Philadelphia 76ers vs. Toronto Raptors Prediction, NBA Odds
The NBA odds will depend on whether the teams rest players.
76ers vs. Raptors NBA Betting Odds
Were the NBA’s Eastern Conference playoffs to start today, the 76ers would be the No. 4 seed and the Raptors the No. 5, and they would face off in Round 1. Toronto isn’t getting higher than the No. 5 but also not lower than the No. 6. Philadelphia isn’t finishing lower than fourth but could rise as high as second.
Thursday concludes the regular-season series with Toronto leading 2-1. The Dinos won the most recent matchup 93-88 in Philly on March 20 in an upset. James Harden missed two costly free throws and a layup late, and Joel Embiid had a turnover in the final seconds. Fred VanVleet was out and has played in one of the three in the series. Pascal Siakam has played in two and is averaging 27.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 6.5 assists. MVP candidate Embiid has played in two and is averaging 28.5 points and 12.0 rebounds.
Toronto is 6-4 in the past 10 regular-season meetings and 6-4 against the spread.
Philadelphia 76ers
This is not part of a back-to-back for the Sixers (last regular-season road game) and because they can improve their seeding, they should play all their starters assuming healthy. There are also individual goals for Joel Embiid in terms of winning his first MVP (probably going to Denver’s Nikola Jokic again) and his first scoring title (he leads at 30.4 ppg). Embiid comes off a monster 45-point effort vs. the Pacers on Tuesday to pass LeBron James for the scoring lead – and LeBron isn’t playing the rest of the season. It’s not clear if anyone on the Sixers is unvaccinated for COVID, and if so that person(s) would not play Thursday. That could give us a hint about potential availability in Toronto if the teams do meet in the first round of the playoffs.
Toronto Raptors
Nick Nurse plays his starters more minutes than any other coach in the NBA. It really makes little sense to play them much if at all here as there’s not much difference in finishing fifth or sixth in the East, and the Dinos play again Friday in their regular-season home finale vs. Houston. Maybe Nurse chooses to try and win this one and then gives all his key players Friday off because the Rockets are terrible. Tuesday’s 118-108 home win over the Hawks officially clinched a playoff spot. Pascal Siakam had 31 points and 13 rebounds, and Scottie Barnes made the NBA Rookie of the Year race that much closer with 19 points and 14 rebounds. OG Anunoby was out injured again, and we surely won’t see him until the post-season.
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