You should adjust your regular season bets for the postseason.

Key Points

– Bettors have to adjust their regular season bets for the postseason.

– Betting in the postseason differs from that of the regular season.

Adjusting Regular Season Bets for the Postseason

The transition from the regular season to the playoffs is a big one for sports bettors. At some point each season, serious bettors understand that what they did in the regular season might not work all that well in the postseason. Handicapping the NBA playoffs is a different animal.

In many ways, placing a bet in the playoffs is similar to placing regular season bets because the game remains the same. However, there are some major differences between regular season and postseason play in all of the major professional sports.

Savvy bettors are aware that these differences necessitate modifications in order to preserve profitability. Here’s a look at adjusting your regular season betting in order to maximize the postseason.  

Don’t Always Look for Mismatches

A significant portion of handicapping regular season bets involves looking for mismatches between two opponents. Finding these mismatches is one of the simplest basketball betting strategies for winners.

It might be a situation where one team is just really bad and the other is one of the best in its league. Those are the easy mismatches to spot, but what about when two teams are evenly matched?

Public bettors can easily spot mismatches in the regular season. Postseason bettors that can find mismatches are way ahead of the betting public. However, it is difficult to find these matchup issues when you have two really good teams facing each other. 

That’s why bettors shouldn’t focus so much on mismatches during the postseason. This is especially true as teams go deeper in the playoffs. The teams facing each other are so good that it’s very hard to identify a mismatch, if there are any.

PLAYOFF BETTING PREP: BETTING THE NBA PLAYOFFS

Change Bet Size for Playoffs vs. Regular Season Bets

When the playoffs start, it’s a good idea to check the state of your bankroll and make any necessary adjustments. This could be a good time to boost your bet size. If you had a successful regular season and made some money, increasing your unit size might be a good idea.

If you had a poor regular season, you might consider doing the opposite and lower your unit size. Keep in mind that there are fewer games during the playoffs. You may increase your unit size since you are betting on fewer games. 

Whatever you do, make sure you use one of America’s most trusted sportsbooks.

Just a Little Patience

As just mentioned, when the playoffs begin, there are fewer games per night to wager on than there are during the regular season. The number of games continues to decrease as teams are eliminated from the postseason. 

Successful bettors are aware that you should constantly be selective and avoid wagering on games that don't provide any betting value. Some playoff games just don’t offer any strong bets. That is why bettors must exercise patience when betting the postseason in any sport.

During the regular season, you may frequently forego a number of games while still finding one or two to wager on. That’s because there are more games per night. 

Nevertheless, in the playoffs, exercising patience may result in you not betting at all one night. It may even stretch beyond one night. Shopping around for the best postseason betting opportunities takes patience. It also takes access to the best sports odds and lines. Don’t just bet for the sake of betting.

Familiarity with Opponents

During some regular seasons, teams play each other numerous times. Even if they only meet a few times in the regular season, the NBA, NHL, and MLB all have playoff series that can last up to seven games. This creates a lot of familiarity between the two teams.

Teams that go through a full seven-game series have no secrets from each other. A team’s habits are well-known and there are very few surprises. Because of all the recent data bettors have during the playoffs, it can seem like it’s easier to handicap games. You can win more NFL bets with advanced stats gathered from a playoff series.

This is true to an extent. On the other hand, that familiarity can create some bias for the handicapper. Being familiar with the teams and how they have played may create a situation where a bettor leans one way or the other. Oftentimes, it’s easier to handicap a game from scratch.

Home Advantage is Real

The importance of home field or home court advantage cannot be overstated. In regular season bets, playing at home is often overrated by the betting public. Home advantage is at its peak during the postseason. 

Many studies have demonstrated that the passion of the crowd and its potential to influence officials are the major factors favoring the home team. The opportunity to influence the officials won't ever be greater because playoff crowds are more passionate and frequently larger than regular season crowds. 

In the postseason, the location of a game must be taken into account more so than when betting on a regular season game.

Overtime - Regular Season Bets vs. Postseason

Football and hockey postseason overtime formats differ from those used during the regular season. NCAA and NBA basketball overtimes are the same. There are some stats NCAA basketball bettors should know, but you can't worry too much about overtime in your handicapping. It’s occurrence is rare in the grand scheme of things.

Plus, if you think two teams are going to end up in a tie at the end of regulation, then you probably shouldn't be betting on the game. In some circumstances, you may find value. 

If you predict a close game in the NHL, for example, it would be wise to consider the team that has done better in overtime and shootout situations. In the NFL, bettors might lean on teams that have won more close games.

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