Predictions, Best Bets & Splits for Cavs vs Raptors (Game 3)

• Down 2-0, the Toronto Raptors face a virtual must-win Thursday in Game 3 at home vs Cleveland
• Cleveland won both games at home by double digits
• Read below for the latest Cavaliers vs Raptors odds, betting splits and my expert prediction

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No team in NBA playoff history has ever come back from a 3-0 series deficit to win.

And the Toronto Raptors (46-36, 24-17 home) don’t want to be the next team to want to try, so down 2-0, it’s a virtual must-win for the Dinos as they return home for Game 3 of their best-of-7 series with the Cleveland Cavaliers (52-30, 25-16 away).

The books aren’t buying into the home team regrouping, pegging TO as home underdogs in the NBA odds.

Tip-off is scheduled tonight at 8pm ET from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, with Prime Video carrying the live broadcast.

Cavaliers vs Raptors Odds

The graphic above shows the best available odds, which are subject to change

Toronto is a 3-point home underdog, including +130 on the moneyline at bet365, while taking the Cavaliers to win straight up comes in at reasonable -148 odds at FanDuel. DraftKings has them as 2.5-point favorites, paying out at -115 odds.

If you’re checking the total, Under bettors should head to FanDuel, where the line is set at 220.5 points, while the Over line at bet365 drops a full point less to 219.5.

Looking at the NBA public betting splits, a whopping 73% of the money and 68% of the bets are on the Cavaliers to cover the spread, while 72%of the money and 63% of the bets are on them to win outright.

The betting public is also hammering the Over, with 85% of the money and 86% of the bets going Over the 219.5-point line.

Cavaliers vs Raptors Prediction

• Pick: Raptors ML (+130 at bet365)

If there’s ever a team that needed to get back home and regroup, it’s Toronto. The Raptors did not ever lead in their 115-105 Game 2 loss, and they’ve now dropped 12 consecutive playoff games to the Cavaliers.

While James Harden and Donovan Mitchell are carving them up, the Raps can’t withstand their dominance and self-inflicted wounds. They have turned the ball over 40 times through two games, that have translated into 44 points against.

Immanuel Quickley (hamstring) has yet to dress this series, while Ja’Kobe Walter (illness) is questionable. Both will be a game-time decision.

They will also need Brandon Ingram to play at his all-star level, something he’s yet to do in the series, averaging just 12 points on 33.3% shooting.

Dating back the regular season, the Cavaliers have now reeled off seven wins in their last eight, and are averaging 121.5 points per game.

It’s been a shooting gallery for Harden, who is averaging 25 points and seven assists on 53.1% shooting, including 7-for-15 from 3-point range. Mitchell has scored 30+ points in both games, shooting a blistering 55.8% from the field, and 8-for-17 from beyond the arc.

Simply put, one of them is going to have to be at least somewhat harnessed for Toronto to get back into this series.

With Toronto desperate for any kind of spark, I like them to finally throw Cleveland some real adversity for the first time in this series, while showcasing some of the resistance of a team that was fifth in defensive rating during the regular season and shot the ball at the 7th-best clip in the league at 48.2%.

Toronto’s best game of the series should land them a win, and you a nice payout.

Cavaliers vs Raptors Best Bets

Pick 1: Brandon Ingram OVER 20.5 Points (-105 at bet365)

The good news is that it can’t get any worse than it the first two games of this series for Brandon Ingram.

I can’t see him going out like this for three games straight. During a solid regular season, he scored in single digits four times, and bounced back with double-digits the following game, twice topping 20+ points and never scoring less than 17.

Priot to this series Ingram had scored at least 20 points in 10 of 12 games against vs the Cavs, cashing this Over seven times, missing the Over three other times by a single point.

Pick 2: James Harden OVER 2.5 3-point makes (-120 at bet365)

Harden has looked like dynamite in this series, and he’s been shooting the moneyball very well since joining the Cavs, hitting at a career best 43.5% clip over the final 26 games of the regular season.

Including his two playoff efforts vs Toronto, the Beard has now hit at least three triples in five of his last six outings. While it may be a tougher day at the office Thursday, I like him to go Over this total again.