Cleveland Cavaliers vs Toronto Raptors Prediction, 5/1/2026 Preview and Pick

Game: Cleveland Cavaliers vs Toronto Raptors

Date: Friday, May 1, 2026

Location: Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, ON

TV: Prime Video

Odds/Point Spread: Cleveland (-3.5)

Scotiabank Arena is the site where the Toronto Raptors (46-36) will attempt to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers (52-30) on Friday in Game 6 of their series. The Cavs lead 3-2. Toronto opens this game as 3.5-point dogs. The over/under has been set at 220.5.

The Cavaliers went home with a win by a final score of 125-120 in Game 5. Cleveland ended the game with a 53.1% field goal percentage (43 of 81) and knocked down 18 of their 36 shots from beyond the perimeter. At the charity stripe, the Cavaliers made 21 of their 28 tries for a percentage of 75.0%. When talking about grabbing rebounds, they collected 35 with 4 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 20 assists in this matchup as well as forcing the opposition into 15 turnovers and earning 8 steals. Regarding defending, Cleveland allowed the other team to shoot 46.3% from the field on 44 out of 95 shooting. Toronto doled out 32 assists and had 8 steals in this matchup. Moreover, Toronto snagged 48 boards (15 offensive, 33 defensive) and had 8 blocks. Toronto ended up shooting 68.0% from the charity stripe by knocking down 17 of 25 tries. They converted 15 out of their 38 shots from distance. With respect to personal fouls, the Cavaliers ended up walking away with 16 and the Raptors had 21 personal fouls.

James Harden is someone who came through in this game. Harden walked away from this one shooting 53.8% from the floor and also earned 5 assists. He was on the hardwood for 40 mins played and collected 9 rebounds. He walked away with 23 points on 7 out of 13 shooting.

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Cleveland heads into this game with a mark of 52-30 so far this year. They turn the ball over 14.0 times per game and as a squad they are committing 19.6 fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Cleveland is grabbing 44.4 boards per game and has racked up 2,321 dimes this season, which is 8th in the NBA in terms of passing. The Cavaliers are shooting 36.0% on 3-pointers (1,173 of 3,261) and 77.6% from the free throw line. They are averaging 119.5 points per outing (4th in basketball) while going 48.2% from the floor.

On the defensive end, the Cavaliers are forcing 15.0 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 20.5 personal fouls. They are currently ranked 16th in basketball in allowing assists with 2,208 surrendered for the year. The Cavaliers defensively are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 46.4% (3,387 of 7,303) and they relinquish 43.2 rebounds per contest as a unit. They are giving up 37.2% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they rank 15th in the league in points per game from their opponents (115.4).

Toronto hung in there, but they were unable to come up with big shots when they needed in Game 5. With respect to rebounds, Toronto permitted Cleveland to collect 35 overall (4 offensive). They finished 50.0% from three-point range by connecting on 18 out of 36 and finished the contest at 21 out of 28 from the charity stripe (75.0%). The Raptors allowed the Cavaliers to knock down 43 of 81 tries from the field which had them sitting at 53.1% for this game. At the conclusion of this game, the Raptors walked away from this one shooting 44 for 95 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 46.3%. With respect to shots from 3-point land, Toronto knocked down 15 of 38 tries (39.5%). They were able to knock down 17 of those for a rate of 68.0%. The Cavaliers committed 16 fouls for the contest which took the Raptors to the charity stripe for a total of 25 attempts. They also coughed up the ball 15 times, while getting 8 steals in this game. The Raptors were able to corral 33 defensive rebounds and 15 offensive rebounds totaling 48 for the contest.

RJ Barrett was important for the Raptors in this contest. Barrett accumulated 25 points in his 38 mins on the hardwood and earned 5 dimes for the game. He knocked down 9 out of 19 for this game for a field goal rate of 47.4%, and added 12 rebounds.

Toronto has a record of 46-36 for the season. The Raptors commit 20.9 personal fouls per contest and they connect on 76.9% from the free throw line. They are assisting teammates 29.5 times per contest (3rd in the NBA) and they are losing possession via turnover 13.7 times per game. Toronto has accounted for 9,400 points this year (114.6 per contest) and they pull down 42.1 boards per game. When it comes to executing on offense, the Raptors are connecting on 48.2% from the field, which has them ranked 7th in basketball.

The Toronto defense concedes 34.9% on shots from beyond the perimeter (1,029 of 2,945) and opponents are converting on 79.3% of their free throw attempts. They have given up 24.5 dimes and 42.9 total rebounds per game, which ranks them 2nd and 10th in basketball. The Raptors defensively are ranked 9th in the league in points per game surrendered with 111.8. They are able to force 16.1 turnovers per game and have allowed teams to shoot 46.7% from the field (10th in basketball).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Toronto (+3.5)

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