The Toronto Raptors can get the job done in the first round in the fastest way possible with a win this Sunday against the Brooklyn Nets, who are hoping for a hoping they can extend their stay in Disney World for at least one more game. Check out our preview of this game below.
The Raptors handily beat Brooklyn in Game 3, 117-92. They didn’t even trail at any point in the game, showing just how easy it was for the defending champs to get the victory. Toronto had its way on offense, shooting 50.5 percent from the floor and going 18 for 38 from deep. Pascal Siakam scored 26 points, while Fred VanVleet had another marvelous game, firing 22 points and six 3-pointers to go with five assists and five rebounds. Toronto’s 18 threes in Game 3 showed that its 9-for-35 performance from long distance was nothing but some sort of an anomaly. Back in Game 1, the Raptors went 22 for 44 from downtown. Toronto is getting so much space for its shooters because of at least a couple of factors: the Raptors are moving the ball well, as they are No. 1 in the playoffs with 27.7 assists per game, and are making the Nets’ defense to collapse down low by using their size advantage in the frontcourt.
The Raptors are 3-1 against the spread in their last four games.
The Nets will need something short of a miracle to come back from a 0-3 hole in this series, especially with another key member of the team leaving the Bubble. Joe Harris left Disney World due to personal reasons after Game 2, and has missed Game 3. Even if he comes back, it’s very much possible that we will miss Games 4 and 5. That means the Nets must find where to get the 16.5 points per game Harris was averaging in the playoffs before he left. Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot leads the Nets in the playoffs with 17.7 points per game, but only had 10 points in Game 3. Caris LeVert is a player the Nets are hoping to play all out and put up big numbers for as long as they are alive. LeVert, who had 37 points in the loss to the Portland Trail Blazers before the playoffs, is averaging just 15.3 points on 32 percent shooting from the field since the start of the first round.
The Nets 7-3 against the spread in their last 1o games.
