Want to assemble your own NBA team for fantasy betting? Now it’s possible with the best Australian NBA fantasy betting sites. Let us take a look at all the essential information you need to get started.
We cover all the key points, including scoring, team structure and proven draft strategies. More experienced punters can jump straight to our recommended list.
Our fantasy bookie recommendations are based on a host of factors which we discuss in greater detail in this piece. DraftStars is the best option, but PlayUp also offers classic betting on NBA and all other American sports. If you want to play fantasy sports and spice it up with some NBA or MLB betting, PlayUp is the right place.
After testing all of the fantasy sports sites in Australia, we concluded that Draftstars is by far the best destination for all NBA fantasy basketball enthusiasts. They offer a great balance of differently priced leagues. Beginners can play for free or join the leagues that cost as little as $2 to enter.
On the other hand, advanced users may want to test their skills in some of the more competitive contests with buy-ins of up to a couple hundreds of dollars. Also, don’t forget that Draftstars also offers several exciting game modes, which makes them even more appealing.
Everything we mentioned above is available on Draftstars mobile apps as well. You can play your favourite NBA daily fantasy contests on both iOS and Android devices while enjoying all the features from the desktop site.
A second recommendation we have included above is PlayUp. Draftstars and PlayUp are part of the same organisation, which means PlayUp customers can also enjoy what Draftstars has to offer.
We listed them because they are one of the best betting agencies in Australia for general sports betting too. This means they are ideal for punters who want to bet on both fantasy sports and conventional markets from the same place.
If you only want great NBA fantasy games you need look no further than Draftstars, but if you’d love to mix your betting then is where PlayUp will appeal. Discover more with our PlayUp review.
There are a few other out-and-out fantasy betting site options available, but as we mentioned above, none of them seemed like the right fit for Aussie punters compared to Draftstars.
While FanDuel offers the closest experience to Draftstars, they are not as nearly as focused on Australian players. There are no Aussie payment methods like POLi or BPAY.
Another site where you can play NBA DFS in Australia is DraftKings. They do offer some hefty prizes and lots of leagues, however, other parts are lacking. There are no Australian payment methods, and customer support isn’t quite as good. But the thing that we disliked the most is the lack of native apps for Aussies. It shows that DraftKings Australia is still a work in progress, so it would be best to wait until they bring all the features available in the US.
Best NBA Fantasy Betting App
One of the reasons we picked Draftstars as a top NBA fantasy betting choice is because they also boast one of the top sports betting apps.
Placing fantasy sports bets is quick and easy from wherever you are. The Draftstars app is available for both Android and iOS and looks great and is simple to navigate. Scroll below to see what the app has to offer.
It is quick to get the Draftstars app and registering takes just a few minutes. You will soon have access to a number of NBA leagues, both free and paid.
NBA Fantasy Strategy
NBA is high-scoring and highly dynamic, so it’s always hard to determine who will win the next game. Drafting a winning fantasy team requires even more skill than getting classic NBA bets right. That’s why we have decided to ask our NBA fantasy experts to provide you with some actionable tips. Everything you’ll find below is applicable on all NBA fantasy basketball contests.
Look for players on a streak – Momentum plays a huge form streak in the NBA. Players who have recently overachieved will probably play with more confidence, so always look to hire them. The same goes for the players on cold streaks.
Pick strong backups – If a player is hurt, it means that one of the backups will get much more playing time. In most cases, that translates to high productivity. So, don’t miss taking a cheap sub who is now putting in big numbers.
Follow the pace of play – Keep an eye on the number of possessions each team has during the game. If the pace is high, there could be more points scored, rebounds and everything else. High-scoring fantasy players usually play in higher-paced games.
Types of NBA Fantasy Contests
Since the NBA DFS is by far the most popular format, we will focus on the types of contests you can take part in at daily fantasy sites. Note that every operator brings something different. For example, Draftstars is well known for its unique Rapidfire games that allow you to play quick fantasy contests without too much fuss.
Even though every fantasy sports site wants to leave its own mark, there are a few game types that are available almost everywhere. We think it’s the best for newbies to try with some of the basic modes before moving to more complex contests. Here are some of the most common NBA fantasy league types. You may also see a few of these options when looking to bet on Olympics basketball as well.
50/50 contests – In this case, all of the contenders who finish in the upper half of the leaderboard will get their stakes doubled. There is also a variation where the top 30% players earn triple the money.
Head-to-Head – Here you’re facing a single opponent. You’ll need an overall better scoring team to win.
Fixed Prize Contest – The operator guarantees a prize pool as long as there is a certain number of players. In most cases, these are the best-paid contests.
NBA Fantasy Scoring
NBA fantasy scoring works on the same principles as any other fantasy sport. You earn points based on the actions your players do on the court. In order to provide the best experience for all of the fantasy sports fans, the NBA has released official recommendations about how to record fantasy points. This is what they say:
Points – 1 point
Steals – 3 points
Rebounds – 1.2 points
Blocks – 3 points
Assists – 1.5 points
Turnovers – -1 point
However, this isn’t set in stone. Operators can impose different rules, so make sure you always read the instructions before playing. For example, Draftstars calculates rebounds as 1.25, while DraftKings takes blocks as 2 points.
Also, keep in mind that a lot of operators are giving extra points for triple-doubles or double-doubles. This should influence your draft decisions since in those cases, players who pump the different stat lines become much more valuable.
