Can the Cavs Exploit the Raptors’ Barrett-Shaped Hole Tonight?

After a football-fueled weekend, shifting gears to NBA action feels like trading a touchdown dance for a slam dunk party — and tonight’s Cavs vs. Raptors clash in Toronto promises just that kind of excitement. Now, I’m not gonna lie, I took a serious hit on my last tweeted pick — lost it big time. But hey, in the rollercoaster of betting, a blowout loss and a nail-biter sting your wallet the same, so no use crying over spilled parlay bets. The Cavs, pegged by many to falter this season, are proving me partly right and partly wrong—they’re 12-6 and cruising toward a solid win total despite injury woes that’d bench lesser squads. Meanwhile, the Raptors have been the feel-good story of the early season, turning heads and upsetting expectations with a 12-5 record, even as health concerns loom over key players like Barrett and Poeltl. Both teams come off easy wins last night, but the Raptors face the tougher challenge adapting overnight without a couple starters. Traveling Cavs or home-court Raptors? My money’s leaning toward Cleveland covering that spread—sometimes the best revenge is proving doubters wrong on the road. Ready to see whether the Cavs keep their momentum or if the Raptors’ buzz turns into a roar? Let’s dive in. LEARN MORE.

Cavs vs. Raptors, 7:00 ET

With a big weekend of football behind us, I figured it would make sense to start looking into the NBA for the week and I’m already excited about some of the matchups on the horizon. This has been a fantastic season, not just from watching the games, but from a betting standpoint. I’m looking to continue to just pick my spots instead of forcing plays in the league. I will say I lost my last play that I tweeted out, and I lost it badly. I suppose it doesn’t matter, because it isn’t like you lose any extra money because your team lost by 40 as opposed to by .5. Regardless, I am hopeful that I can avoid a loss tonight altogether as the Cavs take on the Raptors in Toronto.

The Cavs are a team that many thought would take a big step back from last year. I’m not quite sure that I understood the logic and took them to exceed their win total for the season. As of right now, they are 12-6, which puts them on pace to win about 54 games this year. That does have them missing the over and costing me money. I’m not going to freak out about that at the moment, because as the season continues, they will have the opportunity to play tanking teams. Additionally, the team hasn’t really been all that healthy this season. They have missed a bunch of games from not just role player guys, but people like Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland. When they are at full strength, which they won’t be tonight as I’m sure at least some of the questionable tagged players will end up sitting out, they are one of the best teams in the league and a true contender for at least the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Raptors are probably the biggest darling or surprise of the early season. Simply put, Toronto has been phenomenal in a year that they have had an opportunity to make some noise. The blistering start to the season has put them at 12-5 for the year, and at this point, they could be turning some heads to make folks believe they are a legitimate team to avoid in the playoffs. Now, it is certainly too early to speak about the playoffs, but we can already see which teams have a chance, and which ones need more than a prayer. Most thought the Raptors would be in the latter group. Instead, Brandon Ingram has meshed well with the team, Scottie Barnes continues to excel in various roles, and Immanuel Quickley provides the microwave scoring when needed. The biggest issue for the team, as with so many others, is health. Jakob Poeltl, the team’s starting center, is listed as questionable today. RJ Barrett is listed as doubtful. That’s 40% of your starting lineup that might not be available.

There is no rest advantage for either team in this game. Both squads played and won last night. There was little resistance from their opposition and both won by double-digits. The problem is that Barrett was hurt last night, so the Raptors need to make their adjustments with the team overnight. That can be difficult. The only major leverage they have at the moment is that they have been at home, and Cleveland has to travel for this game. I could see the Cavs going all out here, however. They get a break from basketball until Friday after today’s game. To be clear, in the basketball world, that also could mean they end up not caring and basically taking a vacation a day early. I do think the Cavs win this game and cover the spread. I have some concerns about the Raptors being able to make up for the point deficit of Barrett. Back the Cavs to cover the short road spread.

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