Subscribe
Follow Us
The NBA continues on Tuesday night with an elite Eastern Conference matchup! It's time to continue our NBA odds series with a Hornets-Raptors prediction and pick.
The Charlotte Hornets are 26-21 on the season which is good for 7th in the East standings. They are coming off a bad loss to the Atlanta Hawks last time out 113-91. No one on the Hornets reached 20 points while only four scored in double figures. That was one of their worst offensive games of the season if not the worst. The Toronto Raptors are 22-22 which is good for 9th in the East. They are coming off a bad loss as well to the Portland Trail Blazers 114-105. Pascal Siakam scored 28 in the loss but that is a good sign that he is starting to get back into his rhythm.
Here are the Hornets-Raptors NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Hornets-Raptors Odds
Charlotte Hornets: +3.5 (-110)
Toronto Raptors: -3.5 (-110)
Over: 223 (-110)
Under: 223 (-110)
*Watch NBA Games LIVE with fuboTV (click for free trial)
Why The Hornets Could Cover The Spread
Article Continues Below
Charlotte will be without Gordon Hayward and Jalen McDaniels as they both are out with foot injuries. Those two are major factors in their success this season and so they will need to find a way to win without them. They played horribly with Hayward out of the starting lineup last time out, so there will need to be adjustments if they want to get past the Raptors. If the Hornets want to cover this spread, they need to control the paint. We all know their success comes from beyond the arc. Charlotte is fourth in the NBA in three-point percentage at 36.7%. They trail the Atlanta Hawks, Miami Heat, and Chicago Bulls. That right there tells you how stacked and competitive the Eastern Conference has been this season.
The reason why the Hornets need to control the pain is because the Raptors don't utilize a starting center right now. They start two forwards and three guards right now and try and play small. The Hornets aren't known for much height either so this will be a good time to finally be able to control the boards and the paint. If they are able to do that, along with their three-pointers, then the Hornets will cover this spread. They need to quickly move on from what could be their worst loss of the season.
Click here for our Risk Free $1000 Bet!
*To claim, new users need to register, make a first deposit, and then simply place their first real-money wager on FanDuel Sportsbook up to $1000! If a user loses their first wager, we’ll refund their loses in the form of a free-bet up to $1000!*
Why The Raptors Could Cover The Spread
The Raptors need to cover this spread on the defensive end. They must control the paint as well because they don't have much length to them. Chris Boucher is really their tallest player at 6-foot-9 but he usually comes off the bench as he's started only seven games this season. The guards on the Raptors will need to match up to the size of the Hornets and defend as well as they can. They can not let them beat them with three-pointers because if the Hornets get hot, there is zero chance of stopping them. They just have too many talented shooters which could really hurt the Raptors.
The Raptors are 5-5 in their last 10 games while Charlotte is 7-3. Toronto enters this game 14-13 against the East while Charlotte is 17-11 against the East. The Hornets seem to be the better team right now but that doesn't always tell the whole story before a game. Both teams are coming off bad losses to bad teams so this will be a good tester to see who is really able to get back on track.
Final Hornets-Raptors Prediction & Pick
The Hornets are one of the better teams against the spread all season. They are 29-18 while Toronto is 23-20-1, which also isn't bad. This is not an easy choice but because of the injuries to Charlotte, I'm taking the Raptors to cover this spread at home. They are just 12-12 at home this year and I think they will get the job done and improve to over .500.
Final Hornets-Raptors Prediction & Pick: Raptors -3.5 (-110)
