Trail Blazers vs Raptors

Portland will try to salvage a win on the last game of the road trip with a victory over the struggling Raptors.

The Raptors lead the league in committing the fewest of them. They need VanVleet on the floor as much as possible to stay competitive, but the more he plays, the more he breaks down. The more he breaks down, the worse he plays. He’ll have five games and a handful of practices to prove that he warrants another look. The raw number of them has been too high, but the bigger issue has been the timing of them. The Raptors are in a pretty bad spot of their own. Why is Toronto sitting in twelfth place in the West, currently out of the playoff picture? Regardless, the Blazers are likely to see a lot of him on the court as the Raptors don’t have a solid backup point guard. The Raptors are 28th in the NBA in field goal percentage at 44.7%, and dead last from deep at 32.4%. If the Blazers can make shots like they are capable of and cut down on the turnovers they should have a very good shot against the Toronto Raptors this afternoon. They can’t hit the broad side of a barn, especially from deep. Winners of only three of the last 13, the Raptors might need a win even more than the Blazers.

NBA odds, picks, and predictions for the Portland Trail Blazers at Toronto Raptors on January 8. NBA betting best bet and free pick analysis.

The Raptors are 10-11 ATS at home this season and have failed to cover in five of their last six outings overall. Portland is one of the better 3-point shooting teams in the NBA inside the Moda Center (40%) but watches that success rate slip to 36.4% in foreign gyms, with the team making three fewer triples per game. The Raptors' pace, offensive limitations, and sound defense keep totals on the low end, with most games closing with a sub-220 number. However, the Blazers are expected to get two-way guard The Raptors enter this afternoon affair trying to solve their offensive woes, having shot a league-low 39.3% from the floor during their three-game losing skid. He’s more active as a shooter in home games overall (17.4 shots per) and should he breach 20-plus attempts again Sunday, should he continue to log those minutes. Given this modest player prop on points, we’re not asking for that much as he fights to right the ship Sunday afternoon. They’ve also struggled to contain rival guards, allowing an average of 67.6 points to the position — seventh most in the league. Portland opened this three-game road set with losses at Minnesota and Indiana and has just three wins in its last 10 overall, going back to the middle of December. This matchup with Portland could be what Toronto needs to get right, given the He’s also been extremely active as a shooter, with a combined 44 field goal attempts in those contests — including 23 attempts from beyond the arc. But with the team tumbling, head coach Nick Nurse has no choice but to lean into his limited stars.

Analyzing Sunday's Portland Trail Blazers at Toronto Raptors odds and lines, with NBA expert picks, predictions and best bets.

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