The Toronto Raptors' wayward season continues tonight, as they attempt to keep their recent upswing intact against the visiting Brooklyn Nets.
Of course, this is technically a road game for both teams, since the Raptors are playing roughly 1,336 miles away from Scotiabank Arena. And while both the human condition and long-term NBA strategy would lean toward the Raptors packing in this bizarre trip of an NBA campaign, they're still battling for a play-in spot.
Find out if they have the better end of this NBA betting matchup with our Nets vs. Raptors picks and predictions for Tuesday, April 27.
Nets vs Raptors odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
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NBA sharp money and line movement report
By Patrick EversonAs of 5 p.m. ET, Brooklyn is down to a 5-point favorite at PointsBet USA, after opening -6.5 overnight. Still, the Nets are attracting 68 percent of bets and 59 percent of dollars on the spread. The total moved from 232.5 to 234, then receded to 231, with ticket count almost dead even and 74 percent of money on the Under.
Check out the full line movement for this game
Nets at Raptors betting preview
Injuries
Nets: James Harden G (Out), Chris Chiozza PG (Out), Nicolas Claxton C (Out), Bruce Brown SF (Questionable).
Raptors: Chris Boucher C (Out), Gary Trent Jr. SG (Questionable).
Find our latest NBA injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Over is 13-3 in the Nets' last 16 games as a road favorite. Find more NBA betting trends for Nets vs. Raptors.
Against the spread (ATS) pick
The Raptors refuse to die. Pushed to the brink of "you should tank" status by injuries, COVID, and the strange variance of playing their entire season on the road, Toronto has responded by winning five of its past six games, including a 114-103 victory over the Nets.
But those Nets didn't have a certain Kevin Durant in the lineup, which is a fairly large variable to consider, especially in terms of a matchup with the Raptors.
Durant's presence will force OG Anunoby and/or Pascal Siakam to work their tails off on defense as a near-impossible cover. The dual-threat of Durant and Kyrie Irving means less help potential (sagging off KD after Irving beats a defender, and vice versa, is a fatal error), while Durant is Brooklyn's most competent defender and exactly the type of long, tough-to-bypass obstacle that gives Siakam fits.
In Toronto's defense (literally), Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet are both very pesky deterrents who can share coverage on Irving. But containing one of the NBA's best one-on-one scorers is a relative term, and while the Raps didn't have to fight much to beat Cleveland 112-96 last night, it is still a back-to-back.
Ultimately, the Raptors seem primed for a letdown spot here. Yes, they're 5-1 ATS in their last six, but their schedule this month has been doughier than Lowry circa 2010. They're about to enter a nightmare stretch against (in order) Brooklyn, Denver, Utah, and both L.A. teams, and will be woefully underprepared based on the opposition they've faced in recent weeks, compounded by a drastic lack of short-term roster continuity.
The Raptors have some fight in them, but we're still taking the Nets to deliver a TKO.
PREDICTION: Brooklyn -6 (-110)
Over/Under pick
Having Durant back in the lineup changes everything for the Nets in terms of offensive output. They've averaged 127.8 ppg in their past 10 games with Durant, versus 113.7 across the same sample without him.
That means all the difference when handicapping a total like this. The Raptors are certainly a capable offensive team and, especially against a bad defense, can fill it up in a hurry. Both teams play at an above-average pace, and neither is the type of mismatch liability that will slow this game down or force the other side too far out of its comfort zone.
Simply put, unless Brooklyn suffers a horrible regression on offense, or turns this into a no-contest by the second half (both of which seem unlikely), then there should be relatively fast-paced scoring throughout this matchup.
It's tough to see Brooklyn both falling significantly short of 120 points and also winning this game by a comfortable margin, so we have to side with the Over.
PREDICTION: Over 232.5 (-110)
First-quarter prop pick
Brooklyn is the NBA's second-worst first-quarter ATS squad, at just 21-37-3 on the season. With or without Durant, the Nets have trailed after the first in seven of their past 10 games.
Sure, the Raptors played last night, but again, it wasn't a hard-fought game, and Toronto looked to be on cruise control after a third-quarter run that Cleveland never managed to battle back from.
The Raptors' starting lineup is still a talented unit, and we're willing to take them and the slim spread against a squad that starts out notoriously slow. If their legs get tired, it will likely be down the stretch in this one.
PREDICTION: Raptors 1Q +1.5 (-110)
Nets vs Raptors betting card
- Brooklyn -6 (-110)
- Over 232.5 (-110)
- Raptors 1Q +1.5 (-110)
Picks made on 4/27/2021 at 10:45 a.m. ET
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