Raptors vs. Nets Prediction: NBA Odds, Point Spread
It’s the front end of back-to-back games for the Toronto Raptors on Friday, as they visit the star-studded Brooklyn Nets, who should be solid favourites on the NBA odds.
NBA Point Spread and Betting Analysis
Friday is the only scheduled meeting of the first half between Toronto and Brooklyn and, if everyone is healthy, will thus be the Dinos’ first look at the Nets’ new super trio of Kevin Durant, James Harden and Kyrie Irving. It might be the most offensively lethal trio in league history, and the Nets in fact have been historically good in terms of offensive efficiency rating since acquiring Harden from Houston, but they’ve also been historically bad in terms of defensive efficiency rating.
The Harden deal did jump the Nets past the Milwaukee Bucks as the favourites to win the Eastern Conference. The Nets have yet to win an NBA title; they did reach two straight NBA Finals in the early 2000s while in New Jersey but were largely dominated by the Lakers and Spurs for a championship.
These clubs met in the first round of the bubble playoffs back in August, but the Nets were a very, very different team then without KD, Harden or Irving and were swept. Three of the five Nets who started that Game 4 are now with other teams. Toronto was 3-1 against Brooklyn in the 2019-20 regular season.
The Raptors are 8-2 in the past 10 regular-season meetings and the clubs have split those against the spread.
Toronto Raptors
The Dinos easily could have lost in a trap game in Orlando on Tuesday but instead they routed the short-handed Magic 123-108 to sweep the two-game home-and-home series in Florida. Fred VanVleet had the game of his life with a career-high 54 points. That set a record for the most points in a single game by an undrafted NBA player in the common draft era (since 1966). The mark had previously been set at 53 points by Hall of Famer Moses Malone in 1982. It’s a bit misleading to call Malone undrafted, however, as he was picked in the ABA Draft right out of high school and started his career in that league. The 54 points were also a Raptors single-game record and VanVleet now is the only undrafted player to ever hold a franchise’s single-game scoring record. VanVleet drained a career-best 11 three-pointers, too. Every team in the 2016 NBA Draft passed on him at least once. The Raptors picked Jakob Poeltl at No. 9 that year and Pascal Siakam in an utter steal at No. 27 overall.
Kyle Lowry had his first triple-double of the season Tuesday with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists. OG Anunoby missed his fourth game in a row with a left calf strain and is very much in doubt Friday. Norman Powell played after missing the previous two games with a quad injury and had 23 points. Toronto is 6-4 ATS in its past 10 games as a road underdog, as they will be here.
Brooklyn Nets
Brooklyn hosted the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday in a potential NBA Finals preview and won a terrific game 124-120 – and those 124 points were actually the Nets’ fewest in four games. Irving had a season-high 39 points, Durant had 28 points and nine rebounds, and Harden finished with a triple-double of 23 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds. Harden became the eighth player in NBA history to reach 50 career triple-doubles. Whom do you stop on this team?
First-year coach and Canadian basketball legend Steve Nash, always keeps at least one of that trio on the floor and usually two (in terms of rest, if it’s not a blowout, etc.). Brooklyn leads the NBA in scoring (122.3 points per game) and field goal percentage (50.1). The Nets are 4-6 ATS in their past 10 as home favourites.
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