Game 1 Predictions & Odds: Nets vs. Raptors


  • August 16, 2020
  • By Michael Crosson
  • VegasInsider.com

One of the most anticipated NBA Playoff seasons of all-time will kick off on Monday in Orlando, Florida as 16 teams square off in the NBA Bubble. In the second Eastern Conference matchup on Monday's slate, the No. 2 seeded Toronto Raptors will start their title defense against the No. 7 Brooklyn Nets in Game 1 of their opening series.

Betting Resources

Betting Odds - Nets vs. Raptors

With no Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant in the bubble, there is no doubt the Nets are longshots coming into this series, opening as 10.5-point underdogs in their opening matchup, and +1800 series underdogs against Toronto. Most books have shifted the line down to -9.5 for the Raptors, indicating some early action from the public in favor of Brooklyn in the first game of this Eastern Conference Round 1 matchup.

The total (over-under) for this contest opened at 224 points, but the public has leaned towards the under in this game, expecting a spike in defensive effort across the league in the first round of the playoffs, bringing the line down to 222.

Point-Spread Odds

  • Raptors -9.5
  • Nets +9.5

Money-Line Odds

  • Raptors -500 (Bet $100 to win $20)
  • Nets +400 (Bet $100 to win $400)

Total Odds

  • Over 222
  • Under 222

Series Odds

  • Raptors -8000
  • Nets +1800

Inside the Betting Stats

(Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS)

Overall

  • Brooklyn: 35-37 SU, 37-35 ATS
  • Toronto: 53-19 SU, 40-29-3

Bubble

  • Brooklyn: 5-3 SU, 6-2 ATS
  • Toronto: 7-1 SU, 6-2 ATS

With Devin Booker and the Suns going undefeated in the bubble, the Nets success in the bubble has been somehow overshadowed, Brooklyn sneaking off to a 5-3 start in Orlando, including wins over the Bucks and Clippers, and a 6-1 record ATS in their last seven games.

Dating back to March 3rd of this year, the Raptors are 11-1 in their last 12 games SU and are 7-1 ATS inside the bubble. The under is 5-2-1 for the Raptors in Disney’s Wide World of Sports, and I believe that trend is something to keep an eye on throughout these playoffs, as the Raptors have ranked 1st in defensive rating in the NBA reseeding games (102.7).

Brooklyn, on the other hand, has ran at the 8th fastest pace out of the 22 teams in the bubble (103.25), ranking right behind the Pelicans (7th – 103.57) who typically run at an incredibly fast pace.

Over-Under Total Notes

Totals Report

Overall

  • Brooklyn: 36-36 O/U
  • Toronto: 38-39-3 O/U

Bubble

  • Brooklyn: O/U
  • Toronto: 2-5-1 O/U

So far in Orlando, the Nets have run at a faster pace than they typically run at, and the Raptors have run at a slower pace than they typically run at, making this OU a tough play. In Brooklyn and Toronto’s previous four meetings this season, the OU has split 2-2.

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Toronto has played tremendous defense inside the bubble, and if the Nets are unable to hit a large volume of perimeter shots, this game could get ugly quick, making it a weird one for volume statistics.

The total OU for the games in this series aren’t intriguing to me until I see how efficient the Nets offense can be against Toronto playing full-throttle, playoff defense.

Brooklyn Under 106.5 total points is an intriguing line, but I’d stay away from game totals in this series for at least one game.

Nets vs. Raptors Head-to-Head

2019-20 Regular Season

December 14, 2019: Toronto 110, Brooklyn 102
January 4, 2020: Toronto 121, Brooklyn 102
February 8, 2020: Toronto 119, Brooklyn 118
February 12, 2020: Brooklyn 101, Toronto 91

The Nets have squared off with Toronto 4 times this season, and in those contests the Nets have gone 1-3, covering a 9.5 point spread twice. Without Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn has really struggled to get things going offensively against the Raptors, averaging just 105.8 ppg in matchups with Toronto this season.

Brooklyn has been the beneficiaries to key players taking precautionary measures with their health and minutes thus far, recording a 5-3 record in Orlando, but that mentality goes out the window on Monday in the first round of the playoffs as I expect the Nets to struggle on offense similarly to how they did against the Raptors for the majority of their contests this season.

Toronto looked like the best team in the bubble, aside from their 122-100 loss to the Celtics a little over a week ago, and will look to make it 8-1 in Orlando, and 4-1 against Brooklyn this year in their tilt on Monday afternoon.

Caris LeVert has been great for the Nets inside the bubble, tying a season-high 37 points in his most recent game against Portland, only to be matched with his 37-point outing in the Nets heartbreaking 118-117 loss in Toronto. LeVert has scored 20+ points in 4 out of the 5 games inside the bubble when he has received a full slate of minutes. Look for LeVert to go over his total points line as the Nets will most likely look to their scoring-guards to try to keep up with this high-powered Toronto team.

Key Injuries

Brooklyn

  • Jamal Crawford: Hamstring – Out

Toronto

  • OG Anunoby: Knee – Game Time Decision (GTD)
  • Serge Ibaka: Knee – GTD

Jamal Crawford

will miss Monday’s game 1 contest against Toronto on Monday, which doesn’t mean a ton in the grand scheme of things, considering he contributes just 5 points and 3 assists per game off the bench for Brooklyn, but it does mean there is one less guard in the rotation for an already shallow Nets backcourt, adding to Dinwiddie and LeVert’s upside in volume for props.

OG Anunoby and Serge Ibaka both sat out with knee injuries during the Raptor’s victory over the Nuggets in their final seeding game in the bubble. Both guys are expected to be ready to go for th

e Raptors game 1 tilt with the Nets on Monday, but are still worth keeping an eye on throughout the day as they are listed as game-time decisions for the contest.

Game 1 Best Bet Pick

The Raptors came onto the scene in the bubble looking untouchable, then showed a glimpse of vulnerability against the Celtics, but ultimately rolled to a 7-1 ATS finish in the NBA reseeding games.

Toronto has impressed me in so many positive ways that I never thought they would this year after the loss of Kawhi Leonard, and I think they will cruise in this series. Since January 8th, Toronto is 28-5 SU, and enters this series against Brooklyn as a -8000 favorite for many reasons.

I expect the Raptors to assert their dominance in the opener of this series on Monday, and cruise to their 8th cover in their last nine games against LeVert and company.

Prediction: Raptors 116, Nets 102