Two-time All-Star reaching new heights
The Cavaliers have basketball’s second-best record at 8-1. Nevertheless, Toronto currently trots out the hottest offensive talent in the game.
DeMar DeRozan and the Raptors (7-2) tackle Cleveland again tonight, with a 7 p.m. ET tip at Quicken Loans Arena. Online sports book Bovada.lv gives LeBron James & Co. odds of -240 to prevail at home. Dwane Casey’s club, on the other hand, enters the contest as a +200 underdog.
On Saturday, the 27-year-old DeRozan torched New York for 33 points. Besides pacing the league in scoring, he’s shooting a blistering 52 percent from the field. The USC product was just named the Eastern Conference’s Player of the Week, too, snatching the honor away from James.
Naturally, though, No. 23 seems focused solely on keeping his group humming. Cleveland withstood a strong challenge from Charlotte over the weekend, notching a 100-93 victory. Reserve power forward Channing Frye erupted for a team-high 20 points in that affair, while James and Kyrie Irving had 19 apiece.
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Look for this tilt to mirror last month’s meeting at Air Canada Centre. Regardless of DeRozan’s sensational showing, the Cavs eked out a 94-91 win on Oct. 28. Here, coach Tyronn Lue will compel his troops to apply the defensive clamps from the very beginning.
TUESDAY NBA FREE PICK: RAPTORS/CAVALIERS UNDER 208 POINTS