NBA Betting Odds - Wizards-Raptors, Mavs-Lakers
Carrie Stroup here with your NBA betting odds for the Wizards-Raptors and Mavs-Lakers games.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS (20-22) at TORONTO RAPTORS (29-15)
Toronto -8.5, Total: 205.5
The Raptors will be going for their ninth straight victory when they host the Wizards on Tuesday.
The Wizards hosted the Celtics on Monday and ended up losing 116-91 as 2.5-point favorites. Washington has now lost three of its past four games both SU and ATS, and this meeting with Toronto is not what the team needs.
The Raptors have won eight straight games after defeating the Clippers 112-94 as 2.5-point home favorites on Sunday. Toronto has also owned this head-to-head series this season, winning all three of the meetings between these teams SU. Yet, the Wizards have covered in two of those games.
One thing that trends in the Wizards’ favor is the fact that the team is 11-2 ATS as a road underdog of 6.5 to nine points over the past two seasons. Toronto, however, is 12-2 ATS after a combined score of 205 points or more on the season. The Raptors are also 20-9 ATS after playing a game as a favorite this season.
The Wizards are struggling recently and they will need PG John Wall (19.6 PPG, 9.7 APG, 4.2 RPG, 2.1 SPG) to come through in a big way in order to win in Toronto on Tuesday. Wall had just eight points against the Celtics on Monday, but he has dished out 10 or more assists in four straight contests. Wall will need to keep setting up his teammates for good shots, but he must also be a bit more aggressive as a scorer in this game. Wall’s averaging 19.3 PPG against the Raptors this season, but he is shooting just 32.4% from the field in those contests. It’ll likely take an efficient performance with 20 or more points for Washington to win this one.
C Marcin Gortat (13.5 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 1.3 BPG) is the other guy that will really need to step it up against the Raptors on Tuesday. Gortat has recorded a double-double in four straight games and is playing very well coming into this one. He is averaging 13.3 PPG and 10.0 RPG against Toronto on the season and his matchup with Jonas Valanciunas will come a long way in determining the outcome of this game.
The Raptors are currently riding the league’s longest winning streak and the team will be going for a season sweep of the Wizards on Tuesday. The focal point of the Raptors’ attack is going to be SG DeMar DeRozan (23.2 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 4.1 APG, 1.0 SPG) in this one. DeRozan has absolutely torched the Wizards this season, averaging 29.7 PPG in three meetings with the team. He should be even better on Tuesday with Beal expected to miss this game.
PG Kyle Lowry (20.7 PPG, 6.4 APG, 5.0 RPG, 2.2 SPG) has a tough matchup with John Wall in this game and he’ll need to play well for Toronto to come away with a victory here. Lowry is averaging 19.7 PPG in three meetings with the Wizards, but he is shooting just 38.8% from the field in those games and averaging just 4.3 APG. He will need to make better decisions on Tuesday or the Wizards could steal this one in Toronto.
C Jonas Valanciunas (12.4 PPG, 9.2 RPG, 1.3 BPG) could be the x-factor for the Raptors in this game. Valanciunas is averaging 13.4 PPG and 10.8 RPG over the past five contests and had 20 points and eight boards in Sunday’s win over the Clippers. The big man has been extremely hard to stop around the basket and will need to make life on Marcin Gortat tough defensively.
DALLAS MAVERICKS (25-21) at LOS ANGELES LAKERS (9-37)
Dallas -8, Total: 202
The Lakers will be looking to prevent a seven-game losing streak when they host the Mavericks on Tuesday.
The Mavericks have not been playing well recently and are coming off of a 115-104 loss in Houston on Sunday. Dallas was a four-point underdog in that game and have now lost two straight contests. The team is not playing well defensively and must turn it around, as it will not win games allowing the 112.0 PPG it’s been giving up over the course of the two-game losing streak.
Fortunately for the Mavericks, they do face a Lakers team that has lost six straight games and failed to score over 100 points in five of those games. Los Angeles has also been horrible defensively, allowing 113.0 PPG over the course of its six-game losing streak.
These two teams have met twice this season and the Mavericks have won-and-covered in each of those meetings. Dallas has been absolutely dominant in this head-to-head series over the years, going 9-0 SU and 7-2 ATS versus Los Angeles over the past three seasons. Another thing favoring the Mavericks heading into this game is the fact that the team is 14-4 ATS after a game where they failed to cover the spread this season.
The Mavericks have not been playing to their potential recently, but the team has a golden opportunity to get back into the win column against the Lakers on Tuesday.
One guy that will need to play well for Dallas in this one is PG Deron Williams (14.2 PPG, 5.6 APG, 3.1 RPG, 1.0 SPG). Williams had his worst game of the season against Houston on Sunday, putting up just four points on 1-for-9 shooting from the field. He will need to get back on track or it will be tough for the Mavericks to get their offense rolling.
PF Dirk Nowitzki (17.7 PPG, 6.7 RPG) will also need to step his game up for Dallas in this one. Nowitzki is going to be facing a Lakers team that is not good at defending the power forward position and he should be able to knock down some shots in this one.
SG Wes Matthews (12.9 PPG, 1.1 SPG) could be an x-factor in this game. Matthews has scored 12 or more points in five straight games and will need to play some excellent defense in this game. The Lakers are solid at the guard position and Matthews will be counted on to slow some of Los Angeles’ young players down.
Los Angeles has been wildly disappointing this season and the team needs to start winning some games soon. The Lakers don’t need their young, talented players to feel that losing is okay and that is the reason SG Kobe Bryant (15.8 PPG) called out his teammates after a loss to the Blazers on Saturday. Bryant has struggled recently, shooting 34.1% from the floor. He is, however, a competitor and will give it his all on a nightly basis. Bryant wants his teammates to share the same mentality.
SG D’Angelo Russell (12.3 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 3.4 APG, 1.2 SPG) is the guy that Bryant really wants to help mold. Russell is extremely talented and is averaging 19.5 PPG over the past two games. Not only is he scoring, but he has done so on 16-for-22 shooting from the field. He does, however, get lackadaisical on defense and needs to show more of a consistent effort moving forward.
PF Julius Randle (10.5 PPG, 9.6 RPG) is another young guy that must be more consistent the rest of the way. Randle is averaging 9.4 PPG and 10.4 RPG over the past five contests, but he is shooting just 38.5% from the field and has been awful on defense. Randle needs to play solid on the defensive end against Dirk Nowitzki on Tuesday or the team has no chance to win this one. He’ll also need to show that he can defend at a high level the rest of the season or the Lakers might just have to wonder whether or not he can be an effective piece for them in the future.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
