Kawhi Leonard will make his first appearance in San Antonio since being traded to Toronto last summer when the Raptors visit the Spurs on Thursday night as narrow 1.5-point underdogs on the NBA odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Leonard won an NBA championship in San Antonio in 2014, and was twice named the NBA’s Defensive Player of the Year as a member of the Spurs.
While his relationship with his former club soured during an injury-plagued campaign last season, Leonard looked ready for a homecoming in Toronto’s 122-116 win over Utah on New Year’s Day, draining 45 points to set a new career high ahead of Thursday night’s Raptors vs. Spurs betting matchup at AT&T Center.
With their victory over the Jazz as 1.5-point home chalk, the Raptors are now poised to record three consecutive straight-up wins for the first time since capping an eight-game SU win streak with a 106-95 victory in Cleveland on December 1. Toronto is a middling 8-7 SU in 15 contests since, and had posted just one against the spread victory in eight contests prior to Wednesday’s win over the Jazz.
The Raptors’ lead atop the Eastern Conference standings has evaporated during their recent swoon, leaving the club in a neck-and-neck race for first place with the resurgent Milwaukee Bucks. However, Toronto has held steady as the second favourite on the NBA championship odds, where the team continues to trail only the Golden State Warriors as a +600 wager.
With a date in Milwaukee scheduled for Saturday night, the Raptors must quickly put an end to a slide that has resulted in SU losses in four of their past five road contests. Toronto’s road slump is further complicated by a dismal nine-game SU losing streak in San Antonio.
Point production has been a massive historical problem for the Raptors when they visit the Spurs. Toronto has averaged just 91.1 points per game during a 1-15 SU run in San Antonio since January 2001, and has topped 99 points just once in their past seven visits.
The Spurs hope to extend their traditional domination of Toronto with a fifth straight SU home win on Thursday night. San Antonio’s home surge comes during a 10-3 SU run that has lifted the team back into playoff contention following a shaky 11-14 SU start to the season.
The team has also covered in 11 of 13 contests at online sports betting sites, and has been dominant when pegged as a home favourite by three or fewer on the point spread, going 20-4 SU and 19-4-1 ATS in their past 24 such games.
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