The Lakers have the first seed, Giannis looks fantastic, and the Suns are shining, but you all forgot about the reigning champs who are looking awfully promising as we turn into the closing strait.
The Toronto Raptors look ready to make a serious push to retain as we near the playoffs. The clock has yet to strike midnight on the seeding round and there is still value to be found but NBA bettors need to be both smart and bold to seize the opportunities at the business end of the season.
Just pause for a moment. Technically speaking, we can say that whoever wins the NBA championship will rule over the Magic Kingdom. Even Game of Zones didn’t see this coming. That’s delightful. Right, the nonsense is out of the way, let’s get to it.
In the race for value it’s worth looking at the guys who have been there before. The Raptors don’t have finals MVP Kawhi Leonard but that may not even matter. While the Ewing theory is not something this site buys into, there is something to be said about a team that enjoys being underestimated.
This is a team with an underappreciated star in Pascal Siakam, a fearless and intelligent point guard in Kyle Lowry, and the type of supporting cast that outplays their roles with Fred VanVleet the shining other guy.
Tonight’s game with the Sixers is one where the market seems to be finally catching up with what smart bettors are seeing in the Raptors. Toronto are -6.5 point favourites but I’m not too worried about the bookies getting hot on the Raps in a hurry. This reads more like an over reaction to the last couple of outings from Philly than anything else.
The Raptors are available at +1000 right now to retain the championship. That’s not value, that’s insanity. At worst, the Raps are the third best team in the East and they have shown they can live with the Bucks, Celtics, and Sixers repeatedly. Anything other than coin flip odds for them to make the NBA Finals is a bargain. Just by reaching the Eastern Conference Finals, the Raps are guaranteed to deliver value should you decide to insure the bet with a counter move.
Nick Nurse was literally a vote away from sharing the NBA Coaches Association award for Coach of the Year, he is widely respected by his peers for a reason. They know that this is a man who can squeeze out every drop of big time basketball out of this roster. Nobody wants to see the Raptors in the postseason, NBA bettors should be ravenously gobbling them up at this price.
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