Raptors picks and props vs. Celtics Jan. 15: Bet on Toronto to cover and Barnes to score
The Toronto Raptors return home from a six-game road trip to play the league-leading Boston Celtics.
The pregame narrative: Toronto has dropped four of its past five games and things aren't going to get any easier tonight. Boston has the best record (30-9) in basketball but has struggled to perform on the road. I'm backing the Raptors to cover a sizeable spread and Scottie Barnes to score.
See how we're betting on this game in our Raptors picks vs. the Celtics for January 15.
NBA oddsas of 11:52 a.m. ET on 01/15/2024.
Raptors picks and props vs. Celtics
Best Bet: Raptors +7.5 (-115)
This won't be an easy game by any stretch but Toronto is well-equipped to keep things close against its rival.
The Raptors have had a tough go lately but they're still 3-4 in the Immanuel Quickley and RJ Barrett era, covering his number in six of seven games. During that stretch, they've averaged an impressive 123.8 points per game.
And when you consider six of those games were on the road, that's not too shabby.
Boston's 19-0 home record is worth fawning over but the team looks different when it's not playing on parquet floors. All nine of its losses have come as the road team and that includes three of its past four games away from TD Garden.
The Celtics rank first in home net rating (+15.6) and are fourth on the road (+4.3). That's still impressive but a 7-11-2 road ATS record shouldn't be overlooked.
Key stat: Toronto covered this number in each of its past two games against Boston.
Quick pick
Barnes over 18.5 points (-109): This has proven to be a very gettable line for Barnes. The third-year small forward has cleared this mark in 26 of 39 games (66.6%) including nine of his past 11.
Granted, he's barely scraped by lately, scoring between 19 and 20 points four times in his last seven games.
But the last time Barnes went up against Boston he had a monster 30-point night. As long as he keeps putting up shots, he'll be liable to score 20-plus.
