NBA: Toronto Raptors VS Golden State Warriors Pick and Predictions 01/27/2023

Game: 10:10 PM ET,  Friday, January 27th, 2023

Venue: Chase Center, San Francisco, California

TV:  NBA TV

Raptors: 22-27, 12th place Eastern Conference

Warriors: 24-24, 8th place Western Conference

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Warriors -5.5, O/U 234.5

PointsBet: Point Spread: Warriors -5, O/U 235.5

Fanduel: Point Spread: Warriors -5, O/U 235

Raptors: SF OG Anunoby, PF Scottie Barnes, C Pascal Siakam, PG Fred Van Vleet, SG Gary Trent Jr

Warriors: PF Jonathan Kuminga, SF Klay Thompson, C Draymond Green, SG Jordan Poole, PG Stephen Curry

A late night inter conference battle between teams that both expected to do better this season.. And neither have rosters as bad as their records.  The Raptors have had a very bad season so far… it smacks entirely against fan and spectator expectations since they have so many good players  PF Pascal Siakam, PF/PG Scottie Barnes, SF OG Anunoby, PG Fred VanVleet, SG Gary Trent Jr… each and every one of those guys have had big games…. Each of them have had stat stuffing numbers at times… each is a solid NBA starter.  The reason they are not winning is that they have no true NBA Center so they are playing Pascal out of position… also Scottie Barnes is the team’s best point guard, but in order to have Fred VanVleet (a good NBA point guard by any measure) on the floor means they have to play Scottie Barnes out of position… and then when they turn to the bench for help?... All they find is a large assortment of undersized power forwards.  Literally the 3 best bench players on the Raptors all play Power Forward… and none of them make good centers.  That is the problem.  The trade deadline is days away.  The Warriors are doing slightly better in the Western Conference Standings but have a very close record to the Raptors. The Warriors problem is the have an aging core of future Hall of Famers… and the depth is a young core of future NBA starters with SF Andrew Wiggins stuck in the middle.  The two groups do not mesh.  The Starters can’t win on their own and the young guys aren’t getting enough time on the floor to properly develop.  The Warriors are defending NBA Champs BTW… so the trade deadline is a few days away.  The Great Betting Opportunity here is trying to figure out if the Warriors will use their recent win over the Grizzlies as fuel for momentum OR if they will recede to the average play we have seen?

The Toronto Raptors have won 6 of their last 10 games.  They are on a 2-game winning streak. They won their last game against a very good Sacramento Kings team 113-95… it was also a big win ATS. In fact the Raptors are 7-3 ATS during their last 10 games.  In the win C Pascal Siakam took over the game with 26 points, 11 rebounds, and 7 assists. He got lots of help as PF Precious Anchuiwa got 19 points off the bench and PF Chris Boucher got 16 points off the bench.  That is solid results as the coming order of business SHOULD BE to trade BOTH those guys to improve for now… A good start would be C Myles Turner of the Pacers?.. OR?... Scottie Barnes stat line from the power forward spot is sneaky great… In 38 minutes of play he played lock down defense and added 7 points, 6 rebounds… AND 11 ASSISTS!  If you don’t think an 11 assist power forward couldn’t be the team’s best player while playing Point Guard?...  You are crazy.

The Golden State Warriors have won only 4 of their last 10 games.  They take their lumps from time to time based on mismatches… when other teams have a great scoring player it tends to neutralize HOF PG Steph Curry… when other teams have a great Center it tends to neutralize C Kevon Looney and PF Draymond Green.  They did however win their last game against the 2nd place team in the West, the Memphis Grizzlies… who were playing without their starting Center Stephen Adams.  PG Steph Curry landed 34 points but was ejected late for throwing his mouthguard. The win then became SF Klay Thompson, 24 points, and SG Jordan Poole, 21 points, mission to complete.  They got it… They got it on a last second layup from a PF Draymond Green inbounds pass to Poole… That isn’t the only time Green and Poole CONNECTED this season.  There are two ways for the Warriors to continue with their current identity of greatness 1) make a trade at the deadline that moves Kuminga, Wiseman, and salary filler for a big time player?... or 2) PF Draymond Green signs a very small money extension to ensure the Warriors don’t feel the pressure of hundreds of millions of dollars in luxury tax money… and ensure that Draymond finishes his career on a great, winning team?  Those are the only two options as the core ages and the young guys do not have enough playing time to improve.

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TOR: 22-27, 25-24 ATS, 27-22 O/U, 7-15 in road games.

GSW: 24-24, 22-25-1 ATS, 27-18-3 O/U, 18-6 in home games.

The Raptors are 21st in scoring with 112.6 points per game, 22nd in rebounds with 42.4 per game, 1st in AST/TO ratio with 2.0, and 6th in blocks per game with 5.3.

The Warriors are 3rd in scoring with 117.7 points per game, 11th in rebounds with 44.1 per game, 17th in AST/TO ratio with 1.7, and 27th in blocks per game with 3.9.

Our prediction for Friday, January 27th is…. Raptors 118 - Warriors 115

Bet on the Raptors. Looney can not play Siakam, Draymond is equaled and outsized by Scottie Barnes.  That only leaves Fred Van Vleet and Gary Trent JR to hit 3’s… and they are both more than capable.  Bet on the Raptors and all they have to do is cover a +5 points spread on most sites. They can win… and they can come 5 points close enough to not need to win. (for your bet to win).

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The Warriors are 2-0 ATS versus Toronto at Golden State the last 3 seasons.

The Raptors are 5-1 ATS as an underdog of 3.5 to 9.5 points this season.

Raptors: PF Scottie Barnes.  When you watch Scottie you are watching the future of the Raptors team… and that future plays the point guard position as a Magic Johnson Lite.  He is similar to Magic in that he has court vision… but he is also similar to Scottie Pippen in that he plays great defense… and scores… so?  What are they waiting for?  The trade deadline is coming and this team needs a Center… does anyone else need a Fred Van Vleet?... If the team moves Gary Trent Jr… They are not serious about building or winning.  

Warriors: SF Jonathan Kuminga.  Jonathan is the young stud that this team was supposed to rely on replacing the Hall of Fame Trio with him and Jordan Poole and James Wiseman… while Poole gas lived up to the expectation… Jonathan and James still need to prove themselves.

Raptors:  Nick “I have one ring!” Nurse

Warriors: Steve” I have all the other rings” Kerr.