The Toronto Raptors will cross the border to play the Brooklyn Nets on Friday night at the Barclays Center. With that said, now is a good time to look at our NBA oddsseries, which is presented below and includes a prediction and choice for the Raptors vs. Nets.
Toronto defeated Cleveland in their opening game, 108-105, by the slimmest of margins. Toronto just finished fifth in the Eastern Conference after posting a 48-34 record. The Raptors were defeated by Philadelphia in the first round of the playoffs after six games.
Due to the Kyrie Irving vaccine controversy in New York City, Brooklyn had a difficult season. Despite all of that, the squad managed to finish 44-38, but Boston swept them out of the playoffs in the first round. The team’s opening game against New Orleans ended in a crushing defeat, 130-108.
NBA odds for Raptors vs. Nets, provided by FanDuel
NBA Odds: Raptors-Nets Odds
Raptors of Toronto: +3 (-110)
New York Knicks: -3 (-110)
Over: 227 (-110) (-110)
Under: 227 (-110)
Why The Raptors Could Cover The Spread
Pascal Siakam had a double-double in the opening game with 23 points and 11 rebounds in addition to three steals. With seven assists, fifteen points, three rebounds, and two steals, Scottie Barnes led the team. With four steals to go along with five assists and fifteen points, Fred VanVleet was the team’s leader. Gary Trent, Jr. scored 19 points, the second-highest total for the squad, on an astounding 50% of his three-point attempts.
Teamwide, Toronto had a remarkable 3-point shooting percentage of 43%. Along with eighteen points, OG Anunoby also contributed seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Precious Achiuwa finished with ten points and five rebounds in just eighteen minutes. Together, Toronto grabbed 41 rebounds, including 12 offensive rebounds. The team’s tally of fifteen steals in the opening was very noteworthy. Brooklyn’s propensity for sloppily playing basketball benefits from Toronto’s defense’s aggressive style.
Why The Nets Could Cover The Spread
For the first time in a regular season game, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Ben Simmons were all in the same uniform. You succeeded, Nets supporters! Irving played in just 29 games last season, so Durant and Irving hardly ever shared the court. Although he was only available for 55 games last season, Durant led the team with an amazing 29.9 points per game. Durant led Brooklyn in the first game with 32 points, four blocks, three rebounds, and four assists in 32 minutes. Irving scored fifteen points on a terrible 32 percent of his shots. In addition, Irving recorded two steals and five assists.
Given the quality surrounding him, it was expected that Simmons would only score four points, but he did dish out five assists and grab five rebounds before fouling out. Simmons had a terrible floor rating of -26. Nic Claxton scored thirteen points, grabbed ten rebounds, had two blocks, and stole a pass for a double-double. Royce O’Neal led the squad with three steals, grabbed seven rebounds, and scored ten points. Only 39 rebounds, including nine on the offensive glass, were collected by Brooklyn. The team’s impressive tally of ten steals and ten blocks indicates that their defence should be effective this year.
Final Raptors-Nets Prediction & Pick
Expect Brooklyn to recover in this one. This group is simply too good to struggle during the regular season, even if Steve Nash is not the right choice for head coach.
Last-minute pick for the Raptors-Nets game: Brooklyn -3 (-110), over 227. (-110)
Raptors vs. Nets prediction, odds, and selection for the NBA game on October 21st, 2022 first posted on ClutchPoints.