It’s been a rough first half of the season north of the border this season, as the Toronto Raptors have almost as many losses by 20-plus points (seven) as wins (10). Masai Ujiri is clearly posturing for a high lottery pick in a talented class that features a generational talent in Duke’s Cooper Flagg.
While Toronto has had some bright spots, including resurgent play from R.J. Barrett and flashes of potential from 2023 lottery pick Gradey Dick. But the Raptors’ franchise centerpiece is their former No. 4 overall selection, Scottie Barnes, who made his first All-Star appearance in the 2023-24 season. Barnes is averaging 19.9 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 6.6 assists per game this season, although his three-point shooting (27.2%) has taken a major hit.
Tonight, Toronto will welcome the banged-up Orlando Magic to Scotiabank Arena for a 7:30 p.m. ET clash. The Magic are losers of each of their past three games and have slipped to seventh in the Eastern Conference.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, the Raptors are one-point underdogs and the total is set for 212.5. Below, I’ve highlighted my favorite prop bet centered around Barnes.
Best Scottie Barnes Prop Bet on DraftKings Sportsbook
Scottie Barnes U33.5 Points + Rebounds + Assists (-105)
Despite injuries that held forward Paolo Banchero out for more than two months, forward Franz Wagner for six weeks and counting, and point guard Jalen Suggs for two weeks and counting, Orlando has performed remarkably this season, especially on defense. The Magic have the third-lowest defensive rating in the league and allow the second-fewest points, second-fewest rebounds, and fewest assists per game this season. Although it’s struggled to control the boards over its three-game skid with center Goga Bitadze out, its defense has still been fairly solid overall.
The Raptors will trot out a mostly healthy lineup tonight; of regular rotation players, only Immanuel Quickley — who has barely played this season while dealing with a litany of injuries — will sit. Toronto is deep enough that Barnes won’t get the shots he needs to put up 34 combined P/R/A. He has failed to hit that number in six of his past eight games and averaged 32 P/R/A per game on putrid 45-22-65 shooting splits across that span. I don’t expect him to snap out of his shooting slump against the Magic, even with all of their injuries.
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