The Golden State Warriors have been money all season and that continued yesterday, as the reigning NBA Champions did the right thing by The Big Dog, cruising to a 74-60 halftime advantage before completing a 134-120 win. Friday only presents us with four games to choose from but there’s another “Play of the Day” to sink your teeth into, as the hottest team in the East travels to face a surprise Playoffs contender in the West.
Toronto Raptors @ Portland Trail Blazers
It seems odd to think that a team only 2.5 games away from the number one seed in the Eastern Conference could be road underdogs against the number eight seed in the Western Conference… but that appears to be how the bookmakers have assessed this match. Although the odds are not overwhelmingly in favour of the home side, there’s a consistent pattern of the Raptors being given an extra point, at the game line. Yes, the fact that this is Toronto’s third game on the road in four nights more than likely has something to do with it but even with the Trail Blazers playing at home and finding recent form against bad teams, they should not be favourites for this match. Portland comes into this match looking to extend their season-high winning streak to six games but to do so, they will have to beat a team with a winning record for the first time in over a month. Winning against good teams is something they have not been able to do with any great regularity (7-16) and there aren’t many teams better than the Raptors, on current form. Toronto are 9-1 from their last ten contests and 7-3 in recent road games, making them clearly the hottest team in the East. Their overall road record actually matches Portland’s home record (15-10). While the Trail Blazers have struggled against teams at .500 or better and are only 6-11 against Eastern Conference opponents, the Raptors are 17-7 against teams below .500 and a respectable 10-8 against the West. The backcourt battle of Lillard and McCollum versus Lowry and DeRozan is sure to provide plenty of highlights but the deciding factor in this game should be Toronto’s defence, which currently allows only 97.0 points per game (5th best in the NBA). The Big Dog expects this to be a reality-check game for the Trail Blazers, who are not a genuine playoff team.
Selection
Toronto Raptors @ $2.00 (William Hill)
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