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How To Bet On NBA Playoff 2025: Complete Guide | LeoVegas

NBA 2025 Playoff Betting Guide

Once each team has played their slate of 82 games in the regular season, the NBA Playoffs begin on April 15. The business end of the campaign starts with the NBA Play-In tournament to decide the final teams to feature in the main bracket, which will then run between June 13 and June 22, depending on how the series goes.

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The NBA Playoffs offer intense matchups between the best teams in the league. Importantly, each stage is competed over a best-of-seven series, so they really get to know each other. Rivalries emerge, and the best coaches try to work out new ways of beating familiar foes.

This 2025 NBA Playoffs betting guide is here to help you understand all that there is to the odds and markets of this massive basketball betting event, as well as offer some tips.

How To Bet On The NBA Playoffs:

There’s no better time to bet on the NBA than during the playoffs! With LeoVegas, we are providing a simple guide to betting on the NBA playoffs below - using the Milwaukee Bucks v Golden State Warriors as an example.

  1. Enter the LeoVegas Sportsbook via our app or desktop.

  2. Games within the NBA Playoffs can be found via the 'Live' tab if a game is ongoing. If the playoff game is scheduled to start soon, you could find the game in the 'Upcoming' tab. There’s also the option to use our dynamic search function. Simply type ‘NBA’ into the search bar and you’ll find hundreds of markets waiting for you.

  3. Simply select the playoff game you would like to wager on, in this instance, the Milwaukee Bucks vs. the Golden State Warriors.

  4. Once you click on the game, you can select whichever market you'd like to bet on. You can cover everything from Moneyline to Over/Under with LeoVegas.

  5. Once your selection is added to the betslip, select your wager, and make your best bet!

The key difference between regular season and playoff betting is that there are more markets for progression in the tournament and overall series score lines. So, you can bet on a team to progress rather than just win a single game and even on the series score across the best-of-seven series.

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NBA 2025 Playoff Key Dates

  • Play-In Tournament: April 15-18
  • First Round: Began April 19 (ongoing as of April 28)
  • Conference Semifinals: May 5-6 (may start May 3-4)
  • Conference Finals:
    • Western: Game 1 on May 20 (ESPN, 8:30 p.m. ET, may move to May 18)
    • Eastern: Game 1 on May 21 (TNT, 8 p.m. ET, may move to May 19)
  • NBA Finals: June 5–22 (if necessary)

Common Types of NBA Bets Explained

Moneyline Bets

Just like in other lines of sports betting, NBA Playoffs moneyline bets are the ones where you back either the home or the away team to win the game.

Spread Betting

Spread betting brings in a handicap to the final score put up by either team. With the spread, your chosen team needs to win within the handicap of the spread chosen when combined with the score. This can be a positive or a negative hit to the scoreline.

Over/Under (Totals)

Place a bet on whether the total market, be it points scored in the game or by a chosen team, will end up being under or over the given value.

Futures Bets (Champion, MVP, Series Winners)

For the NBA Playoffs betting, futures become very popular. You can bet on the NBA Championship odds, the winning team of either Conference Final, the winning team of a given series, and who the NBA MVP odds favour. Before all of that, you can bet on individual teams just to make it to the playoffs.

Prop Bets (Player & Team Props)

Props bets concern individual player or team performances in a single game. So, you’ll be looking at stat line performances, like points scored by a specific player.

How the NBA Playoff Format Affects Betting Strategy

While the pressure is certainly on and injuries can become more likely, arguably, when betting on the NBA Playoff format you'll find some regular quantities: teams will feature in series of at least four games, offering strong sample sizes from recent games against the same team to find key stats, trends, and betting lines with good odds.

NBA Playoff Teams Breakdown

Eastern Conference Contenders

The Eastern Conference has sat back and watched as the Cleveland Cavaliers have soared to the top. Powered by their superb cutting-based offence and lockdown defenders like Defensive Player of the Year odds leader Evan Mobley, the Cavs are rightly the ones to beat on this side of the bracket.

