2023-24 NBA All-Star Game Betting Odds

The 2023-24 NBA All-Star Game is just around the corner. The game will take place on Sunday, February 18th at 8:00 p.m. Eastern and will air on TNT and TBS.

The league will head into its annual All-Star break between February 15th and February 21st before resuming regular league play on the 22nd. If you feel like you're going to miss having NBA action during that time, consider checking out FanDuel Sportsbook's NBA: All-Stars Betting Odds markets.

Before we dig into those betting odds markets, let's take a look at this year's All-Star rosters. The game is transitioning back to its traditional roots for this edition, featuring the original "East vs. West" matchup as opposed to the format employed in previous seasons where each conference's captain drafted his teammates.

NBA All-Star Game Rosters

You'll notice two representatives from the Eastern Conference have asterisks next to their names, and that side also boasts two more players than the West. That's because stars Joel Embiid and Julius Randle suffered serious injuries after their nominations and will not be participating. To replace those injured stars and balance out the rosters, the Eastern Conference brought in Trae Young and Scottie Barnes as replacements to fill out the roster.

This year's crew features a boatload of familiar faces on the West and plenty of rising stars on the East. The West's representatives had combined for a whopping 91 total All-Star appearances over their careers, while the East's representatives (minus Embiid and Randle) can claim just 41 -- so far.

NBA All-Star Game Betting Odds: Moneyline, Spread, and Total

• Moneyline:
  • East: +128
  • West: -152
• Spread: West -3.5 (-106)
• Total: 363.5

NBA All-Star Game Betting Odds Analysis

Can This Game Hit the Over?

The total for this year's edition of the All-Star game has a 363.5-point total. That's pretty high.

Over the last 10 years, the All-Star game has averaged a total of 333.1 points per game. During that span of time, just two of those contests eclipsed this year's line. The 2016 All-Stars combined for 369 points while the 2017 game reached a whopping 374 combined points. Even last year's high-scoring affair would have failed to meet this year's lofty 363.5 line, so I personally lean towards the under with its -110 odds.

That said, NBA teams are averaging an insane 115.6 points per game during the 2023-24 regular season. If that mark holds, it will end up as the most points per game scored since the 1969-70 season. We're seeing some pretty historic offensive outputs this year as part of an upward trend in scoring over the last decade.

All-Star games are, to put it gently, not where players go to showcase their best defensive play. The games are characteristically high-scoring affairs with minimalist efforts on defense. The best players in the league, who often have their eyes set on the NBA playoffs later in the year, don't want to risk injury while away from their respective teams.

In other words, we shouldn't be expecting defenders to try and draw out offensive charging fouls during the game.

So even if just two of the last 10 All-Star games have reached the over, it's not inconceivable that this year's game -- during a season of prolific offensive scoring -- exceeds its 363.5-point total.

Why Not Bet on the Up-And-Comers in the East?

The early betting markets have the West as 3.5-point favorites and give the West -152 odds on the moneyline. They certainly have a leg up over the East's roster this year when it comes to All-Star game experience, but are we that sure they'll win?

Frankly, we just don't know how this game will actually pan out. We haven't collected any previous data on these specific players playing together in this kind of contest. The last six All-Star games utilized a draft to build rosters -- as opposed to the traditional East-West dynamic -- so we can't even use past performances to predict the outcome of this year's game.

So why not side with uncertainty and take the East with their +128 moneyline odds? The East's squad features prominent, high-scorers like Giannis Antetokounmpo (a captain in last year's game) and Jayson Tatum (last year's All-Star game MVP). And while they'll surely miss Embiid at center, the East will still have scoring juggernauts Tyrese Haliburton and Damian Lillard handling the guard positions for them.

If you're looking for a narrative angle here, consider that the East roster features four players appearing in the All-Star game for the first time in their promising young careers: Jalen Brunson, Tyrese Maxey, Paolo Banchero, and Scottie Barnes. They could go all out off the bench as they prove their mettle against the best in the West.

On the flip side, if you're looking for a reason to bet on the West at -152 odds, you could factor in that their roster features a combined nine NBA MVP awards. It's hard to argue against players like LeBron James, Nikola Jokic, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant. By comparison, the East has compiled just two such awards (and one of those winners will miss the game).

It is the "All-Star" game, so no one could fault you for siding with the West's nine-time MVP-winners.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.