LA Lakers At Toronto Raptors: Key Play On The Total
Feb 12th, 2012 by PJ LaFerla
The Los Angeles Lakers visit Toronto for a Sunday matinee matchup, ending a long and brutal six-game road trip for the purple and gold. On this tour, in the previous five outings for the Lakers, away from Staples Center – three have stayed under the posted total, one pushed and only one managed to get over the total.
For the Raptors, three of their last five have gone over the posted total and three of their last four at home have eclipsed the total mark.
When these two teams tip off against one another you can usually expect a high scoring affair. In fact, the prior two games over the past three seasons have both exceeded the posted total. And going back fourteen games, nine have surpassed the projected total.
The Lakers average about 93 points scored on the offensive end and give up just fewer than 91 points on the defensive side of the ball. The Raptors meanwhile give up 93 points on defense and struggle to reach 90 points on the offensive end. However, they have averaged 97 points per game in their last five outings and have shown signs of an improving offense.
Both teams offensive and defensive numbers on average reflect a mistake by the Oddsmakers. I believe this total should be around the 180-182 mark and not where it is currently sits at 175.
Many experts might suggest that the Lakers are tired and anxious to get back to Los Angeles and this may attribute to this low number, but nevertheless this game still needs to be played and a meager 175 seems cheap to me – especially when you have Kobe Bryant on the floor. This is a PERFECT situation that shows value and something I preach in nearly all of my articles.
Before putting yourself into action and making a play, you need to research the matchups and fine value that will give you the best shot of winning your wager.
Well, here it is: make your play on OVER the posted total of 175 between the Lakers and Raptors and enjoy your Sunday…
PJ Laferla is a practicing freelance writer, professional handicapper, and the founder of SportsInput.com. If you are interested in hiring PJ Laferla for freelance writing or for winning picks against the spread, please submit all inquires to PJ@sportsinput.com.