Well, they made it folks. Philly’s team looks completely different than what they had last postseason, and they are a win away from the ECF, a place they have not been in 18 years when Allen Iverson was the captain of the ship. They have been doing it with balance this year, but their bench is anything but impressive. They do not use any guards, just forwards and big men (who gets the nod at backup center tonight will be a mystery) off the pine.
And then we have Toronto. In 2015 they made it to the ECF and even took two games at home from Cleveland to even the series at one point. They are also a talented bunch with a “weak” bench that does not get much run. It would not be much of a shock to see Siakam, Lowry, and Green all log north of 43 minutes in this game. They will lay it all out on the line.
Sixers at Raptors odds
Spread: TOR -6
O/U: 209
Sixers at Raptors stats
Sixers: Jimmy Butler has been their leader in this series, adding another 25 points in Game 6. This is why they traded so much to bring him in, and they’ll hope he can keep it going. Joel Embiid didn’t produce much in Game 6 but had a net rating of +40 in his 35:33 of action, which means they were -29 in the other 12:27. They have to hope he can go over 40 minutes. Ben Simmons came through with 21 points, something they have been needing, while Tobias had 16 but only shot 6-17. They got a +29 from Mike Scott off the bench, who will also be VITAL today.
Raptors: Their lack of balance has continued to be an issue, as all of the pressure has fallen onto the shoulders of Kawhi in this series, with Siakam unable to pick up some slack. Kyle Lowry impacts the game in many ways, but his scoring has not been great. They will need Danny Green to do better than the 2-8 he shot last game, and Ibaka’s 3-10 is also unacceptable. We will probably get very short stints of Norman Powell, with Van Vleet getting 10-12 mins, and Ibaka getting 15-20.
Sixers at Raptors H2H
Philly had lost 14 straight games at Toronto before their win in Game 2. This will give them a little added momentum ahead of this one. The Sixers are only 2-15 against Toronto (5-12 ATS) since 2012-13. Also worth noting that as Toronto lost Game 6 by 11 points, teams who lose Game 6 by 10+ pts have gone 10-14 against-the-spread in Game 7.
Sixers at Raptors odds
Alright, folks here it is. Make sure you bet PHI +6! The 76ers will come away with the win and move on to the ECF. The rumors of Brett Brown being fired can now be squashed.
