Who's Playing
Matchup: Toronto Raptors vs. Washington Wizards
Records: Raptors (11-13), Wizards (6-15)
Where to Watch
Date: Wednesday, Feb. 10
Time: 7 p.m. ET
TV: TSN (Canada), NBC Sports Washington and NBA League Pass (USA)
Location: Capital One Arena, Washington, D.C.
Game Preview
How do you define a six-game road trip as a success? One simple metric would be finishing above-.500, something the Raptors have an opportunity to do after winning three of their first four games of the roady.
After earning an impressive come-from-behind victory in Memphis on Monday, Toronto makes its way to D.C. to take on a Wizards team that has experienced its fair share of struggles early on this season.
MORE: Siakam making early struggles a distant memory
Having won four of their last five games, the Raptors are now just two games under-.500 after beginning the season by losing eight of their first 10 games. This recent stretch has been fuelled by the play of Fred VanVleet, Pascal Siakam and Norman Powell, who have each stepped up in major ways at various times.
The aforementioned three have an opportunity to take things to the next level as they face a notoriously-bad defensive team in the Wizards, whose defensive rating of 115.4 ranks second-to-last in the NBA.
After exiting on Monday night with back spasms, Raptors guard Kyle Lowry was not listed on the injury report for Wednesday's game, indicating that he should be back in the lineup provided there are no added setbacks. The injury report also lists OG Anunoby as "questionable" after he's missed the team's last seven games with a calf injury.
MORE: VanVleet, Siakam and Powell trio fuel win over Grizz
The statuses of Anunoby and Lowry are worth keeping an eye on as they have a direct impact on Powell's place in the rotation. Powell's recent play has coincided with his return to the starting lineup, while his splits as a reserve have not been quite as effective.
If Powell does return to the bench, Washington could be a team that he finds a way to still get to his spots in a reserve role. The last time these two teams met, Powell finished with 28 points on 10-for-17 shooting in under 30 minutes of action off the bench.
It's not all bad on the Wizards side, however, as they are coming off of a narrow win over the Chicago Bulls on Monday in which Bradley Beal scored a game-high-tying 35 points to go along with seven assists and five rebounds.
Beal has been excellent this season, pouring in a career-high and league-leading 33.3 points per game in addition to 5.1 rebounds and 4.5 assists.
Washington's issues have largely been related to the availability of its players as the team has already missed 44 man-games due to injuries or the league's health and safety protocols. Among players battling injuries is newly-acquired guard Russell Westbrook, who continues to manage his troublesome quad and starting centre Thomas Bryant, who is out for the remainder of the season with a torn ACL.
Westbrook should be expected back in the lineup after sitting on Monday while former Raptor Alex Len, has started at centre in each of Washington's last two games, finishing with 13 points and seven rebounds in Monday's win.
As Nick Nurse and the Raptors have become known for their team defence on star players, how the team works to slow down Beal will be a major key to the game.
Injury Report
Raptors
– OG Anunoby (Left calf strain) – Questionable
– Malachi Flynn (G League assignment) – Out
– Jalen Harris (G League assignment) – Out
– Patrick McCaw (Left knee rehabilitation) – Out
– Yuta Watanabe (Left ankle) – Questionable
Wizards
– Thomas Bryant (Left ACL injury) – Out
Game Notes
– The Raptors have won seven games in a row over the Wizards, including the last three meetings in Washington
– Last season, Yuta Watanabe and Rui Hachimura made history as the first pair of Japanese players to share an NBA court when the Memphis Grizzlies played the Wizards on Dec. 14, 2019.
– Raptors forward OG Anunoby and Wizards centre Thomas Bryant spent a season as teammates at the University of Indiana.
– Wizards centre Alex Len signed with the Raptors in the 2020 offseason, appearing in seven games (two starts) before being waived by Toronto on Jan. 19, 2021.
– Wizards guard Ish Smith was a teammate of Raptors forward Stanley Johnson with the Detroit Pistons and a teammate of Raptors guard Kyle Lowry with the Houston Rockets
Raptors vs. Wizards: Betting odds, spread, over/under
Spread: Raptors -5.5 (-110), Wizards +5.5 (-110)
Raptors Money line: -220
Wizards Money line: +190
Over/Under: 232.5 (-110)
*Odds courtesy of William Hill Sports Book
Last Time They Played
Date: Jan. 10, 2020
Score: Raptors 140, Wizards 111
Raptors: Norman Powell – 28 PTS (10-17 FG), 5 REB, 3 STL, 2 AST
Wizards: Troy Brown Jr. – 22 PTS (9-13 FG), 8 REB, 3 STL, 1 AST
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