Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Toronto Raptors: Game 3 Prediction, Betting Odds For 2017 NBA Playoffs

They say that a playoff series doesn't truly start until a team loses a game at home, but whoever said that clearly didn't see the Cleveland Cavaliers take on the Toronto Raptors. With a 2-0 lead heading into Friday night’s Game 3, the defending champions have all but punched their ticket to the Eastern Conference Finals.

Oddsmakers indicate that the series could be more competitive in Toronto with Cleveland favored by just three points, via OddsShark, but the betting line doesn’t reflect how dominant LeBron James and the Cavs have been. Making a Game 3 prediction that includes a Raptors’ victory wouldn’t be based on much logic, and Toronto will be lucky to steal a win before they are eliminated from contention.

The first two games of the series went very much the same way. Cleveland led by double-digits for most of the time, ultimately winning by 11 points and 22 points, respectively. James continues to do things on the court that no one else in the league can, and it’s led to open looks for his teammates. After making 14 of 41 three-point attempts in Game 1, the Cavs went 18-of-33 from behind the arc in Game 2.

Toronto simply has no chance to defeat Cleveland when James is at the top of his game and players like Channing Frye and J.R. Smith are connecting with their outside shots. Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love haven’t even shot particularly well. James has just been that unstoppable.

“You find somebody to stop LeBron in these moments, I'll give you $100,” Raptors’ shooting guard DeMar DeRozan said after Wednesday's Game 2 loss. “But it's on us to be able to take out all the other key players and not let them get going.”

It’s difficult to come up with new ways to describe what James is doing. The NBA’s best player for the last decade is somehow getting even better in year No.14, completely dismissing concerns that his growing number of minutes over the course of his career might slow him down in the postseason.

In Cleveland’s four-game sweep of the Indiana Pacers, James did it all, nearly averaging a triple-double with 32.8 points per game on 54.3 percent shooting. He’s been more of a scorer against Toronto, and he totaled 39 points on just 14 field goal attempts in Game 2.

Dominating the Raptors is nothing new for James and the Cavs. They did the same thing in the 2016 Eastern Conference Finals, registering all four of their wins against Toronto by at least 19 points. Toronto can’t seem to find a way to be competitive in Cleveland, where the Cavs are tough for anyone to beat.

If last season is any indication, the Raptors certainly have a shot to win Game 3. That’s what they did against the Cavs a year ago after being thoroughly outplayed in each of the series’ first two games.

DeRozan will almost certainly be better in Game 3 after going just two-of-11 from the field and scoring five points in Game 2. Kyle Lowry has scored 20 points on better than 50 percent shooting in each of the series’ first two contests, and he could have a big game at home, where he shoots 46.4 percent from three-point range.

The backcourt will try to take advantage of a defense that struggled in the regular season, forcing some to believe that 2017 could finally be the year in which James doesn’t make the NBA Finals. Cleveland’s defense has been good enough through the first two games, though the team is scoring at such a rate that getting stops hasn’t been a major concern. The over/under for Game 3 is 214.5.

It would be difficult for Toronto not to be more competitive at home Friday night, but the Cavs are just playing on a different level at the moment. Cleveland has won nine straight playoff games dating back to last year, and they might not suffer a loss anytime soon.

Prediction: Cleveland over Toronto, 114-105