The Toronto Raptors (13-14) visit the Barclays Center to play the Brooklyn Nets (19-8) Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. ET. Below, we look at the Raptors vs. Nets odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions, and bets.
Toronto hammered the Sacramento Kings last night (Monday) for its second straight victory. The Raptors are 4-2 straight-up (SU), 4-2 ATS and 2-4 O/U with the eighth-best non-garbage time efficiency differential over the past two weeks, according to CleaningTheGlass.com (CTG).
Brooklyn has also won two consecutive games with the latest coming on the road, 116-104, vs. the Detroit Pistons Sunday. In the last 14 days, the Nets are 5-2 SU, 3-4 ATS and 2-5 O/U with the 15th-ranked non-garbage time efficiency differential per CTG.
The Nets handled business in a 116-103 victory over the Raptors Nov. 7 in their first meeting of the season, and the Over cashed on a 211-point total. Kevin Durant scored a game-high 31 points on 57.9% shooting with 7 rebounds and 7 assists.
Also see: Bet Slippin’ Podcast: NBA December 14 breakdown
Raptors at Nets odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 1:50 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Raptors +175 (bet $100 to win $175) | Nets -220 (bet $220 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Raptors +5.5 (-112) | Nets -5.5 (-108)
- Over/Under (O/U): 215.5 (O: -107 | U: -115)
PLAY: Free, daily sports pick’em contests. Play now!
Raptors at Nets key injuries
Raptors
- C Precious Achiuwa (health and safety protocols) out
- F OG Anunoby (hip) out
- C Khem Birch (knee) out
Nets
- SF Kevin Durant (ankle) questionable
- C LaMarcus Aldridge (illness) out
- SG Joe Harris (ankle) out
- PF Paul Millsap (health and safety protocols) out
Raptors at Nets odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Nets 110, Raptors 105
Money line
PASS since Brooklyn is obviously the right side, but I wouldn’t lay it with the Nets (-220) or pay that steep of a price for any NBA regular-season favorite for that matter.
Also, I only “lean” to Toronto plus the points and don’t like the Raptors enough in this spot to “sprinkle” on their money line.
Against the spread
“LEAN” to the RAPTORS +5.5 (-112) because I envision this game being a defensive battle (more on that below), and Toronto is the second-best spread differential on the road this year (plus-7.0 ATS margin).
Also, over the past two weeks, the Raptors have stepped up their defense: Toronto ranks third in points per 100 possessions allowed in competitive times during that span (CTG). And Brooklyn has struggled to take care of business vs. elite defenses.
For instance, the Nets are 3-6 SU with a minus-5.3 points efficiency differential and the worst spread differential in the NBA (minus-8.3) vs. teams in the top-10 of defensive efficiency, per CTG.
However, I can only “LEAN” to the RAPTORS +5.5 (-112) because of their lengthy injury report, and Anunoby was the only Toronto player that played good defense vs. KD in the first Raptors-Nets meeting this season.
Over/Under
BET UNDER 215.5 (-110) for 1 unit, because not only has Toronto played better defense recently, but Brooklyn’s defense is very underrated.
In fact, the Nets are seventh in non-garbage time defensive rating (CTG) and have the best defensive effective field goal shooting (eFG%) in the NBA.
On the other hand, the Raptors have the fifth-worst eFG%, are 25th in 3-point attempt rate and have the third-worst offensive FT/FGA rate.
Furthermore, both teams attempt a high volume of mid-range jumpers, but both teams are in the top-10 of defensive shooting percentage vs. mid-range field goals. Plus Brooklyn plays the highest volume of iso-ball, and Toronto has the second-best defensive efficiency vs. isolation offense.
If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW. Please gamble responsibly.
Follow Geoff Clark on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Additional NBA sports coverage:
HoopsHype | Celtics Wire | LeBron Wire | Lonzo Wire | Nets Wire | Rockets Wire | Sixers Wire | Thunder Wire | Warriors Wire | Rookie Wire | List Wire
Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA).
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1622]