That said, they might just have to prove themselves against the reigning champions to have a shot at the trophy. The Boston Celtics have been going very strong this season, only being eclipsed by the historic pace of the Cavs. With a .725 win percentage coming into the stretch, the Celtics secured a playoff spot early and are ready to compete.

Western Conference Contenders

Mirroring the Cleveland Cavaliers to the 68-game mark, the Oklahoma City Thunder stormed to the top of the Western Conference with their Cavs-matching .824 win percentage. The big difference is that there isn’t a Celtics lying in wait to keep them in check. Led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma will take some beating.

Dark Horse Teams to Watch

Beyond the Cavaliers, Celtics, and Thunder, you could look to the two teams that powered up the most at the 2024/24 NBA Trade Deadline – the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors – as well as the team toting three-time MVP Nikola Jokić, the Denver Nuggets.

Key Factors That Influence NBA Playoff Betting

Home-Court Advantage in the Playoffs

In the nine seasons played from 2012/13 to 2022/23 – discounting the 2019/20 season – home-court advantage has shown an edge. In that time, 60.7 percent of home teams won their games.

Player Performance Under Pressure

Some players are just built to excel in the pressure pot that is the NBA Playoffs, and it’s those who will define the outcome of each series. Players like LeBron James, Steph Curry, Kawhi Leonard, Kevin Durant, and Giannis Antetokounmpo have notoriously stepped up in a big way several times in the postseason to decide games.

Coaching Adjustments and Tactical Shifts

A coach’s experience, their ability to make adjustments to adverse situations, and knowing when to deploy tactical shifts will often prove pivotal in the NBA Playoffs. This season, look to the impact that elite-tier coaches like Steve Kerr (Warriors), Rick Carlisle (Pacers), and Mark Daigneault (Thunder) make from the sideline.

Impact of Injuries and Load Management

The NBA Playoffs are long and gruelling, so it’s integral for coaches to manage the load taken on by players – especially in games that they should win easily early on. Plus, injuries in such a tight window will always matter more than during the regular season.

Seeding matters a lot to the final outcome of the NBA Playoffs, historically speaking. Of the 78 NBA Finals to date, 66.7 percent have been won by one of the No. 1 seeds. Expand that to the six one, two, and three-seeded teams in every postseason, and you have a Championship-winning rate of 97.4 percent.

Betting Strategies for the NBA Playoffs

How to Identify Value Bets

NBA Playoffs betting is very popular, which means that the odds and line moves are often subject to public bias. So, you can analyze all of the usual statistics and perform an implied probability calculation on the odds to find value bets when the public sways them from the oddsmakers’ opening lines.

Live Betting Strategies for Playoff Games

The best strategy for live basketball betting is to be fine with not betting. Sometimes, you don’t see the momentum shift or the points scored that make a live bet viable. Then again, reviewing three-point shooting percentages to spot when better teams have started cold can present a good live bet opportunity.

Hedging Bets for Series and Individual Games

Playoff series and individual games will always have a flow of momentum. It’s at these moments, when you sense the momentum shifting, that it can be a good idea to hedge your bet.

The Role of Advanced Stats in Playoff Betting

Advanced stats for teams and players – which are readily available on the NBA website – should always be a key reference point for anyone trying out NBA Playoffs betting.

NBA Playoff Betting Markets Explained

Series Winner Bets: How to Predict a Series Outcome

Those who watch the games will have the best shot at predicting the eventual series outcome, but even before the first game, you can bet on which team you think will win the series.

Game-Specific Bets: How to Bet on Individual Playoff Games

You can also bet on each individual game within a series as they come along. These odds are found on the regular NBA betting page.

Player Performance Props: Points, Assists, and Rebounds

Just as is the case in the regular season, NBA Playoffs betting also feature player props for a whole host of stat lines, including assists, points, rebounds, blocks, and more.

Team Performance Props: Quarters and Halftime Bets

Some teams come firing out of the gate, sometimes catching the better team off-guard. For those opportunities, you can back team performance props to win by quarters, halves, and to score under or over in each period.

