Denver Nuggets vs. Toronto Raptors Picks, Predictions, Odds

Michael Crosson Sports Betting Expert

3 minute read

Regular season NBA action resumes on Tuesday night with a compelling non-conference showdown between the Denver Nuggets and Toronto Raptors. Coverage begins from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBA TV.

DENVER NUGGETS vs. TORONTO RAPTORS BETTING PREDICTION

The tale of the tape for this one tells the story of two squads riding the struggle bus as of late, as the Nuggets and Raptors both enter Tuesday’s contest following losses in three straight games, yet one team has far more reason to be concerned than the other.

The Nuggets currently pace the entire Western Conference with a record of 46-22 on the season, with the next teams up in the pecking order being the Kings, Grizzlies, and Suns, who all trail Denver by at least five games, even after losing three straight.

Obviously, the Nuggets can’t afford to lose out their 14 remaining contests, but to say that Denver is in jeopardy of losing its spot at the top of the conference totem pole is a bit of an exaggeration. Barring some sort of catastrophe, the Nuggets should still cruise to the one-seed in the West, and quite frankly, they’re still 8-4 in their last 12 games. So, there’s no real reason to worry about Denver losing its grasp on homecourt.

While on the other hand, the Raptors are in a very different boat, as Toronto currently teeters on the edge of playoff contention with a record of 32-36 on the year, while barely clinging onto the nine-seed in the East with the Bulls, Pacers, and Wizards all trailing by less than two games in the win column.

The spread for this one is relatively tight because both teams have struggled as of late, and Toronto is playing at home, but make no mistake about it, these squads aren’t in the same weight class. 

The Raptors are pretty mediocre at both ends of the floor, currently ranked 15th in offensive rating and 18th in defensive rating (114.7 ORtg, 114.5 DRtg), which is good enough to keep their head above the water in matchups against league bottom-dwellers, yet far less than what it takes to compete with top shelf contenders on a routine basis.

In the meeting between these teams on March 6th, Denver managed to escape with a 118-113 home victory, but quite frankly, the Raptors were fortunate to keep the score so close in a matchup that the Nuggets shot 50% from the field in, and 39% from long range.

It’s no secret that Denver is better than Toronto by a wide margin at the offensive end of the floor, highlighted by the Nuggets ranking 7th in scoring and 2nd in offensive rating (117 PPG, 118.2 ORtg), but to more importantly, they also own a slight leg-up at the defensive end, ranking 13th in points allowed and 15th in defensive rating (113 PPG, 114.2 DRtg). So, I’ll lay the short number with the better team on the road this Tuesday night.

Score Prediction: Nuggets 117, Raptors 108
Best Bet: Nuggets +1 (-110)

Take Denver!

BET NOW!

DENVER NUGGETS vs. TORONTO RAPTORS BETTING ODDS

DENVER NUGGETS vs. TORONTO RAPTORS BETTING RESOURCES

Date: Tuesday, March 14, 2023
Venue: Scotiabank Arena
Location: Toronto, Ontario
TV-Time: NBA TV, 7:30 p.m. ET
Matchup
Expert Picks

NBA Finals Betting Odds

DENVER NUGGETS vs. TORONTO RAPTORS BETTING STATS

Denver Nuggets
SU: 46-22
ATS: 37-31
O/U: 34-33-1
PPG: 116.9
OPPG: 113.1

Toronto Raptors
SU: 32-36
ATS: 33-35
O/U: 38-30
PPG: 112.4
OPPG: 112.2

Straight Up (SU), Against the Spread (ATS), Over-Under (O/U)
Points Per Game (PPG), Opponents Points Per Game (OPPG)

Updated on 12/24/2024

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DENVER NUGGETS vs. TORONTO RAPTORS BETTING TRENDS

• The Nuggets are 1-4 ATS in their last five games.
• The total has gone OVER in five of Denver's last seven games.
• The Nuggets are 12-6 SU in their last 18 games.
• The total has gone OVER in four of Toronto's last five games.
• The Raptors are 1-4 SU in their last five games.
• The total has gone OVER in six of Toronto's last seven games against Denver.
• The Raptors are 6-1 SU in their last seven home games.
• The Raptors are 2-8 ATS in their last ten home games against Denver.
• The Nuggets are 11-4 ATS in their last 15 games against Toronto.
• The Nuggets are 6-3 SU in their last nine games against Toronto.
• The total has gone OVER in six of Denver's last nine road games.

Michael Crosson

Michael Crosson began his time at VegasInsider as a freelance NBA writer back in 2019 while he continued to study Psychology and Biology at James Madison University. Following his graduation in 2021, Michael joined the team full-time, and he's been with VI ever since. Michael still writes NBA, NFL, and MLB for VI, as well as gambling industry news. He's also become a crucial part of our editorial production team. More from Michael Crosson