Toronto Raptors vs Washington Wizards 1/21/22: Starting Lineups, Matchup Preview, Betting Odds, Live Stream

Toronto Raptors vs. Washington Wizards Matchup Preview (1/21/22)

The Washington Wizards will be playing at home for the sixth straight game, this time against the Toronto Raptors, who are still hanging around as a potential playoff team but need to win games like this one to keep climbing the ladder. Washington suffered a heartbreaking loss at home to the Brooklyn Nets after missing several shots at the end of the game to win. Brooklyn was without Kevin Durant, so you have to imagine this is a game that Washington wishes it could have had back. Kyle Kuzma had some choice words for the Brooklyn Nets’ coaches because they were standing in the referees’ line of sight in the fourth quarter. Still, the Wizards are winners of four of their past six games and easily could have won the two games they lost. There is still plenty of momentum in Washington to get it into the playoffs by the end of the season. For the Raptors, they still have a chance to make the playoffs but have to close the gap sooner versus later. You never want to be on the outside looking in, even at the halfway point. Toronto has played reasonably well recently but has taken some tough, close losses, including the Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, and Phoenix Suns. These are all acceptable losses, and it is promising that they were close games as well. This should be close the whole way, so look below at my pick for who will win this matchup.

Toronto Raptors vs. Washington Wizards Betting Odds

The Washington Wizards are 1.5 point favorites at home against the Toronto Raptors. Neither team should be missing significant players due to injury or the health and safety protocols, so this will be pretty straightforward: the better team, at this moment, should win. I believe that team is the Toronto Raptors. They recently lost several close games to top-tier teams and have won most of their other games, except for a road game against the Detroit Pistons. Toronto has played good teams like the Miami Heat, Dallas Mavericks, Milwaukee Bucks, and Phoenix Suns closely in the past few weeks. Assuming that Gary Trent Jr is cleared to play, I will slam the Toronto Raptors against the spread.

TV Schedule

Date: 1/21/22
Time: 8:00 PM ET
Arena: Capital One Arena – Washington, DC
Channel: ESPN

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Toronto Raptors Starting Lineup

PG: Fred VanVleet
SG: Gary Trent Jr.
SF: Scottie Barnes
PF: O.G> Anunoby
C: Pascal Siakam

Toronto Raptors Analysis

Like many teams, the Toronto Raptors have had several obstacles to overcome this season, including Pascal Siakam’s injury and his inconsistent and ineffective play initially upon returning. Siakam has turned things around significantly, averaging 24 points, 9.2 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and 1.8 steals in his past eight games. Additionally, Fred VanVleet has played like a flat-out All-Star this season, putting up huge numbers and hitting big-time shots in the clutch. For this matchup, the Raptors will be without Khem Birch due to a nose injury, and obviously, Goran Dragic. Gary Trent Jr is currently questionable due to an ankle injury, so keep an eye on the injury report to make sure he does not get scratched. The Raptors can be a playoff team, but they have to avoid injuries and advance their chemistry to take playoff spots from Washington, Boston, or Charlotte.

Washington Wizards Starting Lineup

PG: Spencer Dinwiddie
SG: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
SF: Bradley Beal
PF: Kyle Kuzma
C: Daniel Gafford

Washington Wizards Analysis

Washington just suffered a rough home loss to the Brooklyn Nets, who were without one of the MVP frontrunners in Kevin Durant. The Wizards had a few good looks before the buzzer sounded but were ultimately unable to connect. They have ranked in the middle-of-the-road in most offensive and defensive statistical categories throughout this season, not doing any one thing particularly well. Perhaps, this comes as a surprise to some, but the Wizards are just not as good as some thought at the beginning of the year. It will be difficult for them to overcome all areas where they are simply mediocre and nearly impossible to make a complete change from ranking 27th in the NBA in 3P% (three-point percentage.)

Toronto Raptors vs. Washington Wizards Daily Fantasy Picks

Ignore everything that happened in Los Angeles, all the outfits, and every negative basketball-related opinion you have regarding Kyle Kuzma. Ignore it all because Kuzma has been hooping in the 2021-22 NBA season, especially in the last month. On the season, Kuzma’s averages are respectable but not crazy. He has averaged 15.7 points, 8.9 rebounds, and three assists this season; however, in his past 11 games, Kuzma has dropped just shy of 24 points, 12 rebounds, and four assists on 52.3% shooting from the field. His three-point and free-throw averages are somewhat underwhelming, but he is figuring out how to be efficient inside the arc, which is a positive. Kuzma is still cheaper than other players with higher salaries, so he has terrific upside in DFS.

It took a little while for Pascal Siakam to find his groove since returning from an injury that forced him to miss Toronto’s first ten games, but he looks back to 100%. His season stats are somewhat misleading when considering how well he has played in his past 12 games, in particular. Siakam has averaged 24 points, 9.2 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and 1.8 steals during that span, which are easily All-Star caliber numbers. Siakam fills up all areas of the stat sheet, even on the defensive end, which is apparent by the five steals he racked up against the Miami Heat on January 17th. Since Pascal Siakam’s season averages are much lower compared to his recent output, you should be able to get him on a small discount in DFS. Consider plugging him into your lineup for this game as well as future matchups.