Toronto Raptors vs. Cleveland Cavaliers Game 2 Prediction, NBA Playoff Odds
The Raptors get another crack at the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday as Toronto tries to level this first-round playoff series at one game apiece.
The Dinos failed to gain any momentum in Saturday’s Game 1, losing 126-113. Can Toronto head back to the Six with the series tied 1-1, or will the Cavs take a 2-0 lead?
Cleveland is an 8.5-point favourite to win on the NBA odds, with the total set at 222.5.
Raptors vs. Cavaliers NBA Betting Odds
The old saying is, you’re not out of a series until you lose at home. Well, that’s little solace to the Raptors as they were swept the last two times they played the Cavaliers in the playoffs (2017 and 2018), so going down 0-2 will likely ratchet the pressure way up.
Game 1 was an even more disappointing result given Toronto swept the regular season series this year. Of course, the teams hadn’t played since late November and this is a very different Cleveland squad since they acquired James Harden in February.
Oddsmakers don’t have much faith in the Raps as the updated series line has the Cavaliers as significant -900 favourites (-550 before Game 1), while Toronto is a +600 underdog (+400 pre-Game 1).
The favoured exact series result now sees Cleveland winning in five games +200. Unsurprisingly, the biggest long shot is the Raptors winning the next four games at a staggering +4500.
Toronto Raptors
RJ Barrett led the way for Toronto in Game 1, finishing with a team-high 24 points. Four other Raptors players finished with double-digit scoring figures, including Scottie Barnes (21 points), Brandon Ingram (17), Jamal Shead (17) and Collin Murray-Boyes (14). However, it wasn’t a pretty night from the biggest players as Barrett, Barnes and Ingram combined to for a minus-57 point differential.
One adjustment head coach Darko Rajakovic needs to make for Game 2 is getting Ingram more involved in the flow of the offence. The Raptors’ leading scorer during the regular season only managed nine field goal attempts on Saturday, including just one in the second half, despite playing a team-high 36 minutes.
Cleveland Cavaliers
It’s tough to see any negatives for Cleveland in Game 1 as they were led by a three-headed monster any team would struggle to contain. Donovan Mitchell starred with a game-high 32 points, while Max Strus had 24 and James Harden added 22. When all was said and done, the Cavaliers’ starters combined to finish plus-62, while the team as a whole shot 54.2 per cent from the field.
Cleveland continues to rely on the dangerous duo of Mitchell and Harden. They were easily the best players on the court in Game 1, combining to make 19 of 38 field goal attempts, eight of 14 attempts from three and eight of nine from the line. They also combined for four steals as the Cavaliers finished 17 turnovers.
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CLE