The Cleveland Cavaliers will be looking to win three games in a row for the first time in five weeks when they play host to the Eastern-leading Toronto Raptors on Wednesday as 1-point underdogs on the NBA odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Cleveland is coming off a 124-117 win over the Milwaukee Bucks as 2.5-point home chalk on Monday, marking just the second time in 14 games the club has notched consecutive wins going into Wednesday night’s Raptors vs. Cavaliers betting matchup at Quicken Loans Arena.
The Cavaliers have compiled a middling 7-7 straight-up record over that stretch, including a 2-5 run on home court, both SU and against the spread, and have covered in just two of six overall. Cleveland also trails the Raptors by 11.5 games in the Eastern Conference standings, and can be eliminated from the hunt for top spot in the East with a loss on Wednesday night.
Cleveland has also dominated in recent dates with the Raptors, winning nine of 10 SU including a four-game sweep of Toronto in the second round of last year’s NBA playoffs. But the Cavaliers were embarrassed in a 133-99 loss in Toronto as a 2.5-point favorite back on January 11 in their only previous meeting with the Raptors this season.
Despite their recent struggles, the Cavaliers continue to maintain strong +900 odds (wager $100 to win $900) to claim their second NBA championship title in three years, edging out the Raptors, who trail at +1000 on those futures.
The Raptors travel to Cleveland after opening a brief two-game road trip on Tuesday with a 93-86 win in Orlando as 9-point road chalk, and they are now unbeaten SU in nine dates away from Air Canada Centre.
However, Toronto has struggled at the sportsbooks of late, failing to cover in their past three outings. The Raptors have also been a shaky bet when pegged as a narrow road favorite, going 2-6 SU and ATS in their past eight away games while favored by two or fewer points.
Following Wednesday’s contest the Cavaliers will be looking to extend a six-game SU winning streak against Phoenix when they close out their three-game homestand against the visiting Suns on Friday night.
