Best NBA Betting Sites & Odds in California

Whether you’re new to sports betting in general or specifically betting on the NBA, betting on basketball online is one of the more popular choices in the US. And as we get closer to legalized California sports betting, it’s good to know the basics of how to bet on NBA basketball so you’re prepared when the time comes.

Many basketball teams within California can give you a reason to bet on the NBA, such as the Warriors, Lakers, Clippers, and Kings. So it makes sense for you to want to know the best odds, including moneylines and NBA spreads, to make a better-informed decision. Here’s how you can bet on the NBA online in California when it is legal.

California sports betting is not legal at this time, but one social sportsbook is available to NBA bettors in California.

Best NBA betting sites in California

While NBA odds may seem daunting if you’re a beginner, reading our guide below will help you make sense of it once you can make wagers at CA online sportsbooks for NBA games. That includes not only game bets but specific NBA player props like scoring, rebounding, and assists, futures bets like the Warriors winning the NBA Finals, and awards like MVP and Rookie of the Year.

When sports betting is legal in California, here are some of the most popular sportsbooks for NBA betting you can expect to be offered.

How to bet NBA online in California

Now that you know some of the types of wagers and props you’ll find with today’s NBA game lines, let’s get started on how you can sign up to bet on the NBA in California when it’s legal to do so. This includes opening an account, downloading their app, managing your account, and how to bet.

You can use either a desktop, phone, or tablet to sign up for NBA betting in California, including sports betting apps. When you claim a sports betting welcome bonus, be sure you use one of our links to ensure you’re getting the proper credit.

Creating a new account for a California sportsbook is easy. You can sign up for it regardless of what state you live in, as long as you only physically make wagers within the state of California once it’s legal. Examples of the identifying information (KYC procedures) you’ll be asked for include:

• First and Last Name
• Date Of Birth
• Home Address
• Phone Number
• Preferred Email Address
• Username and Password (login credentials)
• Last Four Digits of your Social Security number (to prevent fraud)

Once you supply this information to verify your identity, you can claim your welcome bonus. This can come in the form of bonus bets with your initial deposit, or a deposit match bonus that you can use on any NBA bet in California. If there is a bonus or promo code, use it here to trigger your bonus.

After you’ve signed up, made your deposit, and claimed your bonus, you’re now on your way to checking out California NBA odds across dozens of markets and making your bets.

Best NBA odds boosts and promos

One of the more exciting ways to bet on the NBA in CA is by looking out for odds boosts and promos that either match something you already wanted to wager or enhance a bet that helps make up your mind.

With the popularity of NBA same game parlays growing, we’ve seen DraftKings and FanDuel concentrate many odds boosts toward that. DraftKings offers many profit boosts throughout the NBA season, giving you a percentage increase (25 – 50%) of your profits on specific parlays, applied to the winnings. This is an excellent way to enhance your payouts.

FanDuel does this as well, but they’re more known for NBA bet insurance for SGPs. An example of this is the TNT Thursdays promotion they did over the past season, where if you bet $10 or more, you’d receive $10 in site credit, win or lose.

All odds boosts and NBA promos come with their own terms and conditions, including minimum betting odds and maximum bet amounts, so check them out before you bet.

Today’s NBA betting odds

When NBA betting online in California is legal, you will be able to see up-to-the-minute NBA betting odds for today’s games listed here. You’ll receive the best lines without having to compare to Vegas odds, thanks to the increased popularity of online sports betting. Learn about the most common NBA bets you’ll find in California below. 

NBA spread/moneyline/over-under

NBA spread bets allow you to wager on a team based on the number of points they could win or lose by. For example, Golden State Warriors -6.5 over the Los Angeles Clippers +6.5 means the Warriors need to win by 7 points if you bet them. On the flip side, the Clippers can lose by up to 6 points, and you’ll win if you bet them.

Moneyline NBA bets are simply picking the winner straight up. However, if a team is a heavy favorite, you’ll get less than favorable odds. And what does the plus (+) and minus (-) in sports betting refer to? Quite simply, the favored team will also show negative odds while the underdog will show positive odds.

NBA over/under bets refers to the point total combined in the game. In the Warriors vs. Clippers example, the o/u could be 216.5, meaning they have to score 217 combined if you pick the over, or 216 or less if you pick the under.

