How to Bet on the WNBA – WNBA Betting Strategies and Guide for 2022

What Is the WNBA?

In the betting world, every game and every sport can have value if you are looking in the right places. One of the more valuable sports to bet on is the WNBA, or the Women’s National Basketball Association.

Similar to the NBA, the WNBA offers bets to place on the games that are played throughout their season. Despite having only 12 teams, betting on these games has proven to bring in some interest and help sharps walk away with some extra profit.

Let’s take a look at some of the basics to get you started on betting on WNBA games.

Where Can You Bet On WNBA Games?

Here are some of the more popular sportsbooks that offer WNBA bets. make sure you check your state regulations and review the various sportsbooks you use to see which ones offer WNBA bets.

• FanDuel
• DraftKings
• PointsBet
• Caesars
• BetRivers
• WynnBet
• Barstool

WNBA Point Spreads, Moneylines, Totals, Futures & Game Props

The WNBA offers most of the same game bets that are offered in the NBA and other major sports league:

Moneyline — Moneyline bets are simply betting on who will win the game. In all cases, the team that is favored to win will have worse odds with the moneyline.

For example, if the Las Vegas Aces, one of the best teams in the league, play the Indiana Fever, a team that has been struggling this season, the moneyline for the Aces will be much worse odds, and the Fever will have plus-money odds to win the game outright.

Point Spread – If you are confident that a team will win by a certain amount, or the underdog will keep the game close, you can bet the point spread.

Point spread gives the underdog some value, as they can be looked at to “cover the spread” or lose within a certain amount of points or win outright. This will entice bettors to look into the underdog and not only bet the favorite every game. These odds are more even than moneyline, and typically hover between -105 and -110.  

Point Total – Looking at the point total is based off of how many points are scored combined by each team. Typically, WNBA games have scores that average anywhere from 150 to 180 points a game. Sportsbooks will price point totals differently, so make sure to check each book to see if you can find an edge or better value than the first line you look at.

Game Props – You are able to bet on different outcomes that can occur during the game. Options include first team to score 10 points, team point total and more.

One thing to note: Sportsbooks typically do not offer player props for WNBA games, so you are not able to bet on individual player performances, such as points, rebounds, assists, etc.

Futures – You are able to bet on who you believe will win the WNBA championship for each season. These are all plus-money plays, so you can find some really good value if you are confident in a specific team winning the championship.

WNBA Betting Strategies

• There is opportunity to find very valuable bets within the WNBA since it is not one of the popular sports to bet on from a volume perspective. In some of the more popular leagues, the NBA and NFL, when you see line movement, you are generally told to “fade the public” as they typically bet with emotion more than intuition. However, with the WNBA, because not many people are betting, when you see line movement, there is a good chance that is an educated bettor, or a “sharp” bettor who is putting significant money on a play. Simply following line movement for these games and recognizing trends could be a good way to find value in the long run.
• Take into consideration external factors of the game you plan to bet on. Is the team coming off an extended break or are they playing on short rest? Did the team have to travel across the country? Are there injuries or new players to account for? Is one team playing for a potential playoff birth or in a must-win situation? Are specific players playing to win any sort of award? All of these factors are important to analyze prior to placing your bet.
• If you are unsure which way you would like to bet a specific play, wait to live bet. Almost every play you can bet pregame will also be available once the game starts. There will obviously be adjustment to the line as the game progresses compared to pregame line, but this way you can get a feel for what you would like to take and see how it is playing out in the early parts of the game.