NBA Fantasy Draft
The NBA fantasy draft is the most important part of any contest. That’s the time when you assemble your team. Since it’s so important, we highly advise you first to focus the attention on draft rules and then create a robust plan with the list of players you’ll try to get. Note that you’ll be limited by the salary cap, which means that there is a very limited number of players you can get.
In most cases, they won’t allow you to have more than 5 players from the same team.
Draft rules can be quite different depending on the contest and operator. In most cases, you’ll be choosing by snake draft rules. It means that a player who chooses first in odd rounds will get the last pick in the even rounds. Some operators offer auction draft-based leagues. This time every player will be brought to auction, and the contender who pays the most will have it on the team.
Here are some actionable tips on how to dominate your next NBA fantasy draft.
NBA Fantasy Draft Tips
Study the scoring rules. For example, if an operator is slashing off a lot of points on turnovers, think twice about taking James Harden or Russel Westbrook.
You should know the draft order well in advance, so map out the next steps. Also, don’t forget to think about substitutions, in case your initial picks are already taken.
Spend the same amount of time picking reserves, as you do with starters. Rounds 5 and later usually determine the ultimate league winner.
Target players who can fill in multiple categories. You can’t have LeBron James every time, but try not to focus just on scoring or rebounding specialists.
Always have a list of NBA fantasy sleepers at your hand. These are the players who fly under the radar. In case you don’t know who to pick, try your luck with one of the sleepers.
How to Form Your NBA Fantasy Team
You’ll have to pick the players from each position and assemble an all-round NBA fantasy basketball team. Since there are points to be earned on both ends of the floor, it means that you should take both offensive and defensive-minded payers.
Each operator has its own rules on how many players you’ll have to take. For NBA daily fantasy, it’s around nine players in most cases. If you want to play some of the season long contest, that number will be higher. You should always plan your draft decisions based on this data. The number of players in each position will directly impact the type of players you’ll need to focus on.
Note that most of the players can fill only one specific position. However, some of them are listed as so-called dual position players (DPP). They can fill in two positions, which gives you a lot more flexibility. That’s why you should always draft at least one or two DPPs.
Here is what you should look for when drafting for each position.
Center – Centers are there to give you rebounds and blocks. Don’t worry if they aren’t big on scoring, but keep in mind that they should have a high FG percentage. Mater a fact, the centre should always be your most efficient player.
Power forward – Similar to centres, you want guys who can rebound. But in this case, it would be best if the pick could knock out an outside 3 as well.
Side Forward – These guys are like swiss army knife. Most of them can do pretty much everything, so try to find the one that best compliments your team.
Shooting Guard – In today’s NBA, guards will give you the bulk of points. Avoid players who can’t shoot threes. It would be great if you could find somebody who can also dish at least 4 or 5 assists per game.
Point Guard – Most of the modern point guards are scoring machines. However, many of them are also big on turnovers. So, don’t let shiny point averages distract you. Always look at turnovers and shooting percentages as well.
How to Place an NBA Fantasy Bet
Once you learn the basic rules, playing fantasy NBA is quite easy. In case this is your first go with fantasy sports, just follow the guide below. This kind of sports entertainment is still quite new in most places, including Australia, so all fantasy sports sites have lots of how-to material on their sites.
Here is what the steps will look like for the vast majority of Australian fantasy bookies.
Starting With Fantasy NBA
Pick an NBA fantasy operator you like and create an account
Find an NBA contest (most of operators let you filter by sport)
In most cases, trading players is allowed after the draft and before the NBA fantasy league has started. Some of the long-term leagues will enable you to trade during the season, so make sure to read the manual before starting. Also, keep in mind that the number of trades may be limited, as well as the difference in the values of players being traded. For example, at Draftstars, you can only swap a player who is paid more than the one you want to get.
If you decide to trade a player, first make sure to do all the homework. Fantasy sports rely heavily on stats, so try to check every possible aspect before making a trade. This is only unless you have inside info or a strong gut feeling that one of the players will overachieve. In those cases, follow your instincts, since that’s the only way to make something huge.
Consider Other Fantasy Sports
Once you get to grips with fantasy betting on the NBA then, you’ll find the process is very similar for other fantasy sports. Our number one choice, Draftstars, offers a whole range of different sports that you can take a look at and start drafting your next team. We have detailed guides on many of them as well.
When it comes to fantasy NBA betting the best place to look is Draftstars Australia. They are our top choice because of many reasons, including their excellent app and range of different games and tournaments.
For those wanting a mix of fantasy and traditional sports betting should consider PlayUp. They will give you a host of markets and odds to choose from while also offering access to Draftstars as well.
You can play fantasy NBA at several sites in Australia. However, we strongly believe that Draftstars is the best of them all. Click the button bellow to learn why.
With NBA fantasy you take the role of general manager and draft a team of real-life players. You later earn points based on your players’ performance in actual games. Take a look at the article above to learn more about the fantasy NBA.
What is the best NBA fantasy website?
After testing all of the Australian fantasy operators, we concluded that Draftstars is the best for fantasy NBA. They offer great prizes, a range of exciting game modes and a platform made specifically for Aussie punters. To learn more about fantasy NBA at Draftstars, jump to the beginning of this article.
What is the best NBA fantasy app?
Draftstars is offering the best NBA fantasy experience on mobile. Their native apps for iOS and Android have all the same features as the desktop site, meaning that you won’t miss out on anything when playing on the go. Learn more about Draftstars in the article above.
How does NBA fantasy work?
You first have to find an NBA fantasy operator you like and create an account. After that, enter the draft and pick a team. Once you have the team, just sit down, relax and follow the leaderboard. Take a look at our how-to beginner’s guide for more info.
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