Basketball betting sites
There are many basketball betting sites legally licensed to operate and willing to accept Australian customers. The best basketball betting sites for Australians are licensed by state governments and cover various leagues — like the NBA, NBL and Euro comps — extensively.
Basketball betting and particularly the NBA has exploded in popularity in Australia in the last 20 years, with Chicago Bull and Aussie Luc Longley leading the way all those years ago alongside Michael Jordan. More recently players like Andrew Bogut, Matthew Dellavedova and Ben Simmons have carried on Australia’s presence in the NBA.
This basketball betting guide will give you a run down of the best online bookmakers for Australians and give you an overview of the basketball and wagering landscapes down under.
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Best online bookmakers for basketball
Australians are spoilt for choice when it comes to betting on basketball online, with upwards of 15 online betting sites licensed to take bets. The best online bookmakers to bet on basketball will depend on what competition you are looking lay your money down on. For instance all of the bookies in Australia will cover the NBA extensively, however some of the overseas-based betting sites won’t have as many domestic basketball markets (WNBL, NBL). Our top online betting sites for basketball are:
Sportsbet: The no.1 betting company in Australia has an outstanding basketball betting product, with every professional league around the world covered.
BetEasy: Has had more name changes than a secret agent, but does cover basketball from right around the world extensively.
Bet365: Is clearly among the best betting sites for basketball, largely because they have so many markets and the fact they live stream many basketball games, on both their desktop and mobile websites.
Neds: A bookie that only launched in 2017, Neds.com.au covers both of the NBL and WNBL, plus various other basketball leagues from around the world. Keep an eye on the Neds promotions, because they often surround basketball events.
Unibet: Is not the most popular brand in Australia, but is definitely a bookie you need to have an account with if you bet on basketball regularly. Often we find Unibet has better basketball betting odds than the average Australian bookmaker.
Basketball betting introduction
One of the more popular sports in the world, basketball has representation in many countries. With a World Cup, Olympic Games and of course the ubiquitous NBA, basketball is as far reaching as just about any other sport.
Few sports have the worldwide appeal of the NBA, with the allure of emulating the feats of LeBron, MJ and Kevin Durant — as well as the ever-growing popularity of wearing the jerseys around town; the NBA is without a doubt one of the coolest sports on the planet today.
The NBA is the most popular basketball competition to bet on too. In season there can be up to 10 games on in a day, and more often than not every day of the week will have at least two or three matches. Because of this, NBA is fast becoming one of the most gambled upon sports in the world, due to the frequency of games, excitement of the product and the multitude of options available to the investor.
In Australia the biggest basketball competition is the NBL which has produced many global stars of basketball, with pioneers like Andrew Gaze and Shane Heal inspiring young talent like Dante Exum, Andrew Bogut and Ben Simmons.
Types of basketball bets
Aside from the typical head-to-head and line betting markets, the NBA and other leagues offer a plethora of options for those punters looking to make exotic investments on basketball.
Title winner, Conference champion and MVP betting are some of the long-range bets you can make, but if you are after a short-term, game-time type of bet, online bookmakers offer daily top-scorer bets which pits up to six players against one-another from different games to see who ends the day with the highest score.
Specific bookies such as offer Daily powerbets which usually include a player reaching a certain game milestone, coupled with their team winning. The bookie will offer enhanced odds if the outcome of the designated bet is successful.
List of basketball leagues
Most Australians are familiar with the NBA and the NBL, but we have plenty of other competitions that will have odds provided on them by respected online bookmakers. This means we can wager every day of the year on the various competitions around the world.
Argentina – Liga Nacional de Basquet (LNB)
Australia – National Basketball League (NBL)
Austria – Osterreichische Basketball Bundesliga (OBL)
Belarus – Belarusian Premier League (BPL)
Belgium – Basketball League Belgium or Ethias League
Bosnia and Herzegovina – Premijer Liga BiH or Basketball Championship of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Brazil – Nova Basquete Brasil (NBB)
Bulgaria – National Basketball League
China – Chinese Basketball Association (CBA)
Chinese Taipei – Super Basketball League (SBL)
Canada – National Basketball League of Canada (NBL Canada)
Czech Republic – National Basketball League or Narodni Basketbalova Liga
Chile – Division Mayor del Basquetbol de Chileno (DIMAYOR)
Liga Nacional Movistar
Croatia – A-1 Liga
Cyprus – Cypriot Basketball First Division A
Colombia – Baloncesto Profesional Colombiano or Copa Invitacional FCB
Denmark – Danish Basketball League or Basketligaen
Dominican Republic – Liga Nacional de Baloncesto
Estonia – G4S Korvpalli Meistriliiga
Finland – Korisliiga
France – Ligue Nationale de Basketball Pro A
Germany – Basketball Bundesliga (BBL)
Greece – Greek Basket League (GBL)
Hungary – Nemzeti Bajnoksag I/A
Indonesia – National Basketball League
Iran – Iranian Basketball Super League
Ireland – Superleague
Israel – Ligat HaAl
Italy – Lega Basket Serie A
Japan – bj league, Japan Basketball League (JBL)
