Friday NBA Predictions: Raptors, Cavaliers, and Warriors Betting Insights

Wanna bet that anyone making an NBA wager on Friday doesn't ponder the league’s ongoing betting scandal?

Consult the entry for Golden State at Portland – or anywhere news is published, discussed or broadcast – should you defy those odds.

A quick disclaimer before we proceed: The information that shaped the rationales below is technically “inside,” as it was researched and written from my home office and not the screened-in porch.

Let’s go.

MILWAUKEE BUCKS AT TORONTO RAPTORS, 6:30 P.M.

While rolling to the largest margin of victory in a season opener in franchise history might not carry the cachet of qualifying for the World Series, it’s all the Toronto Rangers, er, Raptors have at this juncture, all right?

Accommodating the Blue Jays’ run to the Fall Classic by moving up the tipoff time of their home opener, the Raptors will show World Series Game 1 in progress after their game with Milwaukee.

While the Bucks have won three straight against Toronto, including two at Scotiabank Arena, the Raptors will reverse that trend behind not only their city’s energy but that of a native son.

Toronto-born RJ Barrett keyed Wednesday’s 138-118 rout in Atlanta by scoring 25 points on 9-for-12 shooting while adding eight rebounds and five assists.

Barrett wasn’t alive when the Blue Jays defeated the Atlanta Braves in the 1992 World Series, nor when they Joe-Cartered the Philadelphia Phillies to claim another Series a year later.

This time, he’ll help send the fans who don’t stick around the Scotiabank jumbotron home happy.

RJ Barrett 20+ points and Raptors -1.5 as two-leg parlay (+282 with FanDuel)

CLEVELAND CAVALIERS AT BROOKLYN NETS, 7 P.M.

After sputtering in the fourth quarter of Wednesday’s season-opening road loss to the New York Knicks, the Cavs should be a lock to earn a split of their two-game trip to NYC.

Cleveland has won nine of 10 against Brooklyn, including six straight at Barclays Center, frequently benefiting from its star’s heroics along the way. That would be Donovan Mitchell, who is 15-4 in his career against the Nets and averages 26.6 points against them.

Cavaliers -13.5 (-110 with FanDuel)

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS AT PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS, 10 P.M.

Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups coached Portland during Wednesday’s 118-114 home loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

On Thursday, he was placed on leave from the team following an arrest stemming from his alleged involvement in a gambling scheme reportedly backed by the Mafia, which included participating in rigged poker games. Other information seems to implicate him in a separate sports-betting case.

The Oregonian reported that attempts to speak with Blazers players or coaches leaving the team practice facility Thursday “were rebuffed by security.” Ditto for fans seeking autographs.

As another Western Conference contender comes to town Friday, dissecting Portland interim coach Tiago Splitter’s Xs and Os won’t be the issue as much as gauging the Blazers’ collective mindset. What can they be thinking about Billups and the allegations he may have sold his team out?

It will take more than a couple days to process. While the game might offer a welcome deterrent, as sports frequently do, the Dubs aren’t exactly patsies, even while playing the second leg of a back-to-back.

Warriors -1.5 (+100 with BetMGM)