How to Calculate Your NBA Bet Winnings From Last Night's Results

You know, I woke up this morning and immediately checked last night's NBA scores - my Warriors pulled off that upset against the Celtics, and I realized I needed to calculate exactly how much I won from my parlay bet. If you're like me, you probably placed a few bets last night and now you're wondering how to actually figure out your winnings. Let me walk you through exactly how I do it, because honestly, it took me a while to get the hang of it when I first started betting.

First things first, you need to understand the different types of odds. American odds are what we typically see here in the States, and they can be either positive or negative numbers. Negative odds like -150 mean you need to bet $150 to win $100, while positive odds like +200 mean you'd win $200 on a $100 bet. Last night I had a mix - the Warriors were at +180 as underdogs, while my over bet on the Lakers game was at -110. It's kind of like when I tried those new speedrunning games recently - the tools are nicely laid out and the presentation is very approachable, but sometimes you don't get all the information upfront. You just have to dive in and learn as you go.

Here's my step-by-step process that I use every morning after games. I start by gathering all my betting slips or checking my betting app to see exactly what I wagered on. Then I look up the final scores and stats to confirm which bets hit and which didn't. For straight bets, the calculation is pretty simple - if I bet $50 on the Warriors at +180, I multiply $50 by 1.8, which gives me $90 in profit, plus my original $50 back, so $140 total. See? Not so complicated once you break it down.

Where it gets tricky is with parlays. I had a three-team parlay last night with the Warriors at +180, the over in the Lakers game at -110, and the Knicks covering the spread at -115. For parlays, you multiply the odds together. First I convert everything to decimal odds - that's +180 becoming 2.8, -110 becoming 1.909, and -115 becoming 1.87. Then I multiply them: 2.8 × 1.909 × 1.87 = about 10.0. So my $20 bet became $200! That's the kind of math I can get behind.

But here's where it gets frustrating sometimes - just like in those speedrunning games where the interface is oddly unclear about what time-marks correspond to which letter grade, sometimes betting apps don't make it immediately obvious how they calculated your winnings. I've had situations where I thought I won more than I actually did because I didn't account for the vig or because one leg of my parlay pushed. It's that same feeling of uncertainty when you're trying to hit at least an A-rank in a game but won't know what the target time was until you surpass it.

One thing I've learned the hard way - always double-check the final scores yourself. Don't just trust what the betting app shows immediately after the game. I remember one time I thought I'd won a bet on a player prop, but then they adjusted the stats the next morning and I actually lost. It was like when you're playing Excitebike and only learn about extra criteria to meet by doing it, at which point the game automatically rewinds you with a penalty for the time spent. Super frustrating.

Another tip from my experience - keep a betting journal. I use a simple spreadsheet where I track my bets, the odds, the amounts, and the results. This helps me spot patterns in my betting and see where I'm actually making money versus where I'm just getting lucky. Last month I discovered I was losing money on player props but crushing it on team totals - that was eye-opening.

When it comes to calculating winnings from last night's NBA results, the most important thing is taking your time and not getting overwhelmed. Break it down bet by bet, use an odds converter if you need to (I have one bookmarked on my phone), and don't forget to account for your original stake when calculating your total return. Personally, I always subtract my original bet amount to see my pure profit - that's the number that really matters to me.

At the end of the day, knowing how to calculate your NBA bet winnings from last night's results is crucial for any serious bettor. It helps you understand your performance, manage your bankroll, and make better decisions moving forward. Plus, there's nothing quite like that moment when you realize you calculated correctly and you actually won more than you thought! That's better than hitting any high score in a video game, if you ask me.