Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics Predictions and Odds Jan 28
Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics Betting Preview
WagerTalk NBA handicapper Andy Lang offers his Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics Lakers betting preview for Friday, January 28. At the time of posting, the Hawks have opened as a 1.5-point home favorite over the road Celtics, with the total sitting at 218.5 points.
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| Friday, January 28 | NBA Betting Notes |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Atlanta Hawks -1.5 vs Boston Celtics |
| Total: | 218.5 Points |
| Game Time: | 7:40pm ET / 4:40pm PT |
| Arena: | State Farm Arena in Atlanta, GA |
| TV: | Bally Sports Southeast |
Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics Analysis
This should be an entertaining and close game between the Hawks and Celtics as the books have Atlanta as a -2 point favorite with a game total of 218.5. The Hawks have broken out of their slump winning five straight games, and the Celtics have won two in a row so both teams are coming into this game with momentum. Let’s dive in and find the winning play for us in this game.
Hawks Soaring
The Hawks had lost five in a row, but they’ve turned it around winning five in a row with their comeback win against Milwaukee seemingly jump-starting this team. They’ve scored 110 or more in all five wins, and they’ve held their last three opponents to 108, 91, and 104 which is a big deal for them.
Trae Young has been fantastic, but the rest of the starting lineup has stepped up and increased their production in this winning streak so it’s not a one-man show going on. Not only has Atlanta won five in a row, but they’ve covered in all five of those games and are the only team to have covered five in a row right now in the league.
Clint Capela has returned, and is being brought back slow as he’s played 21 and 26 minutes in his two games back, but they’ll need him to play more minutes tonight against Horford and Robert Williams.
Boston’s Blowouts
Boston has won it’s last two games by an average of 41 points as the Wizards and Kings had dismal shooting performances from the three point line. The two teams combined to go 14-67 from long distance, and I guess you give some credit to Boston, but I think it was just two outlying bad shooting nights for the teams.
Tatum and Brown have been playing well, and as expected they both had big point totals against Sacramento’s laughable defense, and I like Brown to have a big game tonight as the Hawks continue to be one of the worst teams in the league guarding the perimeter.
A few games ago D’Angelo Russell had 31 points against them, and I could see a similar result for Brown tonight. Boston continues to be the ultimate .500 team this year as they are always around .500 in record, ATS and O/U, and I find them hard to bet on spreads and totals.
Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics Prediction
This is a tough game to predict as the spread indicates, but I like the momentum the Hawks have right now. They’re a streaky team and I don’t like fading them when they get on a roll. My play for this game is going to be the Celtics Team Total over 108.5.
Tatum and Brown dominated two teams with bad perimeter defenses in Washington and Sacramento, and the Hawks are still terrible on defense, particularly Trae Young. They’ve scored 116 and 128 the last two games, I think this game could be a scorefest and Boston should get over this total.
PREDICTION: Boston Celtics OVER 108.5 Team Total
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Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics Preview from GoldSheet
It was a bit later last season, but there was a point where the Hawks completely turned around their campaign and kept the momentum into the playoffs and all of the way to the East finals. There was also an obvious demarcation point last season (well-meaning Lloyd Pierce removed as head coach, and vet mentor Nate McMillan then sliding over from his assistant’s role).
No such identifier this season, but the Hawks have indeed reversed fortunes with wins and covers in five straight, four of those against teams above .500. Along the way ATL rallied twice from double-digit deficits to win after doing so in only 2 of 24 chances prior. Trae Young was also scoring better than 31 ppg across the first four wins of the streak before McMillan used him judiciously (only 25 minutes on the floor) in Wednesday’s easy win at State Farm Arena vs. the Kings.
Defense, which keyed last season’s surge but mostly atrocious this term, has also resurfaced in the win streak, even holding a for beneath 100 points (Charlotte on Jan. 23) for the first time since before Christmas. Meanwhile the Celtics have bene ping-ponging back-and-forth for more than two months, and worth noting they haven’t extended a win streak beyond two games since before Thanksgiving…and they come into tonight having won two straight, limited the Wish and Kings to 81 ppg in the process.
Boston did a decent job limiting the damage caused by Trae (just 4 for 12 form the floor) the last time the Celtics visited Atlanta on Nov. 17, but not much good on anyone else as the Hawks still shot 51% from the floor in a 110-99 win.
Boston was minus Jaylen Brown and Robert Williams III that night, but they’re available now, and Jayson Tatum just scored 51 vs. the Wiz on Sunday. But the only nod to the Celtics here would be a lean to the “under” based upon recent defensive efforts; as for the side, we’d rather keep riding the ascending Hawks until further notice.
NBA Stat Sheet
Each day, WagerTalk handicapper Ralph Michaels puts together his NBA Stat Sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Friday’s sheet, with notes on tonight’s Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics contest.
NBA Betting Strategy
Ride the hot and fade the cold. Which advanced stats should you be paying the most attention to? Kelly Stewart sat down with Teddy Covers and Skee Profit to discuss some of their favorite NBA betting tips.
NBA Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the NBA point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of Friday’s NBA games, including this Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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