Kazakhstan – Kazakh National League
Lebanon – BANKMED FLB League
Latvia – Latvijas Basketbola Liga
Lithuania – Lietuvos Krepsinio lyga
Malaysia – National Basketball League
Montenegro – The Opportunity Liga
Mexico – Liga Nacional de Baloncesto Profesional (LNBP)
New Zealand – National Basketball League
Netherlands – Dutch Basketball League
Norway – BLNO
Poland – Tauron Basket Liga or Polska Liga Koszykowki
Portugal – Liga Portuguesa de Basquetebol
Paraguay – Paraguayan Metropolitan Basketball League
Puerto Rico – Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN)
Philippine – Philippine Basketball Association
Romania – Divizia A
Russia – Professional Basketball League
Saudi Arabia – Saudi Premier League
South Korea – Korean Basketball League
Slovenia – Slovak Extraliga
Slovakia – Premier A Slovenian Basketball League or A Slovenska Kosarkarska Liga
Serbia – Kosarkaska liga Srbija, Serbian First League
Spain – Liga ACB or Liga Endesa
Switzerland – Ligue Nationale de Basketball A
Sweden – Swedish Basketball League or Ligan
Turkey – Turkish Basketball League
Ukraine – Ukrainian Basketball Superleague
United Kingdom – British Basketball League
United States – National Basketball Association (NBA)
Uruguay – Liga Uruguaya de Basketball (LUB)
Venezuela – Liga Profesional de Baloncesto (LPB)
NBL – Australia’s best professional basketball league
The National Basketball League has been Australia’s premier professional basketball competition since its 1979.
The competition has experienced its highs and lows in terms of popularity, but certainly reached its peak in the 80’s and 90’s before a quiet period in the 2000’s. A revitalised NBL has made its way back into the national spotlight for all the right reasons since 2014, attracting international talent, nurturing local stars and gaining lucrative television and media deals.
Australia’s interest in basketball has coincided with a number of local stars making the grade overseas.
The competition runs from October to March and features eight teams spread throughout Australia:
- Adelaide 36ers
- Brisbane Bullets
- Cairns Taipans
- Illawarra Hawks
- Melbourne United
- New Zealand Breakers
- Perth Wildcats
- Sydney Kings
The Perth Wildcats were the 2016 NBL Champions, winning the 5-game finals series in three-straight games over the Illawarra Hawks to clinch the crown.
WNBL – Australia’s premier women’s competition
The Australian Opals – our national women’s team – put the WNBL on the map with a string of massive performances at events like the World Championships and the Olympics – where we have often been bridesmaids to the USA.
The competition runs from October through to March the following year and features eight teams from right across Australia.
- Adelaide Lightning
- Bendigo Spirit
- Dandenong Rangers
- Melbourne Boomers
- Perth Lynx
- Sydney Uni
- Townsville Fire
- UC Capitals
Sydney Uni Flames are the reigning WNBL champions after defeating Dandenong Rangers 2-0 in the playoff series. The prior two seasons were taken out by Townsville, while Bendigo won the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons.
Some of the greatest Australian female players include Lauren Jackson, who recently retired after a decorated international career, Liz Cambage, who was the no.1 draft pick in the WNBA and the long-retired Michelle Timms, who is still a prominent figure in the Australian basketball scene.
Funding a basketball betting account
Most basketball betting sites will have multiple options for you to deposit your money, with these including everything from credit and debit cards through to web wallets. Unfortunately Australians have no legal options if they want to bet on basketball with cryptocurrency.
Credit card: The most popular method of deposit and is available on every Australian sports betting website. All transactions are secure and money can be transferred to and from your card once your account is verified.
Poli bank transfer: Australia’s most popular real time debt payment system. Money is debited from your account and transferred straight into your online bookmaking account.
Paypal: One of the world’s most popular online spending systems and is the largest online payment companies. Paypal offers users who either have a credit card or a bank account linked to their Paypal a third party way of depositing their money into their betting funds.
BPAY: BPAY debts work exactly the same as you would pay a utility or phone bill, however, depending on when the transaction is completed the money can be delayed going into your account. Each website will have its own unique BPAY transaction number and biller code.
Live betting on basketball
Due to restrictions on live betting in Australia, customers are unable to bet on basketball via their PC, tablet or phone once a match has commenced. However, options still exist for those wanting to place a live bet. All major online bookmakers have the option to call in and place a live bet.
A great example of this is Sportsbet which accepts bets over the phone 24/7. Betting on an in-play or underway event via Sportsbet is a simple process. Visit their website and sign up. You can then click on the “live” tab which will display all the markets they have on events that are underway. You pick your markets and call Sportsbet to place your bets, using your account info to identify yourself.
The process we are describing is similar at all of the bigger corporate basketball betting sites.
How to watch basketball live in Australia
With Australians mad about the NBA and NBL pay-tv provider Foxtel holds the TV rights, plus one free-to-air game of NBL is shown each week across Australia.
Other options to watch various basketball leagues include league passes and streaming services which you can read about here.
Another great option to watch and bet on NBA in Australia is via Bet365, which has extensive streaming coverage of the USA’s biggest basketball competition.