Joel Embiid won the NBA scoring title, the first center since Shaquille O’Neal to accomplish that feat. Now he wants to lead the Philadelphia 76ers to postseason success, an elusive feat. Philly hasn’t even made the Eastern Conference Finals in 21 years.

The fourth-seeded Sixers host the No. 5 Toronto Raptors in the best-of-7 series starting on Saturday. Toronto got the better of Philadelphia during the regular season, though James Harden wasn’t on the team for one of those games and Joel Embiid didn’t play in another.

Ahead of Game 1, Bookies.com breaks down the series and makes our NBA picks to back on betting apps.

76ers vs Raptors Odds

Odds via DraftKings and accurate as of publication.

76ers vs Raptors Betting Tips

Magic Number 5: Toronto bested Philadelphia in three of the four matchups this season, but all four were close. Three of those games were decided by exactly five points, the other by six. The 76ers are -4.5 for Game 1, with online sportsbooks daring bettors to back the road Raptors.

Homecourt Question: Of the 14 teams that advanced to the playoffs without the play-in tournament, the 76ers had the worst against-the-spread mark at home, just 17-24 (41.5%). That is good news for a Raptors team that was 25-15-1 ATS on the road (62.5%) – tied for the best ATS mark in the league.

Pascal Power: Embiid is considered an NBA MVP contender, but Toronto’s Pascal Siakam has mostly outplayed him this season. In three matchups this year, Siakam is averaging 30.3 points, 9.0 rebounds and 8.3 assists. Embiid is at 29.0, 11.3 and 2.7.

76ers vs Raptors Series Predictions

The No. 4 Sixers have the homecourt advantage and the edge according to sports betting apps who have installed them as -180 favorites to advance to the second round, Toronto is +150.

There is reason to find value in the Raptors’ NBA odds. They’ve generally outperformed expectations on the road compared to the Sixers at home, James Harden’s playoff stats are lower than his regular season numbers and Siakam has, at worst, negated the power of Embiid.

This is a tougher series to predict than some may believe. That’s why we will steer clear of the series price, but look at the series correct score odds.

Our Pick: Root for a Game 7. You can get Philly in seven games at +320 and Raptors in seven at +600.

76ers vs Raptors Schedule

Game 1: April 16, Toronto at Philadelphia, 6 p.m. ET, ESPN

Game 2: April 18, Toronto at Philadelphia, 7:30 p.m. ET, TNT

Game 3: April 20, Philadelphia at Toronto, 8 p.m. ET, NBA TV

Game 4: April 23, Philadelphia at Toronto, 2 p.m. ET, TNT

Game 5-7: TBD if necessary