Sports, Interrupted: What It Means for Futures Bets
How do the suspended NBA and NHL seasons affect the bets you’ve already made?
The suspension of the NHL and NBA seasons have bettors hanging. What’s in? What’s out?
Latest reports indicate sports leagues may not resume playing until April, at the earliest. But even if it’s May, the leagues have the ability to resume. There are paychecks to earn, and for frustrated fans, teams to watch, cheer for and wager on.
Meanwhile, what’s all this mean for futures bets? Here’s the scoop, per WilliamHill.com:
- For NBA Bets. All futures (Championship, Conference and Divisions) are still action. Only Championship and Conference futures are still up. Only if the season is fully canceled will these bets be refunded. For regular season win totals, teams must play at least 80 regular season games for action.If teams don’t reach that threshold, then those bets will be refunded. For MVP and Rookie of the Year futures, if those awards are given out at any time, those bets are action.
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- For NHL Bets. All futures (Championship, Conference and Divisions) are still action. Only Stanley Cup futures are still up. Only if the season is fully canceled will these bets be refunded.
For regular-season points totals, teams must play at least 80 regular season games for action. If teams don’t get there, again, those bets will be refunded. This is an important distinction. The NHL is normally scheduled for 82 games. Should the league resume, this rule is a victory for “under” bettors if the league concludes at exactly 80 games. It’s a step back for “over” bettors, who would like to have the additional two games to boost their point total.
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Bear in mind, the NBA and NHL still have options to salvage all or part of their campaigns. You may be tempted to take a cancelled bet and put your money on a new one.
