Toronto at San Antonio
Time: 8:30 ET
TV: NBA LP
Spread: SAS -7.5
Total: 203
Betting odds c/o Bovada
The San Antonio Spurs have got rolling at the right time. As winners of its past 5 SU, the Spurs will host the Toronto Raptors, losers of its last 3 SU. NBA oddsmakers at Bovada favored the Spurs by 7.5 points in NBA daily lines. The total for the game is set at 203. See our NBA odds explained to understand how to bet these lines.
The Spurs are a team that no team really wants to face in the postseason as the reigning champs and postseason juggernaut. This could be the first year the team has repeated as champion, although it has won four titles in 15 years and Tim Duncan is now putting the caps on his Hall of Fame career. Make no mistake though, Duncan is still a very effective NBA player, an All-Star. In 29.4 minutes a game, he’s posting 14.2 points, 9.5 rebounds and 2.9 blocks/steals per game. No Spur plays heavy minutes nor carries a particularly high usage rate, with team-leader Kawhi Leonard leading the way with 15.5 points per game.
Duncan posts the highest PER of any Spur at 21.7, a testament to how far above average he is even at age 38. Over his past 10 games, Duncan has rested more, seeing just 25 minutes per night and averaging 12.1 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. In the month of March he has struggled, shooting just 40 percent from the floor through three games, while averaging a modest 7.7 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. Duncan will be rested between now and the postseason, though the Spurs will do what is necessary to try to improve its seeding.
A current matchup against Memphis would not be insurmountable, but the Spurs may be better off facing No. 3 seeded Houston at this point. The Grizzlies are good at grinding it out and the Spurs may find its frontcourt to be tough in playoff basketball. There’s really no opponent Gregg Popovich fears, though, so maybe it is less relevant to San Antonio than to the average fan or analyst.
The Spurs continue to move the ball very well, ranking 6th in the NBA in assists per game with the 11th highest scoring offense. Defensively, the Spurs are a top-8 club, allowing 97.2 points per game. San Antonio defeated Chicago 116-105 on Sunday behind 32 points from point guard Tony Parker. Leonard added another 20 points, eight rebounds and three steals while posting a team-best +17. The Spurs improved to 23-7 at home this season and has won all three games of its homestand so far against Sacramento, Denver and the Bulls most recently.
The Spurs concluded a horrendous eight-game road trip with two victories against the Kings and Suns, but the trip featured four-straight losses to the Clippers, Warriors, Jazz and Trail Blazers. The Trail Blazers received a big blow losing starting 2-guard Wes Matthews for the remainder of the season, and the Spurs may look forward to a matchup with Portland if it can rise in the seedings. It’s unlikely, but at this point Portland is the team that Western foes want to draw most likely.
Toronto is coming off a 108-104 loss to the OKC Thunder on Sunday (Mar 8). One time All-Star, swingman DeMar DeRozan scored 24 points and dished nine assists, but it wasn’t enough to overcome one of Russell Westbrook’s monster (30 points, 17 assists, 11 rebounds) triple-doubles.
The Raptors fell to 17-14 on the road and have lost eight of its past nine games. The Raptors will go home to face Miami and Portland after this, and all three teams are fighting to improve its playoff seedings.
Toronto is currently No. 3 but is just one game behind No. 2 Cleveland and is only ahead of Chicago by fractions of a percentage with no game lead. The Washington Wizards are also just 2.5 games behind the Raptors and Bulls, so closing the season strong is imperative for Toronto. The Raptors are just 12-12 against the Western Conference while the Spurs have a 17-5 mark against Eastern Conference clubs.
