or bookie will most likely lose money on a regular basis, as when a championship contender dukes it out with a perennial cellar dweller. For instance, in a match between defending champion L.A. Lakers and Oklahoma Thunders, L.A. will win more often than not. Majority of the bettors know it, so they will bet on L.A. In that scenario, the bookie will shoulder the loss.

That is why bookies level the risk of betting, in the form of a point spread (or simply known as spread). A point spread bet usually looks like this:

L.A. Lakers vs. Oklahoma Thunders +10

It shows the two teams who are set to face each other for a particular day. The first team is usually the visiting or “away” team, while the second team is usually the home team. The plus sign and the corresponding figure beside one team is the point spread.

In point spread betting, the underdog  is  usually given additional points, so that bettors will not always pick the favorite.  The spread is to be added to the final score of the underdog. So if the final score is 105-100 in favor of L.A., 10 points will be added to Oklahoma’s score. While in reality L.A. won by five, in the point spread system, the score considered is 110-105 in favor of Oklahoma. For purposes of the spread, Oklahoma wins, and whoever bets on Oklahoma wins the bet.

If you bet on the Lakers, L.A. must not only win, but it must also win by eleven or more points in order for you to win the bet. Conversely, betting on Oklahoma means that you win if Oklahoma wins, or if it loses by 9 points or less. If L.A.’s lead over Oklahoma is exactly ten (example: final score of 110-100 in favor of L.A. ), your money will be returned, whether you bet on L.A. or Oklahoma. You neither win nor lose the bet.

There are 3 variations of the spread, which are:

• L.A. Lakers vs. Oklahoma Thunders +10
• Dallas Mavericks +3.5 vs. Orlando Magic
• Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

The first variation is discussed above. If the lead L.A. over Oklahoma  is exactly 10, the bets will be returned.

In the second variation, Orlando must win by four points or more in order for an Orlando bettor to win.  If Orlando wins be three points or less or it loses the game, then whoever bets on Dallas wins the bet. Unlike in the first variation, there is no instance here where the bets will be returned. The bettor will either win or lose.

The third is technically not a point spread, since there is no additional points given to either team. This is a straight up bet. The bettor in this instance picks the team which he thinks will win. Like in the second variation, the bettor will either win or lose. No basketball game ends in a tie, after all.

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