The Toronto Raptors have lost three games in a row both straight up and against the spread on the NBA odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com as they continue a five-game western road swing on Tuesday night against the Phoenix Suns.
Toronto opened the road trip with a disappointing 133-118 loss in Denver on Sunday, and has now seen its lead over the Boston Celtics in the race for second place in the Eastern Conference standings trimmed to just a half-game going into Tuesday night’s Raptors vs. Suns betting matchup at Talking Stick Resort Arena.
The Raptors’ current swoon marks just the second time that they have lost three games in a row this season, and only their third three-game slide in regular-season action since February 2017. The team has also lost SU in two straight road dates during a 2-4 overall SU run, and has struggled to generate offence in those losses, averaging just 100.5 points per game in their four recent defeats.
The team’s recent troubles have yet to impact their position on the NBA futures at online betting sites, where they continue to sport +1600 odds to repeat as NBA champions, and +100 odds to capture a third straight Atlantic Division title.
However, injuries have once again emerged as an issue. In addition to still being without Marc Gasol, who remains sidelined indefinitely with a hamstring ailment, both Serge Ibaka and Fred VanVleet are questionable for Tuesday’s date in Phoenix. Ibaka has been hampered by a knee injury and VanVleet is dealing with a shoulder injury; both were out of the lineup in the Raptors’ recent losses to Denver and Charlotte.
Both Ibaka and VanVleet missed time to injury earlier in the campaign. The team has compiled a middling 7-5 SU record without VanVleet in the lineup, but has managed to rack up a 9-4 SU record in 13 outings without Ibaka this season.
The Suns enter Tuesday night’s action also riding a three-game SU losing streak. Phoenix is coming off a 115-99 loss to the last-place Golden State Warriors as 10.5-point home chalk on Saturday, and has now averaged just 100.7 points per game in its three recent losses, all on home hardwood.
Phoenix has also failed to produce winning results in recent dates with the Raptors. The Suns have lost outright in their last five meetings with Toronto, capped by a 118-101 loss at Scotiabank Arena on Feb. 21. That run featured a pair of SU losses on home court. However, the Suns have paid dividends at the sportsbooks when facing the Raptors, going 12-1 against the spread in 13 matchups since December 2013 according to the OddsShark NBA Database.
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