Any NBA betting doubts about Toronto coach Nick Nurse were erased last summer. Despite the loss of the 2019 NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard, the Raptors kept winning big. Toronto made the Eastern Conference semifinals where they lost in seven games to Boston. Nick Nurse was the rookie head coach that led Toronto to the 2019 NBA championship. Nobody knew who he was before then. Toronto was written off for dead after Leonard went to the Clippers. Instead, Nurse orchestrated the best defense in the NBA. The Raptors remained a contender. At the onset of 2020-21, they remain so.
2020-21 Toronto Raptors
| Odds | |
|---|---|
| NBA Championship | +2000 |
| Eastern Conference | +800 |
2020-21 Toronto Raptors SBG Odds Overview
Toronto is the sports betting darling of sharps. While squares remain skeptical since Kawhi Leonard’s departure.
2020-21 Toronto Raptors Team Overview
The 2019-20 Toronto Raptors finished 53-19 straight up, 41-30-1 against the spread, and 36-35 over the total. First in the Atlantic Division was their final standing. Toronto ranked 13th for scoring offense and best for the fewest points allowed. Pascal Siakam led the Raptors in scoring with 21.9 points per game. Kyle Lowry was the top assist man with 7.2 per game. While Serge Ibaka was the top rebounder with 8.1 per game.
Nick Nurse is a remarkable story. He began coaching in obscure minor league outposts and small colleges from 1989 through 2013. Then he caught on with the Raptors as an assistant coach. Following five years in that role, he was promoted to head coach. Nurse and the Raptors defied the NBA betting odds with a title. Last year he was named NBA Coach of the Year. Nick Nurse has achieved profound credibility in just two years.
Previously Raptors President Masai Ujiri was Denver’s general manager. Ujiri was the man that made the tough call to fire the 2018 NBA coach of the year, Dwane Casey. He hired Nick Nurse with the rest being history. Also, Ujiri acquired Kawhi Leonard in a trade with San Antonio. In 2013 he was named NBA Executive of the Year.
General manager Bobby Webster was named to his position in 2017. Overall he’s held various front office roles in the NBA since 2006.
Toronto selected San Diego State guard Malachi Flynn in the first round of the 2020 NBA Draft. Flynn began his college career with two seasons at Washington State. Subsequently, he transferred to the Aztecs. In 2019-20 he averaged 17.6 points per game. Flynn was a second-team consensus All-American and Mountain West Player of the Year for 2020.
Power forward Pascal Siakam was a first-round pick in the 2016 NBA Draft from New Mexico State. Siakam is a native of Cameroon. Later he went to high school at God’s Academy in Lewisville, Texas. Siakam was an NBA All-Star for the first time in his career last season. Accordingly, Siakam exploded for 22.9 points and 7.3 rebounds per game.
Point Guard Kyle Lowry was a first-round pick out of Villanova in 2006. Consider Lowry is a six-time NBA All-Star from 2015 through 2020. He’s been with the Raptors since 2012. Last season he averaged 17.7 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 5.8 assists per game. Previously Lowry played for Memphis and Houston.
2020-21 Toronto Raptors Prognosis
In this situation, the Raptors should remain a strong regular-season team. But they lack the go-too man for a championship.