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The Toronto Raptors will travel across the border for a Friday night NBA matchup with the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our NBA odds series, which includes a Raptors-Nets prediction and pick, laid out below.
Toronto won their opening game by the thinnest of margins, defeating Cleveland in a 108-105 contest. Toronto is coming off a 48-34 season in which they finished fifth in the Eastern Conference. The Raptors lost to Philadelphia in six games in the opening round of the playoffs.
Brooklyn endured a rough season with the Kyrie Irving vaccine drama in New York City. Still, the team was able to overcome all that to finish with a 44-38 record but was swept out of the playoffs in the opening round by Boston. The team was blown out in their opener, losing 130-108 to New Orleans.
Here are the Raptors-Nets NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Raptors-Nets Odds
Toronto Raptors: +3 (-110)
Brooklyn Nets: -3 (-110)
Over: 227 (-110)
Under: 227 (-110)
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Why The Raptors Could Cover The Spread
Pascal Siakam put up impressive numbers in the opener, registering a double-double with 23 points and eleven rebounds, adding three steals. Scottie Barnes led the team with seven assists, adding fifteen points, three rebounds, and two steals. Fred VanVleet led the team with four steals, adding five assists and fifteen points. Gary Trent, Jr. shot an impressive 50 percent from the three-point range, scoring nineteen points, the second-highest total for the team.
Toronto as a team shot an impressive 43 percent from behind the arc. OG Anunoby added eighteen points with seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals. In just eighteen minutes, Precious Achiuwa scored ten points with five rebounds. Toronto hauled in 41 rebounds as a team, including twelve offensive rebounds. Most impressive in the opener, the team totaled fifteen steals. Brooklyn's tendency to play lackadaisical basketball plays right into the aggressive nature of Toronto's defense.
Why The Nets Could Cover The Spread
Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, and Ben Simmons finally suited up together for a regular season game. You have made it Nets fans! Durant and Irving hardly played together last season, with the latter appearing in just 29 games. Durant led the team with an impressive 29.9 points per game last season but was only available for 55 games. In the opener, Durant paced Brooklyn with 32 points and four blocks, adding three rebounds and four assists in 32 minutes. Irving put up fifteen points on an awful 32 percent shooting percentage. Irving also added five assists and two steals.
Simmons only scored four points, to be expected given the talent around him, but dished out five assists with five rebounds before fouling out. Simmons was an awful -26 when on the floor. Nic Claxton managed a double-double, scoring thirteen points with ten rebounds, adding two blocks and a steal. Royce O'Neal scored ten points while pulling down seven rebounds and leading the team with three steals. Brooklyn managed just 39 rebounds, including only nine on the offensive end. Impressively, the team totaled ten steals and ten blocks, suggesting that their defense should be strong this season.
Final Raptors-Nets Prediction & Pick
Look for Brooklyn to bounce back in this one. Even if Steve Nash is not the answer as head coach, this roster is simply too talented to fail in the regular season.
Final Raptors-Nets Prediction & Pick: Brooklyn -3 (-110), over 227 (-110)
