2009-10 Toronto Raptors Predictions

October 5, 2009

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Toronto finished the 2008-09 season with a 33-49 record and 33-46-3 against the spread. Key Acquisitions: Hedo Turkoglu, DeMar DeRozan, Jarrett Jack. Key Losses: Shawn Marion, Anthony Parker, Joey Graham. Take a look at the $500 in FREE bonus money BetUS offers our readers and make sure you stop back every day for more free NBA picks from our writers!

The Raptors were a complete and utter failure last NBA betting season. A team that was projected to finish in playoff contention finished fourth in the Atlantic Division, despite some all-world play by Chris Bosh. Toronto fans are getting downright nasty about the Raptors with each failing season, and the potential to lose Chris Bosh is only escalating, despite the power-forward’s efforts to soothe worries through the media. One thing you can bank on for sure: if the Raptors fail to make the playoffs, Chris Bosh will be gone.

Strengths: The Raptors can shoot the ball like crazy, and the acquisition of Hedo Turkoglu only cements that. Even with the loss of Jason Kapono, the Raptors have six or seven guys that can really hit it from the perimeter. Andrea Bargnani is a homeless man’s Dirk Nowitzki, and if he’s going to be a star in this league, his breakout has to come this year. Bargnani averaged 15.4 points and 5.3 rebounds last year, and looks to benefit by the presence of Turkoglu.

With the arrival of Jarrett Jack, the Raptors also have a reasonable backup guard for Jose Calderon. While leading the league in assist-to-turnover ratio, Calderon has his limitations in speed, which affects his defensive capabilities.

Weaknesses: Toronto has never been a tough team, and with Vince Carter as the best player in franchise history, you can see why. Chris Bosh is supposed to be the second coming of Garnett, but he lacks the physicality and strength to battle down low. Turk is a clutch shooter and an absolute gamer, and a lot of noise is being made about Reggie Evans, but if these are the two toughest guys on the team, then you’re in real trouble. I mean, who the hell is scared of Reggie Evans?

X-Factor: Team chemistry is going to be the biggest concern. Losing role players like Anthony Parker will allow guys like Andrea Belinelli to get more playing time. Scoring was always an issue for these guys because they lacked a dynamic threat. Hopefully they have that in DeMar DeRozan, the rookie they drafted from USC.

Betting Prescription: Patience. Last year, the betting world was in a frenzy over Toronto. This year, not so much. This is a team that went 16-23-2 ATS in their own building, and didn’t fair that much better at home. The oddsmakers had their sights on them properly, as the Raptors were just 18-31-3 ATS as underdogs. Be patient until the Raptors can prove they are worthy of the risk. Right now, they aren’t. There are simply too many questions.

2009-10 Outlook: Toronto is getting no love from the oddsmakers in the Eastern Conference as +6000 dogs to survive all the way to Eastern Conference Championship. That’s about right. This is a team that has serious question marks on defense, and is banking on a brand new team around a budding star in Chris Bosh.

It will take time for this team to get in sync, and until then, they’re no better than the 7th best team in the Eastern Conference. Even that’s a stretch. Boston, Cleveland, Orlando, Atlanta, Washington and Chicago are all better than the Raptors, so it will be up to Toronto to see if they can hold a candle in the frozen tundra to the upper echelon.

NBA Predictions: 3rd Atlantic Division, 7th in the Eastern Conference

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