Gameday: Raptors @ Wizards, December 26
The Raptors look to end their mini three-game road trip on a high note in Washington, D.C. Can they give Raptors fans a slightly late Christmas gift on Boxing Day against a struggling opponent to finish the road trip with a two-and-one record?
Raptors Outlook
Record: 18-13 | 4th in Eastern Conference
Offensive Rating: 113.5 (20th) | Defensive Rating: 111.8 (4th) | Net Rating: +1.7 (12th)
Raptors previous results
@ Heat W 112-91
@ Nes L 96-81
vs Celtics L 112-96
@ Bucks W 111-105
@ Heat W 106-96
Toronto comes into this contest one for one on a mini three-game road trip, as they took a bad loss against the 13th-seeded Brooklyn Nets last week, when they lost 96-81 and beat the Heat 112-91 to even out the record. One of the biggest reasons for the Brooklyn loss was poor offensive play for the Raptors, who were only able to put up 81 points against a current lottery team. The absence of RJ Barrett has really affected the offence as Toronto now ranks at a poor 20th in offensive rating after being top 10 for a good part of the season when they were on their season high nine game winstreak before the Canadian was sidelined with a right knee sprain. Toronto’s offence goes through dry spells, but it seems like those dry spells have only increased after losing their second-highest scorer on the season, as Barrett was off to a hot start, averaging 19.3 points per game across 17 games on an efficient 50.6 percent shooting from the field so far. Ochai Agbaji has filled in Barrett’s starting spot lately and has picked it up after really struggling beyond the arc to start out the season, and is shooting a better 33.3 percent from beyond the arc across seven starts. Sandro Mamukelashvili has really broken out this season and fills in quite well for the injured Jakob Poeltl. Across five starts, Mamu is averaging 16.2 points on a very efficient 55.4 percent from the field and an even 50 percent from beyond the arc, along with 6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1 steal per game. Despite the offensive struggles, the defence has picked it up and is now ranked fourth across the league for defensive rating, which was a huge concern when the season got going.
Wizards Outlook
Record: 5-23 | 15th in Eastern Conference
Offensive Rating: 109.4 (28th) | Defensive Rating: 123.1 (30th) | Net Rating: -13.7 (30th)
Wizards previous results
@ Hornets L 126-109
vs Spurs L 124-113
@ Grizzlies W 130-122
@ Spurs L 119-94
@ Pacers W 108-89
For the Wizards, it’s another bottom-feeding year so far as this would mark the fifth season in a row of no playoffs if Washington can’t turn things around quickly. They have the advantage on the injury report, as the Wizards are currently without two players, while Toronto has two confirmed injuries (potentially three, with Collin Murray-Boyles), excluding the G-Leaguers. Toronto are confirmed not to have two starters compared to the Wizards’ two bench players of Corey Kispert and Cam Whitmore, who are rotation players but aren’t regular starters for the struggling ball club. Although the Wizards’ advanced team stats aren’t that great, they are playing better basketball as they’ve collected two of their five wins in their last five games. CJ McCollum leads the team with 18.6 points, Alex Sarr leads the team with 8.6 rebounds and 2.0 blocks, and Kyshawn George is enjoying a bigger role as a starter this year as he’s broken out as a good two-way player, averaging a team high 5.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game. They actually have one more double-digit points per game scorer compared to the Raptors’ five, as Marvin Bagley III, Khris Middleton, rookie sixth overall pick Tre Johnson, Kyshawn George, Alex Sarr and CJ McCollum are all averaging more than 10.2 points per game, but they lack a real elite scoring threat as none of them are in the 20+ points per game mark.
Game Info
Tip-Off: 7:00 p.m. ET
Television: Sportsnet
Radio: Sportsnet 590
Venue: Capital One Arena
Starting Lineups (Projected)
Washington Wizards
PG: CJ McCollum
SG: Khris Middleton
SF: Kyshawn George
PF: Bilal Coulibaly
C: Alex Sarr
Toronto Raptors
PG: Immanuel Quickley
SG: Ochai Agbaji
SF: Brandon Ingram
PF: Scottie Barnes
C: Sandro Mamukelashvili
Injury Report
Toronto Raptors
Jakob Poeltl (Lower Back Strain) – Out
RJ Barrett (Right Knee Sprain) – Out
Collin Murray-Boyles (Illness) – Questionable
Alijah Martin (Two-Way Assignment) – Out
AJ Lawson (Two-Way Assignment) – Out
Chucky Hepburn (Two-Way Assignment) – Out
Scottie Barnes (Illness) – Questionable
Washington Wizards
Corey Kispert (Left Hamstring Tightness) – Out
Cam Whitmore (Right Shoulder Deep Vein Thrombosis) – Out
| Team | Spread | Money | Total |
| Toronto Raptors | -8.5 (–105) | -330 | O 228.5 (-105) |
| Washington Wizards | +8.5 (-115) | +275 | U 228.5 (-115) |
Odds as of Dec.26, 12:00 a.m. ET
All Toronto Raptors odds are provided by NBA Betting Site Betway!
The post Gameday: Raptors @ Wizards, December 26 first appeared on Raptors Republic.