NBA Preseason Betting Guide and Trends: Golden State Warriors dominate exhibition play
The NBA preseason tips off in early October and lasts for a little more than two weeks before the regular season begins on Tuesday, Oct. 21. Each team plays at least four games and no more than six. In addition to traditional home and road games, there are plenty of neutral sites both in North America and abroad that are used for the NBA preseason.
Preseason scores, statistics and even standings are updated with each game, but nothing counts toward regular-season numbers.
Here’s what you need to know about the NBA preseason.
Make sure to check out Sports Interaction’s complete list of NBA preseason game odds and NBA futures.
When is the NBA Preseason and what are some of the key matchups?
The NBA preseason gets underway on Thursday, Oct. 2. There is at least one game every day from that date through Friday, Oct. 17. Cities outside North America hosting preseason games are Abu Dhabi, Guangzhou, Macau, Melbourne and San Juan.
Here are some of the preseason games to note:
October 2 – Philadelphia 76ers vs. New York Knicks (Abu Dhabi)
October 3 – New Orleans Pelicans vs. Melbourne United (Melbourne)
October 3 – Phoenix Suns vs. LA Lakers (Pittsburgh)
October 4 – New York Knicks vs. Philadelphia 76ers (Melbourne)
October 4 – New Orleans Pelicans vs. South East Melbourne Phoenix (Melbourne)
October 4 – Minnesota Timberwolves vs. Denver Nuggets (San Diego)
October 4 – Orlando Magic vs. Miami Heat (San Juan)
October 6 – Denver Nuggets vs. Toronto Raptors (Vancouver)
October 9 – LA Clippers vs. Guangzhou Loong-Lions (Guangzhou)
October 10 – Phoenix Suns vs. Brooklyn Nets (Macau)
October 12 – Brooklyn Nets vs. Phoenix Suns (Macau)
October 14 – New Orleans Pelicans vs. Houston Rockets (Birmingham)
October 15 – Dallas Mavericks vs. LA Lakers (Las Vegas)
NBA Preseason storylines
The Oklahoma City Thunder are the defending NBA champions and they are once again expected to be at the top of the heap, but beyond that there could be a seismic shift taking place in the league hierarchy. In the Eastern Conference, the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers are without star players in Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton, respectively. In the Western Conference, the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers are aging.
Throughout the preseason, it will be worth keeping an eye on teams that could be able to capitalize on new opportunities.
In the East, can Paolo Banchero and Cade Cunningham make the jump from all-star to superstar and take their teams (the Orlando Magic and Detroit Pistons, respectively) to the next level? How will Atlanta Hawks newcomer Kristaps Porzingis gel with Trae Young and Jalen Johnson? Similarly, is Giannis Antetokounmpo and Myles Turner a combination that will work for the Milwaukee Bucks? In the West, just how good is No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg? Can he instantly make the Dallas Mavericks legitimate contenders?
NBA preseason betting trends
In recent years, no team has played harder – or more successfully – in the preseason than Golden State. Head coach Steve Kerr’s club has compiled a winning record in five consecutive seasons, including a perfect 6-0 mark in 2024. It also went 5-0 in 2021 and 4-1 in 2023. Boston is 8-2 in the past two preseason campaigns. At the other end of the spectrum, the Cleveland Cavaliers are 2-10 over the last three years and the Sacramento Kings are 1-9 over the last two.
From a scoring perspective, preseason and regular-season averages are similar. The extremes can be more extreme, however, in the preseason. For example, Golden State scored 124.0 ppg and Milwaukee managed just 96.0 ppg in the 2024 preseason. In the regular season, no team averaged more than 121.9 ppg or fewer than 105.1 ppg.
