It’s game 4 of 82 for Toronto. Tonight they match up against the Trail Blazers and the third overall pick of the 2023 draft, Scoot Henderson. It’ll be the first look the Raptors get of the Blazers sans Lillard as he finally ran from the grind and Portland hits the reset button with a very young roster.
Trail Blazers Scope (0-3, 13th in West | Offensive rating: 23rd | Defensive rating: 28th)
Last three games: L @ 76ers 126-98, L vs Magic 102-97, L @ Clippers 123-111
Portland recently lost guard Anfernee Simons for 4-6 weeks meaning Shaedon Sharpe has stepped into the starting five. He led the team in points in their most recent loss against the Philadelphia 76ers last night. The new guys outside of Malcolm Brogdon have yet to have a great game, which might be bad news for Toronto as it feels like the Blazers are due a win soon. Deandre Ayton did have a nice double-double against the Magic but outside of that hasn’t shown anything eye-popping. Scoot Henderson is really struggling to shoot the ball right now, as well as Jerami Grant but it’s still early.
Raptors Scope (1-2, 14th in East | Offensive rating: 25th | Defensive rating: 5th)
Last three games: L vs 76ers 114-107, L @ Bulls 104-103, W vs Timberwolves 97-94
The Raptors were moments away from being a 2-0 team but Alex Caruso and the Chicago Bulls were able to snatch the win away late from Toronto. And now that puts them at 1-2 after a loss at home against Philadelphia on Saturday night. Toronto actually started out great against the 76ers but a horrible third quarter let the game get away from them. The three-point shooting was amazing against Philadelphia though without arguably their best three-point shooter, O.G. Anunoby and that’s a good sign for a team that was near the bottom of the league for three-point percentage last season. Gradey Dick also announced his arrival with a 16-point performance against the 76ers as he shot 5/8 from the field. Scottie Barnes has been sensational, and we’ll see if Pascal Siakam can get going tonight.
Game Info
Tip-Off: 7:30 EST | TV: TSN4,5 | Radio: SN 590
Trail Blazers Lineup
Anfernee Simons (thumb), Ish Wainright(calf) and Robert Williams (rest) are out.
PG: Scoot Henderson, Malcolm Brogdon, Skylar Mays
SG: Shaedon Sharpe, Rayan Rupert
SF: Matisse Thybulle, Toumani Camara
PF: Jerami Grant, Jabari Walker, Kris Murray
C: Deandre Ayton, Moses Brown
Raptors Lineup
Christian Koloko is out with an illness again and Precious Achiuwa (groin) joins him.
PG: Dennis Schroder, Malachi Flynn, Markquis Nowell,
SG: Gary Trent Jr., Gradey Dick, Javon Freeman-Liberty
SF: Scottie Barnes, Jalen McDaniels, Otto Porter Jr., Garrett Temple, Ron Harper Jr.
PF: Pascal Siakam, Chris Boucher, Thaddeus Young
C: Jakob Poeltl
The Line
The Raptors are heavy favourites at home by 9.5 points with Portland’s updated injury report. Over/Under currently sits at 216.5.
