NBA Betting Picks: Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks Lines and Best Bets on December 9

The Toronto Raptors and the New York Knicks aim to return to the win column as they collide this Monday at the Scotiabank Arena.

(Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Losers of three of their last five, the Raptors head into this matchup following a 125-118 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Saturday while the Knicks hope to rebound quickly after dropping a 120-111 decision to the Detroit Pistons.

• New York heads into this matchup as a moderate 5.5-point favorite as per the latest Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks betting lines.
• It is, however, worth noting that they are taking on a potent Raptors team that are extremely impressive in front of their home fans as far as covering the spread is concerned, going 9-3 Against-The-Spread (ATS) across 12 home games.
• The Knicks, on the other hand, is no pushover, sporting a decent 11-11-1 ATS slate and covering the spread in five of their 12 road games this season.

Will the Raptors continue its decent showing at home this season or will the Knicks return to the win column in style?

That remains to be seen but as of press time, here’s how the current Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks odds look like as we head into this exciting Eastern Conference battle.

Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks DraftKings NBA Odds for December 9

Moneyline

• Toronto Raptors: +185
• New York Knicks: -225

Spread

• Toronto Raptors: +5.5 (-110)
• New York Knicks: -5.5 (-110)

Over/Under (Total)

• OVER 229.5 (-110)
• UNDER 229.5 (-110)

Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks Injury Report

Toronto Raptors Injury Report

1. DJ Carton – Ankle – Out
2. Immanuel Quickley – Elbow – Out

New York Knicks Injury Report

1. Cameron Payne – Elbow – Day-to-Day
2. Karl-Anthony Towns – Knee – Gametime Decision
3. Mitchell Robinson – Ankle – Out
4. Kevin McCullar Jr. – Knee – Out

Best NBA odds for Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks

• The Toronto Raptors have covered the spread in nine of their 12 home games this season. The best Toronto Raptors odds for the home team to cover the spread are available on DraftKings at -110.
• The New York Knicks have been on fire lately, winning four of their last five games by an average margin of 18.3 points. DraftKings offers the best odds for the Knicks to cover the spread at -110.
• A high-scoring affair is always on the cards when the Toronto Raptors and the New York Knicks play against each other. The best Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks odds for the over are available on DraftKings at -110.

Why will the Toronto Raptors cover the spread?

Wins have come few and far between for the Toronto Raptors this season, only ending up victorious in seven of their first 24 assignments.

Toronto recorded its second loss in a row and third in the last five on Saturday after losing to Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks 125-118 at home.

However, despite their underwhelming start, there are few things to love about the Raptors as they head into another thrilling clash versus the New York Knicks.

• Although the Raptors are struggling this season, they have shown some heart and grit in the past few games, especially in front of their adoring fans where they’ve covered the spread nine times out of 12 home games.
• Even more impressive is the fact that the Raptors were able to cover the spread against the Mavericks as an 8.5-point underdog despite huge games from Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and Klay Thompson, who combined for 79 points.

One thing the Raptors have to do to cover and potentially win against the Knicks is to control the rebounding battle.

In their last game, Toronto was out-rebounded by the Mavericks 52-39 and what’s even worse is they gave up 14 second chance opportunities to the latter who were more than impressive shooting the ball from the field.

Besides the battle of the boards, the Raptors will also need Scottie Barnes and RJ Barrett to up their offensive contribution against the Knicks to increase their chances of covering the spread.

• Barnes and Barrett were excellent against the Mavericks last game with the former Rookie of the Year finishing a near triple-double of 19 points, 14 assists, and eight rebounds, and the latter recording 18 points, five assists, and four rebounds.

While those numbers were impressive, it is a few notches below than their season averages with Barnes averaging 21.2 points per game and Barrett leading the team at 23.6 points per contest.

Should the Raptors control the rebounding battle and get Barnes and Barrett going, backing the home team to cover the spread is a great play here considering their ATS record in front of their fans.

Why will the New York Knicks cover the spread?

Missing franchise center Karl-Anthony Towns for the first time in a long time, the New York Knicks found themselves running into a construction barrel in the form of the Detroit Pistons as they lost to the latter 120-111 on Sunday.

• All-Star guard Jalen Brunson was on target against the Pistons recording 31 points and 10 assists so was Miles Bridges who had 20 points on 8-for-17 shooting for the field.

However, the absence of Towns proved to be the telling factor in that game as the Knicks lost the battle of the boards 43-31.

It also did not help that the Knicks shot a dismal 32.4% from the three-point area while allowing the Pistons to run riot from the outside, converting 50% of their three-point attempts.

Good thing for the Knicks is Karl-Anthony Towns is listed as day-to-day and is expected to suit up against the Toronto Raptors here.

• Acquired in the offseason, the 29-year old Towns has been stellar since joining the Knicks this season, averaging 25.2 points, a season-high 13.2 rebounds, and three assists while shooting 45% from rainbow country.
• In New York’s last victory over the Charlotte Hornets on Thursday night, Towns was remarkable, leading the Knicks with 27 points and 16 rebounds on 9-for-15 shooting from the field.

Other than Towns, New York may also need their bench to step up against the Raptors after being held to just 26 points against Detroit.

Should the Knicks get much-needed offensive contributions from their usual suspects and their reserves, backing them to return to the win column might be the play here.

Final Toronto Raptors vs New York Knicks NBA Prediction: Over 229.5 (-110)

On paper, the New York Knicks are more talented and more experienced than the Toronto Raptors but the game hardly plays out on paper.

While the Knicks are the naturally more-gifted team, ignoring the Raptors’ excellent ATS record at home is something I wouldn’t do especially in these circumstances.

That being said, I am going on the much safer option and picking the over in this matchup with both teams shooting the ball very well lately. It is also worth noting that the over hit in five of their previous six encounters.