The Atlanta Hawks (40-37) host the Brooklyn Nets (40-37) Saturday in a possible postseason play-in preview. Tip-off at the State Farm Arena is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET. Below, we look at the Nets vs. Hawks odds and lines, and make our expert NBA picks, predictions and bets.
Brooklyn lost a 120-119 nail-biter in overtime to the defending-champion Milwaukee Bucks Thursday. The Nets are 3-3 straight up (SU) and 2-4 against the spread (ATS) over the past two weeks.
Atlanta is 5-1 SU and ATS in the last 6 games, which includes a 4-game winning streak with the latest being a 131-107 blowout of the Cavaliers Thursday.
The Nets are 2-0 SU and ATS versus the Hawks this season, and the total is 1-1 Over/Under (O/U).
Brooklyn All-Star Kevin Durant is averaging 31.5 points on 59.5% shooting with 8.0 assists versus Atlanta this season. While Hawks All-Star Trae Young is averaging 26.0 points and 10.0 assists against the Nets.
Nets at Hawks odds, spread and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:45 a.m. ET.
- Money line (ML): Nets -145 (bet $145 to win $100) | Hawks +120 (bet $100 to win $120)
- Against the spread: Nets -2.5 (-115) | Hawks +2.5 (-107)
- Over/Under: 240.5 (O: -115 | U: -107)
Nets at Hawks key injuries
Nets
- SF Bruce Brown (illness) questionable
- SG Seth Curry (ankle) questionable
- PG Ben Simmons (reconditioning) out
Hawks
- PF John Collins (finger) out
- PG Trae Young (groin) probable
[tipico]
Nets at Hawks odds, lines, picks and predictions
Prediction
Nets 125, Hawks 117
Money line
GIMME the NETS (-145) because they should be angry after squandering a double-digit lead to the Bucks earlier this week, and the Hawks (+120) are far worse in close games.
For instance, Brooklyn is eighth in “clutch” net rating at plus-7.6, and Atlanta is 24th at minus-7.0. “Clutch” is defined by games within a 5-point margin inside of five minutes to play. The House is projecting a one-possession game so I’ll take KD and Kyrie Irving against the Hawks in winning time.
Furthermore, both teams should be at peak motivation since they have the same record as the Charlotte Hornets, and there’s a cluster of the three teams for the 8-to-10 seeds. Getting the 8-seed for the play-in tourney guarantees a team at least two games to clinch a playoff berth.
Also, the Nets are a lot better than the Hawks on paper. KD should continue to light up Atlanta Saturday, give me Kyrie over Trae, and I have more faith in Brooklyn’s supporting cast down the final stretch of the season.
Lastly, Atlanta’s victories over the past two weeks haven’t been that impressive. Hawks’ recent victories include against a Cavs team in the second of a back-to-back, the tanking Thunder and Pacers, a slumping Warriors and a Knicks team they match up well with recently.
BET the NETS (-145) as this is my cutoff before laying the points with Brooklyn instead.
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Against the spread
PASS since Brooklyn’s ML is only 30 cents on the dollar more expensive than the Nets -2.5 (-115) so there’s no point sweating a cover. However, if Brooklyn’s ML goes higher than -145 then I’d bet the Nets ATS up to -3.5.
Over/Under
PASS with a “lean” to the Over 240.5 (-115) because Atlanta is 4-0 O/U in the last 4 games, and both teams have top-10 offensive ratings and bottom-10 defensive ratings.
But, this is a sharp total, and Brooklyn is 1-3 O/U in the last 4 games so I’ll PASS on even making a small wager on the Over.
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