Toronto Raptors at New Orleans Pelicans
Time: 8:05 PM ET
TV: NBA TV
Spread: TOR -7
Total: 196
Betting odds c/o Bovada
When it rains it pours, in New Orleans. The Pelicans lost Anthony Davis for up to two weeks ad Ryan Anderson is expected to miss two to four weeks. Jrue Holiday is still out another few weeks. And resultantly, the Pelicans enter this home matchup against the Toronto Raptors as 7-point underdogs in NBA live lines.
The total for the game is set at 196, and for an explanation of how to bet this, visit our NBA odds explained.
The injuries hit the Pelicans as it fights for its dear lives in the Western Conference playoff chase. New Orleans trails No. 8 Oklahoma City by 2.5 games and making up that ground is going to be tough without three of its top six players. Davis essentially is the Pelicans, and his presence will be sorely missed on both ends of the court.
Tyreke Evans has done a decent job filling in for Holiday at the point, but missing Anderson’s shooting is going to eliminate some much needed floor spacing from the offense. Even so, the Pelicans were able to pull out a 105-91 victory over Miami Saturday night, while losing Davis and Anderson in the contest.
These injuries could be just the thing to spur on shooting guard Eric Gordon. For one night at least, he looked like the stud he was with the L.A. Clippers before injuries had begun to derail his career in the Big Easy. Gordon scored 24 points on 7 of 18 shooting (six of his seven makes were triples) and also dished out six assists to go with his three boards.
Evans and Gordon have been splitting ball handling duties with Holiday sidelined, and though neither are point guards, the Pelicans had made do with the tandem in the backcourt. The disheartening thing for Pelican fans is that even once Davis, Anderson and Holiday return, the playoff berth will likely be out of reach by that time.
Toronto is 37-18 on the season and sits at first place in the Atlantic division. Toronto ranks 5th in the NBA in scoring (105.1 points per game) and is considered a true threat to take the Eastern Conference in the postseason. The Raptors are without Louis Williams and Patrick Patterson, but the team has enough depth to weather injuries to two second unit players.
Kyle Lowry is having his best season as a pro and was selected to start for the East in the All-Star game. His 19.8 PER is actually only third-best on the team, behind Jonas Valanciunas and Lou Williams. Valanciunas has emerged as one of the league’s most promising young big men, averaging 11.9 points, 8.6 rebound and 1.48 blocks/steals per game. The Raps are able to go nine deep on the bench to get quality production, and even with Williams and Patterson out, the Raps can call on James Johnson, Tyler Hansbrough and Greivis Vasquez respectively, to fill out the rotation.
The Raptors were riding a four-game win streak prior to Saturday night’s 98-76 loss to the Houston Rockets. Following this game, however, the Raptors face two of the toughest teams in the West in Dallas and Golden State. Given that the Raptors trail No. 1 seeded Atlanta by 6.5 games, this might not be a pressing concern. Holding off No. 3 Chicago is still very doable and the Raptors lead Derrick Rose and company by 2.5 games going into tonight’s affair.
