Raptors vs. Clippers Odds
| Raptors Odds | +2.5 |
| Clippers Odds | -2.5 |
| Over/Under | 230 (-110/-110) |
| Time | 10 p.m. ET |
| TV | ESPN |
| Odds via FanDuel. Get up-to-the-minute NBA odds here. | |
The Toronto Raptors travel to Los Angeles to take on the Clippers after a tough loss to the Denver Nuggets Monday night. Both the Raptors and Clippers are locked into tight play-in races for their respective conferences.
Can the Raptors rally to compete against a motivated Clippers team? Let’s analyze how these teams match up with each other and find a betting prediction for Raptors vs. Clippers.
Toronto Raptors
The Raptors have gone 6-4 since acquiring Center Jakob Poetl from the San Antonio Spurs and are starting to build some momentum toward a postseason push. They are currently ninth in the East and just one half game back of the eighth spot, so every game matters.
They suffered a tough loss in Denver that saw Scottie Barnes get ejected late in the game for mouthing off to referee Scott Foster. It felt like a demoralizing loss so it will be interesting to see how much urgency they come out with here against this Clippers team.
The Raptors defense certainly matches up well with the Clippers offense as they have a number of physical wing-defenders capable of guarding Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Norman Powell. Many of those defenders are also familiar with Leonard's game after playing alongside him during their 2019 championship run.
The Raptors should be able to force some turnovers as they rank first in the NBA in turnover rate. The Clippers offense ranks 26th in turnover rate in the six games they’ve played since acquiring Russell Westbrook. Expect the Raptors to generate some easy transition opportunities off steals tonight.
Toronto’s defense excels at playing physical without fouling, ranking fifth in opponent Free Throw Rate allowed. This will be key as this Clippers have the fourth-highest Free Throw Rate in the NBA. Expect the Raptors defense to thrive in this matchup and hold the Clippers to a low scoring total.
Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers pulled off a massive comeback against the Memphis Grizzlies Sunday after falling behind by 15 points in the fourth quarter. The run showcased why many people still view the Clippers as title contenders despite their unimpressive regular season. I’m not so sure about their championship prospects, but I certainly would argue that this team has been a bit unlucky over the past month.
In nine of their past 15 games they’ve had opponents shoot above 40% from deep and in five of those games, their opponents of actually exceeded the 50% mark from behind the arc. This Clippers team is due for some positive regression and this Raptors offense represents a perfect opportunity for them to reverse the trend. The Raptors rank 25th in 3-point Attempt Rate and 27th in 3-point Accuracy this season. This team prefers to live in the mid-range, get out into transition and crash the offensive glass, ranking top-five in all three categories.
The Clippers have struggled with their transition defense, but they excel on the defensive glass, ranking sixth in the NBA in defensive rebound rate. The Clippers have played the fifth-toughest schedule of opposing offenses this season, so it is highly likely their defense is a bit underrated right now. Expect them to excel against a middling Raptors offense.
Raptors-Clippers Pick
As underrated (and unlucky) as the Clippers may be defensively, their offense may just be genuinely bad as they rank 23rd in Offensive Rating despite playing the easiest schedule of opposing defenses, according to Dunks And Threes.
This game should also be played with lots of urgency as both of these teams are fighting for their postseason lives right now. With both of these teams ranking bottom-10 in pace, expect this to be a tightly contested halfcourt game.
As long as the Clippers make an effort to get back in transition defense, I see no reason why this game should go over 229. I am taking the under and would play it down to 228.
Pick: Under 229 — Down to 228 |
