The NBA All-Star Game is not entertaining to watch, but it could be a fruitful one to wager on.
This year’s tournament is completely different, as the league and commissioner Adam Silver attempt to resurrect a dead contest that the players refuse to take seriously.
That’s a betting angle we can take, as there are bizarrely three teams in this year’s All-Star Game. Two of these teams consist of players who are from the United States, while the other consists of “rest of world” squads.
Each of the three teams plays each other one time in a 12-minute quarter, while the two teams with the best records move on to the final, where they will play another quarter.
Interestingly enough, Team World is favored to win the All-Star Game, coming in at +160 on DraftKings, while Team Stripes is +175 and Team Stars is a distant third at +205.
Stars is the younger group with a roster that includes Scottie Barnes, Devin Booker, Cade Cunningham, Jalen Duren, Anthony Edwards, Chet Holmgren, Jalen Johnson and Tyrese Maxey.
Stripes are your usual big-name veteran stars: Jaylen Brown, Jalen Brunson, Kevin Durant, LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Donovan Mitchell, Brandon Ingram and De’Aaron Fox. It’s worth noting that Stephen Curry and Giannis Antetokounmpo are out with injuries.
The favored Team World features plenty of size, as Luka Doncic, Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama lead them alongside Deni Avdija, Jamal Murray, Pascal Siakam, Karl-Anthony Towns, Alperen Sengün and Norman Powell.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is out of the game with an injury, a significant loss for Team World, given that they have little to no guard play outside of Murray. Murray is the second favorite to win MVP for Team World at 12/1, which is certainly surprising given they have Jokic and Doncic on their team as well.
Wembanyama is the overall favorite, coming in at +400.
The question about this game isn’t who is better, it’s who will take this game seriously?
Multiple reports expect Doncic to miss time in these games, as the Lakers’ star guard missed the final games leading up to All-Star break with a mild hamstring strain. It’s a bad start for Team World, though you could see Wembanyama and Jokic just go nuclear and win this round-robin by themselves through sheer will and size.
Still, you’re asking bigger players to get up and down the floor, even if it’s just for dunks and half-court 3-pointers that no one wants to see.
Betting on the NBA?
All things considered, this format is dumb, and the NBA shouldn’t have done it. But since we’re here, the single-quarter games should help the teams with the most guards who can get up and down quickly.
The fresh legs are the ones to target in this contest, and Edwards is someone you can trust to at least try to win games and the MVP award.
We’re targeting the younger Team Stripes to win this otherwise meaningless competition and Edwards to take home his first All-Star Game MVP.
The PLAY: Team Stripes to win the NBA All-Star Game (+205, DraftKings); Anthony Edwards to win the All-Star Game MVP (20/1, BetMGM)
Why Trust New York Post Betting
Erich Richter is a brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt but he has a black belt in MMA betting. During the football season he’s showcased massive profits at The Post in the player prop market the last two seasons. While constantly betting long shots, his return on investment is 30.15 percent since 2022.