Gavazzi
5% GOW on BUFFALO U
5& BOISE ST
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Cal sports
5* SEC GOM on TENNESSEE
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The Grape Ape's Big Banana Game of the Month
Oklahoma -2.5
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Dr. Bob - NBA
**TORONTO (-4) over Miami
Rotation #502 – 4:35 pm Pacific
The market has overreacted to Kyle Lowry likely not playing in this game, as Lowry really doesn’t move the needle for the Raptors when he’s in or out of the game. Last season Lowry missed 23 games and Toronto’s average game rating in those 23 games was +2.9 points, which was only 0.8 points lower than their average game rating of +3.7 points in the games that Lowry played in. This season I don’t think there will be any negative affect to the Raptors with Lowry out given how well Van Fleet and Wright have played. The Raptors have a plus-minus of +7.6 points per 48 minutes when Lowry is in the game and a PM per 48 of +8.3 when he’s on the bench. Part of that is because DeMar DeRozan plays better when Lowry is not dominating the ball. This was the case last season as well but this season the difference in DeRozan’s play when Lowry is on the bench is much more significant. Toronto has outscored opponents by 7.2 points per 48 minutes when DeRozan and Lowry are on the court together this season but DeRozan is +18.6 points per 48 minutes (+78 in 201.6 minutes) when he’s playing without Lowry. Obviously, there is some variance in that fairly small sample size but there is more than enough evidence to suggest that Toronto is no worse without Lowry and my ratings favor the Raptors by 8 ½ points in this game against Miami’s current rotation with James Johnson back (a positive) and Bam Adebayo getting fewer minutes (also a positive). I’ll take Toronto in a 2-Star Best Bet at -5 points or less.
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Marc Lyle sports
Minnesota -115 in NHL
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Vegas Line Reader
St. Johns -6.5
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