Thursday NBA tip off: Wagers and wittiness

You might know me for odd columns, grim writing persistence, exotic financial instruments, Oregon wine, pompous pronouncements and alarmingly sudden marriage proposals (not really). But have you considered me as a source for enticing gambling propositions?

Now you can, with DraftKings Sportsbook. Anything is possible in America, after all.

Let’s go through TNT’s Thursday’s games and see if Draft Kings has anything to tempt the discerning punter.

The Bucks play the 76ers at 6:30 CST, and the Clippers take on the Lakers at 9pm CST (honestly my favorite timeslot when I lived in Houston).

First off, you might notice that the two losers of The Tuesday Tip Off (76ers, Lakers) are facing rather stiff competition that hasn’t yet played a game (Bucks, Clippers). Will that affect the outcome? In the case of the Lakers, hardly at all, their roster is so flawed as to fall into the “Challenging Modern Art” category. I think the Lakers are going to be done so bad, I’m not sure what to bet upon.

Let’s plan out our hypothetical night of betting to amuse ourselves with games that may not be amusing.

We’ll pretend to bet the Bucks vs 76ers, with a bet on the game, and do a single game parlay within the game. What that means is we chain our bets together with wagers in a single, and it combines their odds for our winnings. Sounds great! Except, you’ve got to hit on all the bets. So let’s see...

Bucks +4 - We’re saying the Bucks by 4 or more. Our $10 bet wins us 18.69. I think the 76ers are going to be good, but Milwaukee will be better in their first game of the season.

Then we’re going to do a parlay - James Harden to score 23.5 or more points, and Brook Lopez to make 2+ three point shots. I feel pretty comfortable on the Harden pick, given what I say, that his shot appears to be back, and guys are jumping into it. Lopez? Who knows. But your $10 wager would win you $55 on the parlay. Remember, both things have to happen.

If you do choose to do this, take a look and see if there are any specials, or free bets, or return of lost wagers in site credits, as this is sometimes offered. Ask The Internet, or any podcast you might choose.

So that’s it, we’ll make the first game our bet, and we will wager a mythical $20 to win a potential $73.69.

You can do this, where applicable, below.

DraftKings Sportsbook, the official sportsbook partner of SB Nation.