Cavaliers vs. Raptors NBA Odds, Preview and Pick (Archive)
The Cleveland Cavaliers are one game ahead of the Toronto Raptors for 6th place in the East. After a hot start, the Cavaliers have been falling in the standings, while the Raptors have been charging up the standings. Can the Cavaliers hold on to their spot and get a win in Toronto? Which team is the right NBA pick?
Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Toronto Raptors
Thursday, March 24, 2022 – 07:30 PM EDT at Scotiabank Arena
Cleveland Cavaliers
After a hot start to the year, injuries have hit, and the Cleveland Cavaliers have slowed down. The Cavaliers are 5-5 over the last 10 games. That's not bad, but that's not going to cut it in an Eastern Conference that is much better than it has been in the last few years. The Cavaliers are missing Jarrett Allen and trying to hold their place in the standings before the All-Star center returns.
The Cavaliers have turned their team around by improving their defense. The Cavaliers are currently third in the league in points against at 104.6. The Cavaliers have excellent rim protection with Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley patrolling the paint. Currently, most of that burden falls to Mobley. Mobley is just a rookie but he is playing excellently. Can he keep it up against a long, athletic Raptors team?
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Cleveland is coming off a disappointing game, a 131-120 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Cavaliers badly wanted to beat LeBron James, but once again he was able to defeat his old team. Darius Garland had 29 points and 17 assists in the loss.
Garland has been spectacular this year and they will be reliant on him to continue to play at a high level while they navigate the end of the season. Garland has been a key piece to the Cavaliers' resurgence, and they will need a good performance from him against the Raptors' stingy defense tonight.
Toronto Raptors
The Toronto Raptors are 3-2 in their last five and 6-4 in their last 10 games. The Raptors are 17-16 at home this year. In a funny turn of events, the Raptors are 10-4 in games played without fans. They are 7-12 in games with fans in the arena. Scotiabank Arena will be at full capacity with fans tonight.
The Raptors are hoping tonight will be the night that OG Anunoby returns. Anunoby gives the Raptors three excellent forward options and makes their defense so much stronger. The Raptors were on a tear when Anunoby was in the lineup, and have fallen back to average without him.
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The Raptors hope that the return of OG Anunoby can spark another win streak. The Raptors missed an opportunity to move up the standings on Monday night when they lost 113-99 to the Chicago Bulls.
Pascal Siakam led the charge with 22 points and Fred VanVleet chipped in 19 points but it was not enough to overcome former Raptor great, DeMar DeRozan and the Bulls. The Raptors would love to get back on track tonight in another rivalry NBA game with playoff implications.
Key Matchup
Fred VanVleet vs. Darius Garland
With all the injuries, the Cavaliers went from a nice balanced offense to being very reliant on Darius Garland's production. Garland has been up to the task so far and has been putting up big numbers every night. He will face a tough test, however, as Fred VanVleet is an excellent defender.
The Raptors also have multiple lengthy forwards, so Garland will not be able to choose easy targets through switches in the pick-and-roll. However, Garland is talented enough to beat the best defenders.
If Garland can have his way against VanVleet and the Raptors forwards, the Cavaliers have a great chance to get the road victory. If VanVleet is able to shut down Darius Garland, the Cavaliers will have problems keeping pace with the Raptors tonight.
Best Bet
I like to the Raptors to get it done against the short number at home. Unfortunately, the Cavaliers aren't as good without Jarrett Allen. Hopefully, the Cavaliers can get healthy before the playoffs start and show the best version of their team.
Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, we will not see the best version of that team tonight. Cleveland will not be able to keep pace with the hard-charging, athletic, defensive-minded Raptors. The Raptors will finally give their home fans something to cheer about. Toronto Raptors - 3.5 is favored at the NBA odds board. Here is today's best play.
NBA Pick: Toronto Raptors - 3.5 (-110) with Bovada (visit our Bovada Review)
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