In-Depth Analysis of 2025 NBA Playoff Matchups

Round 1: Key Matchups and Betting Angles

While the Indiana Pacers are the higher seed, the Milwaukee Bucks are coming in red hot, having ended the season with eight wins on the bounce. However, their chances will rely on Damian Lillard being available as he and Giannis Antetokounmpo combine for an NBA-leading 55.3 points per game as a duo.

The tie between the Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers also looks to be a close one, especially as the four-game season series ended tied, as did their final records at 50-32. The Clippers are running hot on an eight-game winning streak, but the Nuggets boast three-time MVP Nikola Jokić. It's primed to be a long series, it seems.

While not as dominant in the regular season this time around, the reigning champions will tap into their buckets of experience to likely oust the Orlando Magic in short order. The season series between the Magic and Boston Celtics is a bit of a misnomer, what with Boston's starting unit resting in the last game and Jayson Tatum missing the Orlando win.

Conference Semifinals: Teams Most Likely to Advance

As the Conference Semifinals approach, rest time between rounds can make a big difference. Couple this with seeding and other key stats like head-to-head records, and you can see which team’s more likely to advance.

Conference Finals: What to Expect from the Top Contenders

For the top contenders, you’d expect previous series to have been put away without reaching Game 7, for the star players to be putting up stat lines elevated from their regular season showings, and for their key players to be injury-free.

NBA Finals: Betting Strategies for the Biggest Series

The NBA Finals will ultimately come down to big players stepping up in the biggest moments, just as they did in the regular season. Because of this, first seeds have a .578 win percentage when they make it to the Finals.

Expert Predictions and Picks for the 2025 NBA Playoffs

Sharp Bettors’ Insights on Top Contenders

By Cleveland’s 12th loss of the season, four had come to teams in the Eastern Conference Play-In zone. In the Western Conference, Oklahoma’s defence sank tremendously since the All-Star break, ranking them 17th by the time the Nuggets had mauled them for 140 points.

Statistical Projections vs. Expert Opinions

While the oddsmakers have the top three favourites as the Celtics and Thunder tied at +175, followed by the +450 Cavs, postseason probabilities models have begun to lean towards the Thunder with over a 40 percent shot, the Cavs at close to 35 percent, and then the Celtics with an 11 percent chance of retaining the NBA Championship.

Bold Predictions and Sleeper Picks

Given that the Cleveland Cavaliers proved rather vulnerable to teams under .500 but set to go to the Play-in, one bold prediction would be that the all-conquering Cavs will bow out in their first series. As for sleeper picks, out at +1600, the Denver Nuggets are worth a look, as are the powered-up Warriors at +2000.

How The NBA Playoffs Work

The NBA playoffs determine the winning team in the NBA championship. During the playoffs, the strongest teams in the East and West are also decided in the finals.

Play-In Tournament

The teams on the two sides are sorted by win-loss at the end of the regular season. The top 6 with the highest win-loss record qualify directly, while the teams placed between 7th and 10th place compete for the last four positions available (2 for the teams in the East and 2 in the West) in a Play-in tournament.

Whoever ends the regular season in seventh place will host the team in eighth place; at the same time, the team that finishes the regular season in ninth place will host the team in tenth place. The winners of these matches earn their positions as the seventh and eighth, respectively, in the Playoffs.

The Current Format Of The NBA Playoffs

Regarding the Playoffs format, we can say that it will be the same as in previous years. All rounds are a best-of-seven series, so whoever wins four games will move on to the next round, and so on, until the last round - the NBA Finals.

As already mentioned, the 12 teams with the highest record of wins-losses (6 in the East and 6 in the West) go directly to the postseason tournament, together with the four winners of the two Play-In tournaments.

Specifically, in the first round, which can be considered the quarter-finals, the team in the 1st seed will compete against the 8th, the 2nd against the 7th, the 3rd against the 6th, and the 4th against the 5th. The team in the highest position will be able to take advantage of the home factor as they will start the series at home.

