Toronto Raptors vs Oklahoma City Thunder Prediction, 3/31/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Toronto Raptors vs Oklahoma City Thunder

Date: Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, OK

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma

Odds/Point Spread: Toronto (-8)

The Toronto Raptors (18-29) go to Chesapeake Energy Arena on Wednesday where they'll take on the Oklahoma City Thunder (19-27). Oklahoma City opens this matchup as 8-point underdogs. The total is set at 224.5.

The Toronto Raptors faced off with the Detroit Pistons and went home with a loss by a final score of 118-104 in their last contest. Toronto ended the contest with a 40.7% FG percentage (35 of 86) and knocked down 11 of 36 3-point attempts. When they shot from the free throw line, the Raptors buried 23 of 28 tries for a percentage of 82.1%. When discussing grabbing rebounds, they compiled 38 with 10 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 21 assists in the matchup as well as forcing the other team into 19 turnovers and getting 6 steals. Pertaining to the defense, Toronto allowed their opponent to shoot 50.7% from the floor on 38 out of 75 shooting. Detroit totaled 26 dimes and had 6 steals in this contest. Moreover, Detroit collected 44 rebounds (9 offensive, 35 defensive) and got 6 blocks. Detroit ended up going 79.4% at the free throw line by making 27 of 34 shots. They also buried 15 of 30 tries from three-point range.

Fred VanVleet is one guy who was a major contributor in this matchup. He finished with 22 points on 7 of 20 shooting. He played 32:54 minutes and pulled down 5 boards. VanVleet finished the game at 35.0% from the floor and distributed 1 assist. Someone else that was a determining factor in the game for the Raptors was OG Anunoby. He snagged 5 rebounds in 31:11 minutes played. He shot 50.0% from the field for the matchup by shooting 6-of-12 (19 points). When the game finished, Anunoby earned 3 assists.

Toronto will enter this matchup with a record of 18-29 so far this season. The Raptors are connecting on 37.5% on shots from beyond the arc (720 of 1,922) and 82.6% from the free throw line. They are averaging 112.1 points per game (18th in the NBA) while hitting 44.6% from the floor. They turn the ball over 13.5 times per game and as a squad are committing 22.1 fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Toronto is pulling in 41.0 rebounds per contest and has 1,163 dimes so far this year, which ranks 14th in basketball in terms of passing. On defense, the Raptors have forced 16.3 turnovers per game while drawing 20.5 personal fouls. The Raptors defense is allowing a field goal percentage of 46.0% (765 of 964) and they concede 46.0 boards per game as a group. They are 30th in the NBA in allowing assists to the opposition with 1,248 relinquished for the campaign. They concede 37.4% on shots from downtown while they are 19th in basketball in points per game allowed (112.5).

In their last game, the Oklahoma City Thunder took a defeat with a final score of 127-106 when they faced the Dallas Mavericks. The Thunder earned 37 defensive boards and 10 offensive boards for a total of 47 for the contest. They also turned it over 16 times, while getting 8 steals in this matchup. The Mavericks committed 21 fouls for the game which got the Thunder to the charity stripe for 33 attempts. They were able to bury 21 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 63.6%. When it comes to 3-point shots, Oklahoma City converted 9 of their 26 attempts (34.6%). When the final whistle blew, the Thunder finished shooting 38 out of 81 from the field which had them shooting 46.9%. The Thunder allowed the Mavericks to bury 51 of their 96 attempts from the floor which gave them a percentage of 53.1% in this contest. They finished 36.4% from behind the 3-point line by shooting 16 out of 44 and ended up going 9 of 13 at the free throw line (69.2%). In reference to how they attacked the glass, Oklahoma City permitted Dallas to snag 43 overall (8 on the offensive side).

Aleksej Pokusevski pitched in for the Thunder for this contest. He knocked down 8 out of 17 for the matchup for a field goal rate of 47.1%, and accounted for 6 rebounds. Pokusevski tallied 21 points in his 33:57 minutes on the hardwood and had 2 assists in this matchup. One more player that was pivotal for Oklahoma City was Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk. He walked away with 1 assist in 27:16 mins played, and he knocked down 7 out of 10 from the floor. Mykhailiuk ended up shooting 70.0% from the field while totaling 16 points and 3 boards.

Oklahoma City has a record of 19-27 for the campaign. Oklahoma City has totaled 4,881 points this season (106.1 per game) and they snag 44.7 rebounds per game. The Thunder are responsible for committing 17.8 personal fouls every game and they hit 73.6% from the charity stripe. In terms of offensive execution, the Thunder are hitting on 44.8% from the field, which has them ranked 23rd in the NBA. They are getting an assist 22.7 times per contest (26th in basketball) and they lose possession via turnover 15.0 times per contest. The Thunder on defense are ranked 18th in the NBA in points per game surrendered with 112.3. They have forced 13.1 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 46.6% from the floor (15th in the NBA). The Oklahoma City defense surrenders 35.0% from downtown (585 of 1,672) and their opposition makes 75.8% of their shots from the free throw line. They give up 24.6 dimes and 47.5 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is 15th and 27th in the league.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Toronto (-8)

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