Toronto Raptors (16-23) vs Portland Trail Blazers (19-19)
Game Info: Sunday, January 8, 2023 at 3:30 pm (Scotiabank Arena)
Betting Odds: Toronto Raptors -2.5 -- Over/Under: 227.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds
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The Portland Trail Blazers travel to the Scotiabank Arena to take on the Toronto Raptors on Sunday night in NBA action.
The Portland Trail Blazers have been in a rut as they’ve lost six of their last eight games and they will be hoping to snap a two-game skid after getting beaten by the Pacers in a 108-99 road loss on Friday. Anfernee Simons led the team with 20 points, Damian Lillard added 19 points with eight assists, Jusuf Nurkic scored 14 points with 19 rebounds while Josh Hart chipped in with 12 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists. As a team, the Trail Blazers shot just 40 percent from the field and nine of 33 from the 3-point line as they went back and forth with the Pacers in a tight contest until they went ice-cold and scored just two points in the final 6:39 to allow the Pacers to pull away in the end. Lillard had a rough night as he shot just seven of 24 from the field and the Trail Blazers committed 18 turnovers as a team.
Meanwhile, the Toronto Raptors have been in a major slump as they’ve lost 11 of their last 14 games overall and they will be hoping to put an end to a three-game skid after getting stopped by the Knicks in a 112-108 loss on Friday. Fred VanVleet led the team with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, Gary Trent Jr. added 27 points while Pascal Siakam chipped in with 18 points, 13 rebounds and five assists. As a team, the Raptors shot just 42 percent from the field and 10 of 29 from the 3-point line as they got off to another slow start and scored just 21 points in the second quarter to fall behind by 17 points which proved to be just enough in the end as the Raptors couldn’t make a run until it was too late.
Looking at the betting trends, the Trail Blazers are 0-6 ATS in their last six road games and 2-6 ATS in their last eight games overall. The Raptors are 1-7 ATS in their last eight home games, 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games following a loss and 1-5 ATS in their last six games overall.
Head to head, the over is 8-1 in the last nine meetings in Toronto, the Trail Blazers are 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings overall and the Trail Blazers are 4-0 ATS in the last four meetings in Toronto.
The Trail Blazers could be a little shorthanded here as Justise Winslow is still out while Jusuf Nurkic is listed as day to day. The Raptors just haven’t been able to get anything going this season and their confidence took another shot after falling to the Knicks in their last outing. The Trail Blazers are 0-6 ATS in their last six road games while the Raptors are only 1-7 ATS in their last eight home games, so something has got to give in this one. You couldn’t back either side with much confidence at the moment, but I just can’t swallow the Raptors as favorites against anyone right now, so I’ll take the Trail Blazers in this spot.
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Peter’s Pick Portland +2.5
AUTHOR: Peter Tran
Mitch's Take...
