Golden State Warriors Vs. Toronto Raptors: Odds, How To Watch

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — The two-time defending champion Golden State Warriors will play the Toronto Raptors in the NBA Finals, with game one slated to start Thursday evening at the Scotiabank Arena in Ontario. The Warriors, who will likely be missing superstar forward Kevin Durant for at least two games, entered the series as the heavy favorites to win a third straight championship, according to oddsmakers.

Tip off Thursday is scheduled for 6 p.m. Pacific Time. The game was to air on ABC and ESPN Radio. ESPN’s broadcast team will consist of Mike Breen, Jeff Van Gundy, Mark Jackson and Doris Burke.

A livestream of the entire series will be available on Watch ESPN for both desktop and on the mobile app. FuboTV will also provide a livestream.

Golden State hopes to make history and become just the third team in NBA history to win three consecutive titles. The only other teams to do it: the Los Angeles Lakers in 2000-02 and the Chicago Bulls, which did it twice in the 1990s.

Oddsmakers are bullish on the Warriors’ chances, with the most optimistic bookies giving them as much as a 77 percent chance to three-peat, according to Oddschecker.com. But despite being outsiders, the Toronto Raptors have actually received the lion’s share of bets to win the championship.

Gamblers who like the Raptors’ chances would see the best odds at about 28 percent. This means that a correct $100 bet on Toronto to win the title would result in a payout of $360. Gamblers are obviously seeing value in the Raptors, Oddschecker spokesman Pete Watt told Patch this week. About 68 percent of the market is backing the Raptors and Kawhi Leonard to triumph.

Warriors star Stephen Curry is favored to win MVP and be the top scorer in the series. Bookies gave him a 60 percent chance to win MVP compared to just 27 percent for Leonard. Curry was also given about a 57 percent chance to be the top scorer, compared to 50 percent for Leonard.

Interestingly, gamblers have honed in on Leonard’s chances to steal the series. The Raptors’ star accounted for more than half of bets to win MVP and more than 75 percent of bets for top scorer.

But while Golden State is the favorite, oddsmakers think the Raptors will take game one. Toronto was given a 56 percent chance to win on their home floor. Watt said the Raptors will look to keep their momentum going after a thrilling series win over Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks.

“The Raptors have already performed one miracle in overcoming the Bucks, and will go into the match in full momentum,” he said.

Watt added that Durant’s absence may have led to the flurry of bets for the Raptors. But even without him, Golden State remains dangerous. After all, they still have the Splash Brothers and Draymond Green. They’ll also get four-time All-Star DeMarcus Cousins back, though it’s unclear how much playing time he’ll get.

“However, Warriors are lethal even without their talisman and will be looking to take advantage of any overconfidence that may have crept into the Raptors’ camp,” said Watt.

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