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Teams facing elimination in the NBA Playoffs are 1-1 straight-up and against the spread after the first pair of instances Saturday.
The Play of the Day, which uses odds from the South Point and $10,000 starting bankrolls, hopes another day can pass without a losing record for the teams in imminent danger.
Toronto Raptors plus-6 at Washington Wizards: $330 to win $300
Toronto is engulfed in problems at the moment. Quitting isn’t one of them.
The Raptors’ roster consists of a prideful and cohesive bunch. In other words, they fit the opposite profile of a team that willingly folds.
The Raptors are extremely unlikely to become the first team in NBA history to overcome a 3-0 series deficit, but they’re also not going to sully the best season in franchise history without giving any effort.
Toronto had one of its worst shooting days of the year in Game 3 — going 37 for 99 from the field — and still almost covered. The Wizards won 106-99 as 4.5-point favorites.
The extra 1.5 points for Game 4 might not be justified. Washington may have won all three games, but that doesn’t make it a team I’m rushing to back.
It was just a week ago that the Wizards were a near 2-to-1 underdog in this series — and with good reason. Toronto swept three meetings during the regular season.
Add up the Raptors’ three wins from earlier this year and the Wizards’ three since last Saturday and the total score is 609-609. Recency bias makes it difficult to say now, but these two teams are comparable.
The Raptors might finally start playing like it.
Standings: Keefer (77-73-2, $11,387), Bern (75-66-1, $10,962), Brewer (68-80-3, $3,245)
Case Keefer can be reached at 948-2790 or [email protected]. Follow Case on Twitter at twitter.com/casekeefer.
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