Suns vs. Raptors Point Spread: NBA Odds, Prediction
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Charlie Grant
The Toronto Raptors return home one night after being dissected by Kyrie Irving in Boston. A Thursday matchup against an NBA minnow might be a trap bet for Toronto backers. The Phoenix Suns are hoping to extend their crazy ATS run against Canada’s lone NBA franchise.
NBA Point Spread and Betting Analysis
On paper, this is one of the biggest mismatches possible in the Association. No team has won more games so far this season than the Raps’ 33 and no Western Conference club has won fewer games than Phoenix’s 11.
But the Suns, for whatever reason, seem to bring their A game when they play the Drakes. The squad is a perfect 11-0 against the spread in their last 11 contests against Toronto. Phoenix is also 5-0 ATS in its last five trips to north of the border and 20-6-1 ATS in its last 27 games against the Dinos.
There are some factors, besides the talent gap between the two clubs, going in the Raptors’ favour. Toronto is 7-1 against the number when playing on zero days’ rest this season. Only the Cleveland Cavaliers own a worse road record than the Suns.
The Raptors 7-2 straight up in their last nine games while Phoenix is just 2-8 SU in its last 10 games. The Suns are coming off a 34-point blowout loss to the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night, but they own wins over the Sacramento Kings and, more impressively, the Denver Nuggets in the last week and a half.
Phoenix Suns
The Suns are on their way to a ninth consecutive season in the NBA lottery. They’ve swung and missed on a number of prospects but they can build their team around their two hits. Combo guard Devin Booker is one of the NBA’s best operators in the pick ‘n’ roll. He leads the Suns in scoring (24.9 points per game) and assists (6.9 per game).
First year big man Deandre Ayton would be making more headlines if it weren’t for Luka Doncic’s All-Star level rookie season. Ayton, the No. 1 overall pick in last year’s NBA Draft, is averaging 16.6 points and 10.6 rebounds in 30.9 minutes per game.
Toronto Raptors
Toronto backers will want to pay close attention to the status of Kawhi Leonard before tonight’s tip off. The Raptors leading scorer has missed 10 games this season in rest spots, and the majority of those situations involving back-to-back games for the club.
Leonard played over 36 minutes in Wednesday night’s loss to the Boston Celtics and put up 33 points on 10-for-19 shooting from the field.
