2021 NBA Draft Lottery: NBA Basketball Odds, Picks & Betting Tips

Basketball is one of the most popular sports in America. Millions of people tune in every NBA season to watch their favorite players compete for the championship. What are you waiting for? Get your picks, odds, and betting tips right here.

With the new season of the NBA round the corner, there will be a draft lottery for the 14 teams that could not participate in the playoffs. The team with the worst record in the previous season stands a better chance at winning the top four picks than any other team. After picking the first four picks through ping pong, the rest picks for 5-14 are filled by teams’ records.

The teams that rank in the top 16 and make it to the playoffs will determine the order of the NBA Draft first round. The least-ranked team gets a good chance to land a top pick. However, history proves that top picks don’t bring attractive returns to bettors. This is because favorites often have negative odds. While they are beneficial to the team, they don’t make the best options for bettors.  

Here are the odds of some of NBA top picks: 

  • 2020 – Anthony Edwards (-125)
  • 2019 – Zion Williamson (-2500)
  • 2018 – Deandre Ayton (-2500)
  • 2017 – Markelle Fultz (-750)
  • 2016 – Ben Simmons (-650)
  • 2015 – Karl-Anthony Towns (-200)
  • 2014 – Andrew Wiggins (-250)
  • 2013 Anthony Bennett (+500)

It’s no brainer that you need to calculate the odds before placing a bet. Betting on negative odds isn’t a good option.

Now let’s take a look at this year’s NBA first pick odds.

  • Cade Cunningham (-500)
  • Jonathan Kuminga (+850)
  • Evan Mobley (+950)
  • Jalen Green (+950)
  • Jalen Suggs (+1100)
  • Ziaire Williams (+2500)
  • Scottie Barnes (+2500)
  • Jalen Johnson  (+2500)
  • Moses Moody (+2500)
  • Corey Kispert  (+2500)

As mentioned, there’s a good chance that Cade Cunningham will be the first pick. It happens that he’s the only player with negative odds. Teams with equal chances of having the first pick are Houston Rockets, Detroit Pistons, and Orlando Magic. These teams each have 14 percent.

Regarding the 2021 NBA Draft Lottery based on Odds, the NBA odds for 2021 are here. Unsurprisingly, the Brooklyn Nets, with odds of +210, are favorites to win.

How to calculate NBA odds?

The NBA is one of the highest paying sports for athletes and bettors. The odds are calculated with a standard wager of $100. Just like any other sport, minus odds refer to favorites, while plus odds refer to underdogs. If a team has -140 odds, it means that you’ll have to bet $140 to win $100. On the other hand, with +180 odds, betting $100 will give you a profit of $180.

Another way of representing odds is decimal odds. The mainstream media usually use this method, but the calculation is the same. It goes like “2 to 1” or “1 to 1.5”. Odds of 2 to 1 means your profit will be double, which is +200. Odds of 1 to 1.5 means your profit will be two-third of your bet size, which is -150. However, online books use the American odds represented by + or –.

Types of bets you can place in NBA

The most common bets that bettors play are moneyline, point spread, props, and futures.

Moneyline: It’s a simple bet where you pick a winner of the game, which can be either favorite or an underdog.

Point spread: In a point spread, bettors decide whether the favorite will win by the predetermined points.

Props: These bets are placed on other outcomes rather than the winner of the game. An example is predicting the quarter in which teams will score the most points.

Futures: It’s a longshot in which you predict the winner of the finals or the MVP of the season.