by James Q
Monday, Jan 03, 2022San Antonio Spurs vs Toronto Raptors Prediction, Spread and Trends to Watch - 01/04/2022
Game Time: 7:00 PM ET, Tuesday, January 4th, 2022
Venue: Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, Canada
Where to Watch: NBA League Pass
Opening NBA Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Spread: NL
BetMGM: Spread: NL
VegasInsider: Spread: NL
Caesars: Spread: NL
NBA Standings
Spurs: 14-21, 11th place Western Conference
Raptors 16-17, 10th place Eastern Conference
The San Antonio Spurs had an embarrassing New Year’s Day. They spent it getting beat by the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons are the worst team in basketball and they gave the Spurs a heartbreaking last second miss at the buzzer, losing 117-116 in overtime. 2022 is off to a bad start. Yes, the Spurs were missing leading scorer PG Dejounte Murray and 6th man SG Lonnie Walker Jr and a few others… but the Pistons weren’t at full strength either and a full strength Pistons is still disgraceful to lose to. Anyway… The Spurs are on a 3-game losing streak… to the Pistons, Memphis Grizzlies, and Utah Jazz. They are 5-5 over their last 10 games and seemingly stuck in neutral. They are 6-4 ATS over their last ten games.
The Toronto Raptors are on a two-game winning streak, having just taken down the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Clippers. They are 6-4 over their last ten and need every win they can get. The last thing they want to do is spend the season stuck in 10th place only to lose a final game and miss out on the play-in tournament by falling to 11th… the second to last thing they want to do is be anywhere in the middle. A team like Toronto with a good coach, a good rookie (Scottie Barnes), and an almost star (Pascal Siakim) wants to either make the playoffs or finish so badly that they get good NBA draft lottery odds to improve the team. The middle is a terrible place to be.
Al McMordie's 4-game NBA Win streak was snapped yesterday, as he was 0-2 in the NBA. Big Al was also 0-1 in hockey, and 3-3 in the NFL for a 3-6 Sunday. Today, Big Al's back on the NBA hardwood, and is firing on an NBA Roadkill winner out of 67% ATS angle. Get on it! Get Big Al’s picks right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers. NCAAF, NFL, MLB… get positive value from all your bets! Expert picks! Fun fact… winning a wager is much better than making a wager!
San Antonio Spurs vs Toronto Raptors Preview and Analysis
Recent Form
The Spurs are 14-21 on the season, but 20-15 ATS. They have logged 18 Overs, 15 Unders, and 1 Push. They are 7-11 in road games.
The Raptors are 16-17 on the season, but 17-16 ATS. They have notched 20 Overs and 13 Unders. They are 9-10 in home games.
Offensive Analysis
The Spurs are 5th in the NBA in scoring with 111.5 per game, 8th in rebounds with 46 per game, 1st in AST/TO ratio with 2.2. They are shooting great at 5th in FG%, 10th 3PT%... those are great numbers because they have great coaching…. However this is a losing team because on the defensive end they rank 23rd and give up 110.3 ppg. They have to play pretty flawlessly to get wins when they give up 110 a game.
The Raptors are 20th in the NBA in scoring with 106.9 ppg, 17th in rebounds with 44.6 per, and 14th in AST/TO ratio with 1.7. They are shooting a lousy 24th in FG% and 21st in 3PT%. Lots of people like Fred VanVleet and his story… but when Fred VanVleet leads your team in scoring and assists… you do not get to have a winning team. The Raptors are saved a bit by the defensive performance (another strength of rookie Scottie Barnes) where they rank 11th and hold opponents to 106.7 ppg.
San Antonio Spurs vs Toronto Raptors Prediction
Our prediction for Tuesday, January 4th is…. Raptors 118 - Spurs 101
The Spurs will get blown out in this game. Toronto has slowly and steadily gotten everyone back form their Covid list… The Spurs keep losing guys to it.
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NBA Betting Trends
The Spurs are 12-6 ATS in their last 18 games.
The Spurs are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games against Toronto.
The Raptors are 7-1 ATS in their last 8 games.
The Total has gone Over in 7 of Toronto’s last 7 games.
Injury list
Spurs: PG Dejounte Murray (rest) Out ** SF Keita Bates-Diop (Hamstring) Quest ** SG Lonnie Walker IV (covid) Out ** PF Zach Collins (ankle) Out
Raptors: SG Isaac Bonga (conditioning) Quest ** PG Goran Dragic (personal) Out Indefinitely
Starting Lineups
Spurs: PF Keldon Johnson, SF Devin Vassell, C Jakob Poeltl, SG Derrick White, PG Tre Jones
Raptors: SF Scottie Barnes, PF Pascal Siakam, C OG Anunoby, PG Fred VanVleet, SG Gary Trent JR
Statistical Leaders
Spurs
Points: Dejounte Murray 17.8
Assists: Dejounte Murray 8.8
Rebounds: Jakob Poeltl 8.5
Steals: Dejounte Murray 2.0
Blocks: Jakob Poeltl 1.4
Raptors
Points: Fred VanVleet 20.9
Assists: Fred VanVleet 6.7
Rebounds: Pascal Siakam 8.4
Steals: DJ Wilson 2.5
Blocks: Scottie Barnes 1.0
Coaches
Spurs: Gregg Popovich
Raptors: Nick Nurse
James Q
About the Author:
James Q. has been involved with sports and gambling his entire life. A former division 1 scholarship basketball player, James understands sports (and especially basketball) inside-and-out. Following his basketball playing days, James parlayed his gambling skills into a semi-pro poker career. James resides in Los Angeles, and especially loves the Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Rams, and Los Angeles Dodgers. And when he isn't betting on sports (and writing about it), James can be found performing stand-up comedy on the Sunset Strip.