Best NBA props & futures

NBA player and team props are becoming more common as more bettors realize they don’t have to count on the final score and who won to win bets. Especially in the NBA, it’s easier to rely on the performance of one or two players than to guess how a team as a whole can do.

Player props focus on the individual, such as the example below. You can bet on the number of threes Stephen Curry will make or the number of points Klay Thompson will score. This is presented as an over/under total for you to bet on both sides.

Team props are robust and allow you to break down the game on a granular level to find the bets you’re comfortable with. You’ll get NBA odds on the first team to score, the total points they’ll score, who will lead at the half, winning margin bets where they can fall within a range for you to win, who will have the lead in total team stats, and much more.

Futures bets revolve around just that: specific events that will happen in the future. These could be division winners, Finals winners, NBA MVP awards, and more. You can bet on these before the season starts and throughout the season, although the odds can be better for a bet like the Lakers to win the Championship the longer you’re out from the event.

NBA alternate lines

You can also use alternate lines for your bets to customize your NBA spreads or over/unders. Many sportsbooks will allow you to go against what’s set for the game and adjust your odds accordingly.

For example, if the Warriors are favored over the Clippers by -6.5 (-110) but you feel like they’ll win by more, you can adjust the spread to -10 (+220) and gain more favorable odds due to the risk involved.

While riskier, the reward is obviously more significant if it hits. You can also use these alternate lines in certain parlays, which will increase the reward but also increase the risk if all the legs don’t hit.

How to find the best NBA lines

When California legalizes sports betting, you’ll see the latest CA NBA odds here as they update. You can also go to the California betting sites for basketball and see how the lines have moved before a game starts.

Not every sportsbook betting odds are the same or the same spread or points total, so it’s essential to know who is doing what so you can get the best NBA odds. Movement in the odds can depend on several factors, including injuries, betting trends, recent play, and simply the number of bettors wagering on one side or the other.

You may find more volatility in NBA betting lines compared to NFL odds, which don’t usually move much throughout the week unless a critical injury happens, or MLB, which stays relatively consistent when you know who the everyday starters and pitchers are. This can be for many reasons, such as the quick turnaround between games and the small number of players on NBA rosters who can impact a game.

NBA in-game betting

Most of what we’ve discussed here is placing pre-game NBA bets and paying attention to the odds and markets. There’s also a movement lately toward live NBA betting because you never know what can happen during the course of a game and can make wagers to adjust on the fly.

NBA in-game betting refers to making bets in real-time with the odds adjusting on the fly according to the game’s momentum. Let’s say the Clippers run up the score early against the Warriors, and Steph is in foul trouble, so the live Clippers odds move heavily in their favor. Now you can bet on Golden State with more favorable odds if you believe a comeback is in the works.

You’ll also find plenty of game and player prop bets that can be specific to a half, a quarter, or even possession. It’s a fun way to enjoy the flow of the game and be able to wager in kind. The major sportsbook apps like DraftKings, FanDuel, and BetMGM offer NBA live betting as it becomes more popular, although not all offer the same lines.

What makes NBA betting special or unique?

As we mentioned before, basketball odds can fluctuate more than other sports for a number of reasons, including having only a few stars per team that can make an impact. NBA betting is almost geared toward live wagering because of this.

And because the games happen pretty much every other night if you’re following one team, you can get quite the read on a team’s momentum and use it to your advantage. If you know a player’s hot or a team has been great in the 1st quarter or strong coming out of the half, you can easily go for those markets if you feel strongly about it.

Another point that makes NBA betting so popular is the sheer number of markets you can wager on. Between standard lines, game props, player props, and others, you’ll have hundreds of bets to choose from for every game. And parlaying them together (Kings to win, over 212.5, De’Aaron fox to score over 25) is easy to do as well.

NBA betting rules at online sportsbooks

While rules on betting on the NBA in California can fluctuate depending on the sportsbook, there are some specific basketball betting rules you’ll find that you need to pay attention to:

• You must meet the minimum age requirement to bet in your state (18 in California)
• You have to be physically located in a state with legal online sports betting
• All bets include overtime unless specified
• Games must start on the scheduled date to be valid
• Highest scoring halves include overtime if played, and the highest quarter will include the 4th quarter and OT combined
• Players have to play in order for their props to be valid, and games have to be official for props to count