NBA: Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Preview, Odds, Prediction

The Atlanta Hawks head down to Louisiana to square off with the New Orleans Pelicans. Nate McMillan’s side started the season OK, but the loss against the Cavs is still hurting. On the other side, the Pelicans’ fans are frustrated again, with their favorites opening the campaign poorly. Zion is not around, and the euphoria surrounding this guy is slowly deflating. At this point, we have some analysts who are saying that Williamson might be one of the biggest fails in the Pelicans’ history.

Preview

Atlanta Hawks (2-1, -280) are after their first road win this year. The previous attempt was in Cleveland, where the Hawks lost to the Cavaliers, 101-95, which was a big surprise at the time. After that, we saw the Cavs taking down the Nuggets, proving they aren’t as weak as many believe.

But McMillan’s boys bounced back pretty quickly, trashing the Detroit Pistons at home, 122-104. The main reason for that was a high shooting percentage, 51.1%. Also, they had 13 boards more than the rivals, 49-36.

Trae dropped 32 points with nine dimes and four boards, while Josh Collins had 22 and seven rebounds. Cam Reddish had 17 off the bench, and the former Duke Blue Devils’ star is playing very well in these three matches, and we just might see him jumping into the starting lineup. Also, Bogi and Kevin Huerter had 14 points each.

New Orleans Pelicans (1-3, +240) snapped a three-game losing streak with a win over the Timberwolves. This will be their second home match this year because of a nasty schedule that had three straight road events. It is partially a reason for their pale start, but we do need to say that the Pelicans played mediocrely up until this point.

We’ve mentioned that Zion madness stopped and that the fans are slowly starting to wonder will the former No.1 pick reach his predicted heights or will he become just another good player who can’t be consistent or healthy.

The game against the T-Wolves was the second against the same rival, and the 107-98 win came as a breath of fresh air for Willie Green’s unit. Brandon Ingram was good with 27 points and nine boards. Jonas Valanciunas had a monstrous double-double with 22 points and 23 boards, arguably the most impressive performance of any Pelicans player this year, while Devonte did Graham scored 21 points. The young Nickeil Alexander-Walker ended the night with 17 buckets.

Head to Head Games

The two sides met twice last year, and the Hawks won on both occasions. They would defeat the Pels in New Orleans 126-103, and after that at home in Georgia, 123-107. Atlanta has five straight wins over this rival.

Prediction

The Hawks have a more versatile offense, and they tend to be better and more stable on the defensive end than the Pelicans. Valanciunas will be of great help in this aspect of play, but we don’t think that he alone can stop Atlanta’s two-on-two game and pick-and-roll isos that both Trae and Bogi often use. Our pick here will be the guests’ victory, with the current odds at -280.

Pick: Atlanta wins -280