Basketball betting in Maryland

Each of the four Maryland sportsbooks we recommend for basketball betting in Maryland covers the bases we mentioned above. For example, they offer mobile apps, live betting, and offer promos. We like them. Check them out for yourself.

DraftKings Basketball wagers

DraftKings has developed a reputation as one of the best sportsbooks in the market. Fast, user-friendly interfaces, different types of betting action, and great customer service.

FanDuel Basketball Bets

Another site, known for lots of betting options, superior service, and great offers. FanDuel Maryland offers top odds for all of your basketball betting needs.

PointsBet Basketball Odds

PointsBet has super-fast check-out times and is universally lauded for customer service. They also have a unique points betting system that sets them apart.

BetMGM Basketball Sportsbook

Any sportsbook backed up by MGM is bound to create expectations, and BetMGM Maryland does not disappoint. It may take slightly longer to familiarize yourself with the front page, but the effort will definitely be worth it.

All Maryland bettors will have the option of some action on the full gamut. MD NBA betting, WNBA betting in Maryland, and MD NCAAB betting games as sports betting in Maryland is now legal, and major players are gearing up their presence in the market.

As we describe below, the top options will have a lot to offer and multi-platform access (including mobile apps) to a wide variety of actions. Live betting will also be available with the best sites.

We recommend four tried and tested sportsbooks – DraftKings, BetMGM, PointsBet, and FanDuel – for all your basketball betting options. So, who are you going to pick?

Factors you should consider when betting on Basketball

If you are experienced at online betting, you probably know your own mind and have your favorite sites picked out.

If, however, you would like to be betting on basketball in Maryland and have not had a lot of exposure to online betting and how to evaluate sportsbooks, read through our suggestions below so you can decide for yourself what will work for you.

What are you looking for with your Basketball bets

Unless you have a “system” all worked out, and therefore know what features of an online betting site work or don’t work for you, you will need to develop a process. Here are some general guidelines, though every bettor may have a different philosophy when betting in Maryland.

Set a goal for your bets

It may come as a bit of a shock to you, especially if you are a keen student of the game of basketball and track all forms of college and professional sports markets in MD regularly, but the majority of bettors tend to lose money over the long haul when betting on basketball.

If you think about it a bit, it makes perfect sense. Sportsbooks are in business to make money, not consistently lose it.

For the odds-minded, you need a performance reaching 55-60% of wins on the average to consistently beat the house. Those types of streaks do happen, but they are very difficult to sustain over the lifetime of a bettor.

Can we suggest that when basketball betting in MD, your main goals should be (a) enjoyment and (b) limiting your losses or spreading them out over time so you don’t feel the pinch? If you are an average bettor with average (or even above average) means, these goals may be sensible for you.

Shark Basketball bettor

If you are a shark with deep pockets or someone with decades of experience, it may be different for you. Our advice below is for the average person feeling their way through the system.

So what you should do is to come up with a strategy, such as:

• Limit your deposits or remaining balance to a modest number – maybe $500 or $1000, but don’t leave yourself the ability to bet against $20,000 in the bank.
• Spread your bets – typically a 2-3% of your total deposits is what you should wager on an individual bet. Don’t exceed 5%.
• Take advantage of giveaways such as bonuses and free plays.

Do your homework depositing money

After you do some soul searching, it’s time for a different set of searches – on the sportsbooks that could be your potential venues for basketball betting in Maryland.

We will discuss some of the obvious (and not so obvious) features you should look for in the next section, but much of what you do at this stage should be common sense.

Here are some suggestions:

• Read up customer reviews – the good, the bad, and the ugly. You can parse through the positives and negatives and match them up with what is important for you. Some benchmarks should be common (as we describe below), but there could be other variations that either appeal to you or turn you off.
• Go on the site and research its look, feel, and user-friendliness – Most good sites will allow you to browse its nooks and crannies, as long as you do not attempt to place a bet before putting in a deposit. Take full advantage.
• Check to see if the site is licensed in Maryland – all good sites will freely provide that information. If it doesn’t, that’s a red flag.
• Check to see if there has been legal action in the past where a site has been heavily criticized, fined, or blacklisted.

Form your own scorecard for each site before you decide who to work with. Then, call up Customer Service for clarifications if you need any. It’s their job to attend calls from new clients.