The two winners between the 1st vs 8st and 4th vs 5th, and the 2 winners between the 2nd vs 7th and 3rd vs 6th will play the next round, i.e. the Conference Semifinals.

The last two franchises will compete in the penultimate series, the Conference Finals, which decrees the champion team in the East and the one in the West. The two winning teams will compete in the NBA Finals' last series.

Most notable NBA Playoff Moments

Because there’s nothing like a bit of reminiscing, here are some memorable moments from NBA playoff history:

Reggie Miller's 8-Point Turnaround

In one of the shortest but most memorable sporting surges in modern history, Miller bagged eight points in just nine seconds against the New York Knicks to turn game one of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on its head on May 7, 1995.

Damian Lillard's Buzzer-Beating Series Winner

It’s the fifth game in the first round of the playoffs between the Trail Blazers and the Thunder on April 23, 2019, and with the scores tied at 115-115, Lillard plays out the last ten seconds, waiting for his time to strike. Just before the buzzer, he lets go of an incredible three-pointer, breaking Thunder hearts.

Kawhi Leonard Breaks the Tie

During game seven of an amazing series between the Raptors and the 76ers, the Raptors’ Kawhi Leonard let go of a two-point effort from the corner with the score tied at 90-90. The ball agonisingly balances on the rim before dropping in, sparking scenes of chaos.

Pistons Upset Stacked Lakers

In 2004, despite boasting a roster brimming with the most recognisable names in the sport, the Lakers perished 4-1 to the Pistons in one of the most surprising upsets in NBA Finals history. The likes of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal were humbled.

Michael Jordan's "The Shot" against the Cavaliers

During the 1989 playoff game between the Bulls and the Cavaliers, Michael Jordan received an inbound pass before beating the buzzer with an outrageous shot to secure a 101–100 win and series victory. It was a classic moment in a classic match that saw no fewer than six lead changes in the final minute.

NBA Playoff FAQ

Can you bet on the NBA playoffs?

Yes, you can bet on the NBA playoffs with LeoVegas - we offer thousands of markets and betting opportunities, pre-match and in-play.

Who is favoured in 2025 NBA playoffs?

Currently, the Boston Celtics are the team most fancied by the bookies to win the Championship.

How do you bet on the NBA game series?

To bet on an NBA game series, you can place wagers on individual games or overall series outcomes such as the series winner or total points scored.

How many NBA teams go to the playoffs?

Sixteen teams, the best eight from the East and the best eight from the West, will advance to the NBA playoffs.

Who is the youngest NBA Finals MVP?

Magic Johnson was just 20 years old when he won the NBA Finals accolade in his rookie season.

How do NBA playoffs work in 2025?

The NBA playoffs in 2024 will feature 16 teams, with eight teams from each conference (Eastern and Western) competing for the championship.

Who won the NBA finals in 2022?

The 2022 NBA Champions are the Golden State Warriors.

Who won the NBA finals in 2023?

The Denver Nuggets won the NBA Finals in 2023. They defeated the Miami Heat in five games, with a final series score of 4-1. The decisive Game 5 was played on June 12, 2023, and the Nuggets scored 94-89.

How do the NBA playoffs work?

The NBA playoffs begin with the play-in tournament - this is where the 7th and 8th seed need to win ONE game to advance to the playoffs. As for the 9th and 10th seed, they have to win TWO-straight games to be in the playoffs.

After the play-in, the traditional 16-team playoff format begins. Eight teams from the Eastern and Western Conferences compete in the postseason. They face four rounds of playoff action, each round consisting of a seven-game series, and the last team remaining is world champion.

How many wins do you need for the NBA playoffs?

The amount of wins required depends on the stage you enter the bracket. For a 9th/10th seed, they’ll have to win 18 games to lift the trophy, a 7th/8th seed needs 17 wins, and a team that enters the playoffs in the first round has to win 16 games (four wins in each best-of-seven series).

What is the difference between NBA playoffs and finals?

The NBA Finals decides the winner of the NBA title. Like the playoffs, the winner is decided via a best-of-seven series, however, the winner is crowned World Champion.