Milwaukee Bucks vs. Toronto Raptors Spread: NBA Odds, Prediction
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Charlie Grant
The Raptors get back to business in their pursuit of a franchise, single-season record for most wins and the top spot in the Eastern Conference playoff seeding after an eight-day All-Star break. Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks are hoping to snap their five-game losing streak to the Raptors.
NBA Point Spread and Betting Analysis
The Bucks entered the All-Star break on a sour note after they gave up 134 points to the Denver Nuggets in a nine-point loss on their home floor. Milwaukee had won seven of its last nine games before the setback. The club is 32-25 straight up and 24-28-5 against the spread on the year.
Milwaukee has been a rollercoaster for total bettors this season. The over went 14-1-1 during a 16-game stretch for the Bucks beginning last November and the under went 15-2 in their games for most of January and February.
Toronto carries a seven-game winning streak and a 9-1 mark over its last 10 games into Friday’s matchup. The Raptors are 41-16 SU overall and 24-4 at home. They’re 32-25 ATS this season with covers in six of their last seven outings.
The Dinos needed overtime to defeat the Bucks the last time the two sides met up at the ACC. Toronto is still 5-0 SU and 4-1 ATS against Milwaukee in the last five meetings between the two clubs.
Milwaukee Bucks
You can’t talk about the Bucks without mentioning Antetokounmpo. The player affectionately referred to as the “Greek Freak” is second in the league in scoring and leads his team in points (27.8), rebounds (10.8) and assists (4.8) per game. Milwaukee is trying to work back Jabari Parker into the rotation. The former Duke Blue Devil was averaging over 20 points per game a year ago before a knee injury ended his season and kept him on the shelf for the first four months of this year.
The Bucks are missing two of their key contributors at point guard. Starter Eric Bledsoe is healthy but his primary backups, Matthew Dellavedova and Malcom Brogdon, are both out indefinitely with injuries.
Toronto Raptors
Toronto’s backup point guard options are in much better shape than its Friday opposition. Delon Wright and Fred VanVleet form a big part of the Raptors’ league-leading bench unit. Both play excellent defense and VanVleet is making nearly 42 percent of his tries from distance.
