Toronto Raptors at Orlando Magic NBA Pick for February 2

We go from a big 10-game Monday slate to a shorter six-gamer on Tuesday around the NBA. One of the matchups features a couple of unlikely Florida rivals. The Toronto Raptors, who are playing at least the first half of the season with a temporary home base of Tampa, will head to Orlando to take on the Magic.

Orlando has dealt with injuries all season. The Magic have already lost Jonathan Isaac and Markelle Fultz for the season, while Aaron Gordon went down on Sunday. Gordon suffered a severe ankle sprain in Sunday’s 13-point loss at the hands of Toronto, which means Steve Clifford will be down both his starting power forward and his backup point guard.

The Raptors are listed as six-point favorites on the road here with an over/under of 214.5 points.

Shorthanded Magic

Gordon’s injury is yet another blow to the Magic. The Arizona product has averaged 13.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 4.2 assists per game on the year. The assist average is a career-high, and it comes after he has been forced to slide into an unlikely role as Orlando’s backup point guard. With injuries to Fultz and Michael Carter-Williams, the only point guard on the roster other than Cole Anthony is Jordan Bone. Bone has been a borderline NBA player over the years, so Clifford opted to give Gordon a shot to handle the ball in a hybrid playmaking role.

So far, he’s made the most of his new duties. However, the ankle issue is expected to keep him sidelined for about a month, so Clifford will have to again reshuffle his deck. Bone will almost surely enter the rotation as Anthony’s direct backup, while the likes of James Ennis, Gary Clark, Dwayne Bacon, and Terrence Ross should see a few extra minutes.

Gordon’s injury also just puts more responsibility on the plate of Nikola Vucevic. Vucevic is already the Magic’s offensive hub and go-to scorer, but he struggled in this matchup the other day. Vucevic made just five of his 18 shots on his way to 15 points in 35 minutes of action. Orlando will also have to lean on Anthony and Evan Fournier to carry more of the offensive freight. Fournier shot just two-for-12 and finished with 11 points on Sunday, while Anthony (16 points) was actually the team’s leading scorer.

The Magic are 0-2 so far this season in games Gordon has missed. Orlando is also 9-12-0 so far this season against the spread.

Raptors’ Injury Issues

The Raptors did beat Orlando on Sunday, but the season has been a struggle thus far for Toronto. That win brought the Raptors’ record to just 8-12 on the year and snapped a three-game losing streak. Toronto was among the frontrunners in the Eastern Conference last season in their first campaign after Kawhi Leonard’s departure, but the 2020-21 campaign has been far more hit-or-miss.

Toronto is dealing with some injuries of their own, as well. OG Anunoby, who has missed the last two games with a calf issue, is sidelined again tonight. Norman Powell, who has also missed the last two games, is questionable with a quad injury.

Being down a couple of wing players has required Nick Nurse to dive deep into his bench. Terence Davis has started next to Kyle Lowry and Fred VanVleet over the past couple of games, while journeyman Yuta Watanabe has played his way into a bigger role. Watanabe scored 11 points and blocked 3 shots in 19 minutes off the bench in Sunday’s win over Orlando. The team also got 12 points in 22 minutes out of DeAndre’ Bembry, who has spent most of the season at the end of the bench.

Pascal Siakam will once again be the key for Toronto. He finished with a team-high 30 points on 12-for-23 shooting in Sunday’s victory, which helped to offset the shooting woes of Lowry and VanVleet. VanVleet mustered just nine points on four-of-12 shooting in 31 minutes of action.

The Raptors came into the year with high expectations, which helps explain why they rank among the worst ATS bets in the league thus far. Toronto is just 7-13-0 ATS. Only the Heat have been less profitable against the spread (6-13-1).

What’s the Best Bet?

The Raptors will likely figure things out at some point before the playoffs roll around, but this team really hasn’t looked good all season long. Toronto finished last season ranked second in defensive rating, allowing just 102 points per 100 possessions. So far this season, they’ve plummeted to 12th in the same category.

The Magic haven’t been anything to write home about, either, but the Raptors being six-point favorites here seems to be based on the notion that Toronto isn’t actually as bad as they’ve looked for most of the campaign. The Magic shot just 40 percent from the field on Sunday, but I’d expect a more efficient offensive performance on their home floor tonight. Orlando just looks like a solid bet to cover the spread. With both teams thin on rotation players, I like the Magic to cover at home.