Skip to content

How to get rich betting NBA back-to-back scenarios

USA Today Sports

Covers.com is the biggest and best source for sports betting information, providing unrivaled and original content sports bettors cannot live without.

Ask yourself a simple question before we dive into this week’s column: Have you come across a single NBA analyst, former player, friend or even Twitter troll who has predicted anything but a Golden State-Cleveland showdown in this season’s NBA Finals?

While I’m virtually certain that Planet Earth contains at least one human being who believes that, perhaps, the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, San Antonio Spurs or Houston Rockets will prevent us from the championship trilogy we appear destined to enjoy, the fact remains that the Warriors and Cavaliers boast such ridiculously impressive resumes that very few would be willing to bet against either team making it back to the NBA Finals.

Entering Wednesday night’s slate of action, Golden State and Cleveland ranked in the top five in the NBA in scoring, three-point percentage and a bevy of other statistical categories. But interestingly enough, there is one wagering category in which both the top seed in the Western Conference and the top seed in the Eastern Conference rank in the bottom five of the Association.

Boys and girls, if you plan to bet against the Warriors or Cavaliers, do it when either team is on the second half of a back-to-back stretch.

As of the close of business on Tuesday, January 16, LeBron James and the Cavaliers are just 2-6 against the spread this season when playing the second half of a back-to-back. As for Kevin Durant and the Warriors, Golden State is an abysmal 1-6 ATS in the second half of a back-to-back situation this season. Only Indiana (1-6 ATS) comes close to matching Golden State’s ATS futility as it pertains to this particular scenario.

A litany of reasons exist as to why certain teams struggle while others thrive when playing the second half of a back-to-back. Resting starters or established veterans, long travel, late nights and a lack of sleep are just a few of the possible reasons when it comes to the “why.” But now that we’re officially halfway through the 2016-2017 NBA season, it’s time to take a good, long look as to which teams excel and which clubs falter in this situation so we can better position ourselves to gain a potential edge over the bookmakers.

Entering Wednesday night, there were exactly 248 instances in which an NBA team played the second half of a back-to-back scenario this season:

Overall record straight-up: 101-147 (.407)

Overall record against the spread: 116-128-4 (.475)

At first glance, there really isn’t much to get excited about here. If we had bet against every single team every time they were playing in the second half of a back-to-back, we would barely have broken even up until this point.

But what if we were betting ON the top five clubs and AGAINST the bottom five franchises?

Top five teams in second half of a back-to-back: 33-10 ATS (.767)

Bottom five teams in second half of a back-to-back: 8-30 ATS (.210)

Granted, there was no way to know at the beginning of the season which teams would rank in the top five and which squads would rank in the bottom five at the midway point of the 2016-2017 NBA campaign. However, this should serve as useful information moving forward, as betting ON the top five and AGAINST the bottom five in the second half of a back-to-back has produced a combined record of 63-18 ATS this season (.777).

NBA teams in the second half of a back-to-back this season

*All records updated as of Wednesday, January 18.

Miami Heat: 7-1 ATS (2-6 SU)

Minnesota Timberwolves: 6-1 ATS (4-3 SU)

San Antonio Spurs: 6-2 ATS (7-1 SU)

Houston Rockets: 7-3 ATS (9-1 SU)

Memphis Grizzlies: 7-3 ATS (8-2 SU)

Atlanta Hawks: 6-3 ATS (6-3 SU)

Orlando Magic: 6-3 ATS (3-6 SU)

Toronto Raptors: 4-2-1 ATS (3-4 SU)

Los Angeles Clippers: 5-3 ATS (5-3 SU)

Phoenix Suns: 4-3 ATS (3-4 SU)

Boston Celtics: 5-4 ATS (6-3 SU)

Chicago Bulls: 5-5 ATS (4-6 SU)

New York Knicks: 4-5 ATS (1-8 SU)

Utah Jazz: 4-5-1 ATS (6-4 SU)

Sacramento Kings: 3-4-1 ATS (2-6 SU)

Los Angeles Lakers: 4-6 ATS (3-7 SU)

Brooklyn Nets: 2-3-1 ATS (0-6 SU)

Charlotte Hornets: 3-5 ATS (3-5 SU)

Denver Nuggets: 3-5 ATS (2-6 SU)

Oklahoma City Thunder: 3-5 ATS (2-6 SU)

Philadelphia 76ers: 3-5 ATS (1-7 SU)

Washington Wizards: 3-5 ATS (1-7 SU)

Portland Trail Blazers: 3-6 ATS (3-6 SU)

New Orleans Pelicans: 3-6 ATS (3-6 SU)

Dallas Mavericks: 2-5 ATS (0-7 SU)

Cleveland Cavaliers: 2-6 ATS (3-5 SU)

Detroit Pistons: 2-6 ATS (2-6 SU)

Milwaukee Bucks: 2-6 ATS (2-6 SU)

Golden State Warriors: 1-6 ATS (6-1 SU)

Indiana Pacers: 1-6 ATS (1-6 SU)

Here’s your rundown of back-to-back scenarios to monitor as we head into the weekend:

THURSDAY

Wizards at Knicks (8:00pm ET): Both teams are on the second half of a back-to-back in this matchup.

FRIDAY

None

SATURDAY

Trail Blazers at Celtics (5:00pm ET): Portland is on the second half of a back-to-back. In those situations this season, the Blazers are 3-6 ATS.

Nets at Hornets (7:00pm ET): Both teams are on the second half of a back-to-back in this matchup.

76ers at Hawks (7:00pm ET): Both teams are on the second half of a back-to-back in this matchup.

Bucks at Heat (7:30pm ET): Milwaukee is on the second half of a back-to-back. In those situations this season, the Bucks are just 2-6 ATS.

Rockets at Grizzlies (8:00pm ET): Both teams are on the second half of a back-to-back in this matchup.

Pacers at Jazz (9:00pm ET): Both teams are on the second half of a back-to-back in this matchup.

Kings at Bulls (9:00pm ET): Both teams are on the second half of a back-to-back in this matchup.

SUNDAY

Suns at Raptors (6:00pm ET): Phoenix is on the second half of a back-to-back. In those situations this season, the Suns are 4-3 ATS.

Nuggets at Timberwolves (7:00pm ET): Denver is on the second half of a back-to-back. In those situations this season, the Nuggets are just 3-5 ATS.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox