What to consider in betting on the NBA and on the Euroleague

First of all, it is obvious that the NBA and the Euroleague are two different types of competitions, with the latter being a tournament (a basketball version of the UEFA Champions League) and the NBA being the typical basketball league (regular season + play-offs). That is why, it is good to read about the principles and formats of both this competitions on their official websites.

The most visible difference between the NBA and the Euroleague is their level of quality. Because the sport originated and has the biggest popularity in the United States, there is a lot more quality players in America than it is in all the rest of the world combined. That is why, many American and Canadian players that are playing in Europe are among the most important players and top-scorers of their teams. A good example, showing this difference of quality are the individual scoring-records, which are much higher in NBA.

Players such as Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan often scored over 50 points in a single game, whereas in Europe, scoring 30 points is an impressive feat. Same goes for the average of points scored by the entire team. The results such as 130-120 are quite rare in Europe, whereas they often occur in the NBA.

Another important difference is the number of games. There is a lot more games played in a week in the NBA, than it is in the Euroleague and domestic European leagues. What is more, the overall number of matches in the season is as well much higher in the American competitions than it is in Europe. Thus, it is more demanding for the players to be in good shape for 3-4 games a week. This is also one of the reasons why great players from Europe find it hard to adapt in the NBA when they are drafted.

Last but not least, it is important to remember that there are some differences in the rules between the NBA and the non-American competitions. European rules favour the teamwork and competitiveness between the teams, while the NBA support their star players and focus more on individual skills and athleticism.

Those differences should be taken into consideration if the punter want to bet on one of these competitions. For example, betting on Over/Under Total Team Points for Europe is much harder than it is for the NBA. From the other hand, NBA is quite well-balanced and it is easier for a surprising result there, than it is in Europe, where the likes of Real Madrid, CSKA Moscow, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Panathinaikos have dominated both their domestic and international competitions.