Philadelphia 76ers at Toronto Raptors Betting Preview
Thursday night will feature an Eastern Conference battle of the fourth and fifth seeds as the Philadelphia 76ers (49-30) square off with the Toronto Raptors (46-33). The Raptors will host this one at Scotiabank Arena, with tipoff scheduled for 7:30 pm ET.
The 76ers have been playing well as of late, winning six of ten and three in a row entering play Thursday. In their last game, on Tuesday, they took down the Indiana Pacers 131-122 on the road.
In the win, Joel Embiid had a game-high 45 points to go along with 13 rebounds. Tyrese Maxey added 30 points, while James Harden had a double-double with 11 points and 14 assists.
The Raptors have also played well, winning seven of their last ten. On Tuesday, they beat Atlanta 118 to 108 at home.
Pascal Siakam had a game-high 31 points in addition to 13 rebounds and six assists. Scottie Barnes was also solid with 19 points and 14 rebounds.
The Raptors are slight favorites playing at home. They are -120 to win while the 76ers’ moneyline sits at +102. The spread features Philadelphia +1.5 (-110), and the over/under for total points is 216.
By The Numbers
These two teams are neck-and-neck offensively. The 76ers rank 19th in the league in scoring, averaging 109.5 points per game. The Raptors rank 20th averaging 109.4 points.
Defensively, it is Toronto that just edges out Philadelphia. They rank seventh in scoring defense allowing opponents an average of 106.9 points per game. The 76ers rank eighth allowing 107 points.
Shorthanded Raptors Try To Move Up In The East
Due to Canada’s COVID-19 protocols, unvaccinated players are unable to play in games in Toronto. As the playoffs approach, this has been a source of contention as playoff teams have to deal with the ramifications of being short-handed if players are unvaccinated.
On Thursday, that will come to fruition for the 76ers. While they are not outright disclosing those that are unvaccinated, Matisse Thybulle has already been deemed “ineligible” to play.
Still, the 76ers are led by Joel Embiid, who has the second-best odds of winning this year’s MVP at +200. He is averaging 30.4 points, 11.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.1 steals, and 1.5 blocks per game.
James Harden has also been solid since being acquired at the deadline. In 19 games, he is averaging 21.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 10.1 assists, and 1.4 steals.
Raptors Trying To Hold Off Bulls
Sitting three games back of Philadelphia with three to play, the Raptors are mostly worried about not moving down in the seeding as the regular season concludes. They currently sit just a game ahead of the Bulls for the fifth seed entering play Thursday.
Leading the Raptors this season is power forward Pascal Siakam. In 66 games, he is averaging 22.5 points, 8.5 rebounds, 5.2 assists, and 1.2 steals.
Other major contributors for the Raptors include Fred VanVleet (20.3 points, 4.4 rebounds, 6.7 assists), Gary Trent Jr (18.1 points, 2.7 rebounds, two assists, 1.8 steals), OG Anunoby (17.3 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.5 steals), and Scottie Barnes (15.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists).
Anunoby is actually listed as questionable for this game as he is dealing with a thigh injury.
Take Toronto To Win
The 76ers have a lot to play for as they could conceivably move up in the standings all the way to the second seed with a good last week.
However, the trends do not favor Philadelphia in this one. They are 1-4 ATS in their last five games in Toronto, 1-5 ATS in their last six road games overall, and they are just 3-17 straight up in their last 20 games against the Raptors in Toronto.
Undoubtedly, they have one of the best players in the league in Joel Embiid, but it still might not be able to take down the Raptors, especially without one of their best defensive players in Matisse Thybulle.
For that reason, take Toronto to win this one straight up (-120).
