Game Time: 9:00 PM ET, Friday, March 11th, 2022 

Venue:  Footprint Center, Phoenix, Arizona

Where to Watch: NBA League Pass

DraftKings:  Spread:  Suns -5.5; O/U 222

Fanduel:  Spread:  Suns - 5; O/U 223

BetMGM:  Spread: Suns -5.5; O/U 222.5

Raptors: 35-30, 7th place Eastern Conference

Suns: 53-13, 1st place Western Conference

A non-conference matchup between an Eastern Conference team with more promise than results and a Western Conference team that is trying to hold on to their own lead while waiting for the return of their stars.  The Toronto Raptors have a lot going for them.  They have an NBA champion coach who wears his own hat (really).  They have the best GM in the league, Masai Ujiri,… who seemingly has the ability to find players anywhere.  They have PF Pascal Siakam, PG Fred VanVleet, and the most versatile rookie in the league in SF/PG/SG/PF (get all that) Scottie Barnes.  They just aren’t ready to take out of the oven.  The result for Toronto is that another year will be needed.  The Suns have everything… EVERYTHING.  They have a Hall of Fame point guard in Chris Paul, they have a fantastic Kobe clone in SG Devin Booker (maybe not enough attitude, but still), they have the best two-way small forward in the West in Mikal Bridges (Paul George is injured), they have a great young Center in Deandre Ayton (no longer can claim young in year 5), and they have Jae Crowder… (you know the veteran power forward who looks like the bouncer at the hottest club in town), then there is a great bench that has bought in.  The result for Phoenix is the winningest team in the NBA on a collision course with whoever wants a piece of them.

The Toronto Raptors have won only 4 of their last ten games.  They are only 3-7 ATS during the last ten games.  They have recorded 2 Overs and 8 UNDERS during that stretch.  The Raptors offense has dried up.  The Raptors team stars are Pascal Siakam and Fred VanVleet… those guys were in the fold when Kawhi Leonard brought a Championship to Toronto… Those guys are keepers…. But some one needs to tell those guys that this is rookie Scottie Barnes’ team now.  Really… the rookie leads the team in FG% and at 15 ppg and 7.6 rpg he news more touches than the other two guys.  The other two guys should be playing support roles to Scottie’s development.  Scottie is the real deal.  The best future for this team is to start the Scottie Barnes revolution early.. Or Fred and Pascal will start to look like Norm Nixon in the awful TV series Winning Time.  The best immediate thing for this team to do would be to offer OG Anunoby, Chris Boucher, and Precious Anchiuwa with picks to get Scottie a running mate… This Scottie will need a Pippen.  Those other two will need to learn to play supporting roles.

The Phoenix Suns have won 7 of their last ten games… which is actually a cause for concern.  They went 4-3 since Chris Paul went down with a hand injury… and even though they are on a two-game winning streak… there is a chance that the Memphis Grizzlies could cut into that 8-game lead the Suns have.  They have only gone 3-7 ATS during that stretch. So they aren’t winning big… The Suns beat the Orlando Magic, but did not cover a 6-point spread. The Suns beat the New York Knicks but did not cover a 6 point spread.  Some spreads are ridiculous like the Suns -16.5 to the Houston Rockets… yes the Rockets are the worst team in basketball but that is a ridiculous spread that no one would cover.  It makes no difference to the Suns what the spread is… they just need wins to keep the fire alive in the desert.

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The Raptors are 35-30 on the season, but 36-29 ATS.  They have logged 33 Overs and 32 Unders.  They are 18-15 in road games.

The Suns are 53-13 on the season, but 35-31 ATS.  They have notched 32 Overs, 33 Unders, and 1 Push.  They are a dominant 28-7 in home games.

The Toronto Raptors are 20th in scoring with 108.4 ppg, 12th in rebounds with 44.9 per game, and 18th in AST/TO ratio with 1.7. On defense they rank 9th while holding opponents to 107.2 ppg.

The Phoenix Suns are 6th in scoring with 113.7 ppg, 7th in rebounds with 45.6 per game, and 2nd in AST/TO ratio with 2.1… both scoring and AST/TO ratio suffer without CP3… but since Booker is back they should be fine.  On defense the Suns rank 6th while holding opponents to 105.8 ppg. 

Our prediction for Friday, March 11th is…. Suns 121 - Raptors 117

The Suns should roll at home.  Without CP3 the Suns have struggled to cover… but with the addition of Booker back to the lineup the scoring will lift and the trio of backup point guards will be responsible for less.  The defense hasn’t suffered at all.

(will update tonight as numbers settle)

Suns: PF Cam Johnson (quad) Out ** PG Chris Paul (thumb) Out

Raptors: SF OG Anunoby (finger) Out

Suns: SF Mikal Bridges, PF Jae Crowder, C Deandre Ayton, SG Devin Booker, PG Cameron Payne

Raptors: SF Scottie Barnes, PF Pascal Siakam, C Khem Birch, PG Fred VanVleet, SG Gary Trent Jr

Suns

Points: Devin Booker 25.6

Assists: Chris Paul 10.7

Rebounds: Deandre Ayton 10

Steals: Chris Paul 1.9

Blocks: JaVale McGee 1.1

Raptors

Points: Pascal Siakam 21.5

Assists: Fred VanVleet 6.8

Rebounds: Pascal Siakam 8.4

Steals: Garyt Trent Jr 1.9

Blocks: Chris Boucher 1.0

Raptors: Nick Nurse

Suns: Monty Williams