Basketball betting has had its ups and downs over the years as betting enthusiasts used to only bet the favorites. This would result in the house having control of the lines on all of the games. However recently, bettors have been able to control their own wagers as bets such as the teaser have come to fruition. Teaser gambling provides the opportunity for the bettor to move the wagering line in his or her favor, by choosing two or more teams to bet upon in a single night. Although the bettor now has control over the points on the betting lines, in order to collect a winning bet, all of the bets within the teaser have to come through.
The Teaser bet is a mainstay for online sportsbooks when it comes to basketball as well as fellow big four sport football, as the point spread plays a major role in betting outcomes. Most sportsbooks utilize the four and a half point teaser spread when it comes to basketball. Essentially, when picking two teams, the original point spreads set out by the sportsbook may look like this:
Clippers + 5
Bulls -10
However a teaser bet at four and a half points will alter the bet to look more like this
Clippers + 9.5
Bulls - 5.5
Although more risky, a larger payout for teaser bets, occurs when bettors wager on more than two teams. On the contrary, the risk factor is that instead of needing only the two teams in your teaser to come through, if you were to jump to six teams, all six would have to come through and cover for you to make a profit. With larger teaser bets, casual fans will usually use the teaser as a form of pick'em play. While more experienced bettors will implore really advanced teaser systems as this form of betting is usually the only type of wagering they will use.