Doncic Trade May Be Sparking Higher NBA Handle, Says DraftKings CEO

Posted on: March 6, 2025, 02:44h. 

Last updated on: March 7, 2025, 05:29h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More

Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.

• Doncic was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers on Feb. 1
• Move could be stoking more NBA bets

In a transaction that shook the NBA, the Los Angles Lakers acquired Luka Doncic from the Dallas Mavericks on Feb. 1 and that trade may be stirring increased betting on the NBA.

In comments made at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media & Telecom Conference on Tuesday, DraftKings (NASDAQ: DKNG) co-founder and CEO Jason Robins said NBA handle has perked up in the first quarter relative to the final three months of 2024, adding his company appears to be trending slightly ahead of past NBA handle trends.

I think the Luka trade sparked a lot of interest and now the ratings are in great spot relative to where they were a quarter ago, and we’ve seen very similar trajectory on our handle for NBA,” said Robins in response to a question from analyst Stephen Grambling. “And so I feel like right now, we’re actually a little bit ahead on that front, and we really just kind of need to do as expected from here on now.”

Under the terms of the trade, the Lakers sent Anthony Davis, along with Max Christie and their 2029 first-round pick to the Mavericks for Doncic, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris.

Higher NBA Ratings Could Be Spurring Increased Handle

In sports betting parlance, handle refers to the total amount wagered on a game or an event. Hold is the percentage of each wagered dollar retained by a sportsbook. For example, if the handle on a particular game is $1,000 and a sportsbook has $100 left over after paying out winning bets, it’s hold was 10%.

“And then you mentioned hold rate, we are obviously continuing to monitor. But so far, we have seen really benefit or hurting no real material relationship between hold rate and handle. So we’ve been cautious,” he said at the conference. “We have not assumed that we’re going to accelerate handle as we continue to move up that mix, but I don’t think that we have a reason to think it’s going to fall off dramatically either from anything that we’ve seen.”

Robins didn’t get into particulars about DraftKings’ first-quarter results, but he noted things appear to be trending better compared to the fourth quarter. He added the early innings of 2025 are “off to a fantastic start” helped by a “really a successful Super Bowl.” When the gaming company reported fourth-quarter results in February, it lifted its 2025 revenue guidance while reaffirming an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) estimate of $900 million to $1 billion.

How Doncic Trade Could Be Affecting NBA Handle

There are multiple ways in which the Lakers acquiring Doncic could be boosting NBA handle with one of the obvious being the team making frequent appearances on ESPN and TNT national broadcasts. Data indicate there are correlations between television ratings for various sports and betting volumes.

As for the NBA’s much maligned ratings, those marks are improving and Doncic’s move to one of the league’s marquee teams and its second-largest media market could be one reason why. Robins noted that putting the 2024 presidential election in the rear view mirror could also be a help to NBA TV ratings.

Though he didn’t mention this in specific regard to Doncic, the DraftKings chief executive officer noted the player-focused nature of the NBA is conducive to more same-game parlay action. It’s possible that with Doncic on a higher profile team that’s often at the center of the NBA zeitgeist, more bettors are including him in their same-game parlays or betting on his game props.