Here are some basic features that should be present with any good option that allows you to enjoy a fun and safe environment as you go about basketball betting in Maryland.

Reputation of the betting site

Use a combination of customer reviews, research from industry reviewers, and ruling out negative legal or other press to ensure that the sportsbooks you opt for have a reputation for stability, reliability, and general integrity. An important sidebar before you start (for example) betting in the Playoffs in MD, is to make sure they are licensed and hence accountable in MD.

Check for the different types of games they offer

The best sites, such as the ones we recommend, will have an array of games and betting options, with promotions for each kind. Thus, they cater to the average bettor who is keen on the games and may not be satisfied with straight moneyline (winner or loser) bets prior to the game.

One important consideration in this regard is when the lines open. If you prefer to bet early in the week, then don’t choose sites that publish odds late, days or hours before a game. Also …

What about live betting options?

Live betting in MD is something everyone should enjoy, especially if you are following the games you bet on live. Good sportsbooks like the ones we suggested will always offer live bets.

This means that you can bet on evolving odds during a game – as they get updated during quarters, timeouts, halves, and other stoppages. Plus, there will be betting action on wins/losses and point spreads over quarters or halves, and bets on which team reaches a points total first in a period, among other actions.

This means that you can lose a bet you placed before the game but make up money on bets you place during the game and come out as a winner. You can even get paid before the end of the game with sportsbooks that are fast on the cashouts.

Oh, and there are usually free offers or other bonuses when you place live bets on basketball action in MD.

You do need to pick sites that have fast, multiplatform UIs and are efficient on the banking side (as we discuss below). Otherwise, live betting gets harder.

Betting site design and technology

Great sportsbooks gain a reputation for superior design and maintenance of user interfaces and speed of interactions. Also, they support users across multiple platforms.

In layman’s terms, this boils down to the following:

• Information and betting options are easy to locate on the site
• The speed of transmissions back and forth is super quick and not slow and bug-ridden
• You can operate on a desktop, tablet, or mobile device – there should be a mobile app.

Efficient banking

Any good site will allow for fast deposits and withdrawals, without which it may become impossible and costly to engage in live betting.

They will also allow multiple means of deposits and withdrawals – via wire and ACH transfers, major credit cards, even PayPal and PayWithMyBank. It’s all about your ease of access.

Finally, avoid sites that may have large minimum balances that you must have in your account before allowing you to withdraw funds with nominal charges. For example, if the minimum balance is $1000 and you typically want to have no more than $500 in your account, it may take a long time before you reach that level with winnings.

Good customer service

There will always be a need for questions to be answered and occasional resolutions of reasonable requests. But, for your peace of mind, do not sign on with sportsbooks that have a sketchy reputation for customer service. It won’t be worth it in the long term.

And now on to bonus bets, a discussion that deserves a section by itself.

One of the most fun parts of comparing sportsbooks is to check out the promotions and offers – both overall and for specific events or types of betting. There are a number of variations.

Matched bonuses – Basketball betting MD

Many sites will add bonus money when you make an initial deposit. It’s yours to play with.

Basketball betting – Bonus bets

Premium sites may allow you bonus bets up to a certain limit when you join or when they are promoting specific events or types of betting.

Insurance Bonus Basketball bets

While there may be variation from site to site, the basic concept remains the same and is becoming ever popular across the US. You should definitely check insurance bonus bet offers out while basketball betting in Maryland.

When you make your first real (that is, your own) money bet, sites will offer to return your bet money up to a maximum limit if you lose.

The variations come in as follows:

• What’s the amount up to which they return?
• Are there minimum bet amount requirements?
• How do they return it – actual cash or bonus bets or other?
• Do they let you take the whole earning (base bet + winnings) if you win, or just the winnings?

Check the details out. These are some of the other sports in the state that you can bet on:

• Maryland Football betting
• Maryland Baseball betting
• Maryland Soccer betting
• Maryland Golf betting
• Maryland Motorsports betting
• Maryland MMA betting
• Maryland Horse Race betting
• Maryland E-Sports betting
• Maryland Rugby betting
• Maryland Tennis betting

Special offers

Every good sportsbook will make special offers – be they on live betting or NBA action, or some other event. Take advantage.