Upcoming Match-ups

NBA Bubble Props: Odds Favor Players Testing Positive for COVID-19, Violating Guidelines & @NBABubbleLife Going Over 100K Twitter Followers

Sam Cox

by Sam Cox in NBA Basketball

Updated Mar 18, 2021 · 9:55 AM PDT

Donovan Mitchell palms out to the ground
The Utah Jazz are the current top team in the NBA. They take on the visiting Celtics Tuesday night. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire)
  • Props have been released on life inside the NBA Bubble at Disney World in Orlando
  • Bettors can wager on whether star players will test positive for COVID-19 from within the bubble among other things
  • See the full list of props and odds within the bubble blurbs below

The opening week of the NBA bubble has exploded on social media as players have been unimpressed with the size of rooms, and food options.

Former league MVP Russell Westbrook tested positive for COVID-19 before travelling, and Sacramento King Richaun Holmes has had to return to quarantine after accidentally leaving the bubble to pick up a food delivery.

Basketball is nearing, and as NBA fans worldwide get more excited for the season to resume, there’s greater attention being paid to the bubble.

As bets are prepared for the season’s restart, and bubble opt outs are taken into consideration, some bettors will be looking for something a little bit different.

NBA Bubble Props and Odds

Prop Over/No Odds Under/ Yes Odds
Total @NBABubbleLife Twitter Followers By July 17 Over 100,000 (-110) Under 100,000 (-110)
James Harden To Be Revealed To Have Tested Positive For COVID-19 No (-150) Yes (+110)
LeBron James To Be Revealed To Have Tested Positive For COVID-19 No (-200) Yes (+150)
NBA Player To Test Positive For COVID After 7/14/20 No (+150) Yes (-200)
NBA Team Removed From Bubble Due To COVID Concerns No (-1500) Yes (+600)
NBA Ban Players From Social Media Inside Bubble No (-2500) Yes (+800)
NBA Player To Be Removed From Bubble Due To Violation No (-200) Yes (+150)
Will Any NBA Player Violate Bubble Guidelines No (+300) Yes (-500)

Odds taken Jul. 14th

Players Favored to Test Positive From Within

Perhaps the odds suggesting players will test positive is to be expected considering the chaos the MLS bubble has been, which is also taking place at Disney World. A match was postponed at short notice, and two teams (the Dallas and Nashville franchises) have been sent home after an outbreak on the roster.

How the MLS bubble has worked does not instil confidence in the NBA’s plans. It is worth noting, however, that the NBA’s bubble is being established to avoid a situation like MLS is dealing with. Testing players before the bubble is created, and then quarantining them when they arrive in Orlando, is meant to avoid such an outbreak.

YouTube video

Given the number of positive tests in Florida every day, and the fact that Disney staff are not part of the bubble, it’s hard to see how there will no positive tests after July 14th.

The bubble, in theory, should avoid COVID-19 spreading. It should be safe for the people inside it. One positive test from this point on will be a cause for concern, but it’s no surprise to see the odds where they are on this one.

Pick: Yes – NBA player to test positive after July 14th (-200)

Violating Guidelines

As alluded to by Malika Andrews on Monday’s episode of The Hoop Collective, there are grey areas in the NBA’s guidelines. Holmes and Bruno Caboclo are examples of how easy it could be for players to slip up and violate the guidelines.

YouTube video

If all goes to plan, some players will be in this bubble for months to come. A mistake or two seem inevitable over that period, even as they start to adapt to these most alien of situations.

Errors of judgement, or just misunderstanding what is expected, seem very likely. Even with a loss of earnings for violating the guidelines (once games resume), it is optimistic to expect every player to abide by the guidelines for however long the bubble lasts.

Pick: Yes (-500)

NBA Bubble Life Blowing Up on Twitter

A Twitter account set up earlier this month has already posted over 500 tweets and built up just under 75,000 followers. Already becoming the go-to for fans, @NBABubbleLife brings us bubble conent from laundry set ups to fishing trips.

The account even challenged New Orleans Pelicans guard JJ Redick to shotgun a beer.

At the time of writing, the account had posted over 40 tweets in the last 24 hours, getting good interaction on most of them. Retweets from NBA players like Redick are going to help along the way, too.

Although picking up 25,000 followers in three days is a big ask, @NBABubbleLife has a good chance of hitting six figures before July 17th. The excitement ramps up the closer the resumption gets, and the millions of NBA fans will be desperate to see what the players are getting up to.

Pick: Over 100,000 followers (-110)

Removing Players from Bubble

It would be a huge call from the NBA to remove players from the bubble for violating guidelines. It sets a precedent that could put them in a difficult position.

YouTube video

Unless a player tries to ignore the entire concept of the bubble, the NBA will make them quarantine for 10 days, as Holmes is. It would surely take some extreme behavior for the NBA to consider removing someone from the bubble.

At this stage, it is more likely that a player gets tired of the bubble environment and walks away than the NBA remove them. The violations would probably have to be severe and repeated for a player to be removed. If it ever reached that stage, the player in question might have done considerable damage to his relationships with people in the league and his career prospects.

Pick: No – NBA Player To Be Removed From Bubble For Violation (-200)

Author Image