NBA: Atlanta Hawks vs Golden State Warriors Preview, Odds, Prediction

The situation hasn’t been ideal for the Atlanta Hawks, who are now heading for San Francisco to meet the fired-up Golden State Warriors. The Hawks started the season slowly, and they are currently under .500-mark. On the other side, the former champions are leading the way in the West, and even though they don’t have all of their players available, Steve Kerr’s unit looks pretty cruel. Only one loss so far is suggesting that the Warriors are determined to attack the title once again.

Preview

Atlanta Hawks (4-6, +130) face a lot of problems in their game. They have three losses in a row, the latest one on the road against the Phoenix Suns. Atlanta had a double-digit edge in the third period, but managed to waste it all in the final quarter. It seems that Nate McMillan’s boys are experiencing more of a mental than playing crisis.

They have been pretty bad on the defensive side off the ball, allowing the rivals high-shooting percentages, and also, allowing 110 points per game, which is something they didn’t do in the past. Making stops in the crucial moments was something that propelled them to the East finals last year, and for the moment, that is gone from their game.

Trae scored 31 against the Suns and had 13 assists, Bogdanovic had 18, while John Collins also posted a double-double with 26 points and 10 boards. Clint Capela caught 13 boards and had nine points. The bench failed to show up, scoring only 31 points combined.

Golden State Warriors (8-1, -150) have the third-best offense in points per game, 113.1, and are second when looking at effective shooting with 55.6% each night. On the other side, believe it, or not the Warriors allow 99.4 points per game which is second-best in the league and allow one of the lowest shooting percentages in the NBA.

Steve Kerr’s guys have four wins in a row, all at home, against the OKC Thunder, Charlotte Hornets, New Orleans Pelicans, and the Houston Rockets. The game against the Rockets ended 120-107 for the Dub Nation, who had no trouble dispatching the youngsters from Texas.

Warriors had 51.8% from the field and made 15 threes, to break the rivals on the offensive side of the ball. Jordan Poole had 25 points, and Steph Curry 20, for 27 minutes of play. Andrew Wiggins dropped 16, while Otto Porter Jr. scored 15 and had nine boards.

Head to Head Games

Hawks won both matches last year, 124-108 at home and 117-111 on the road.

Prediction

The spread on the Warriors is -3.5. We believe that the hosts will win this one, as they play much faster and more lethal basketball than the Hawks at this particular point. Atlanta is still searching for its mojo, and for sure, they aren’t going to find it against the Warriors, who are in one hell of a form. Also, we need to mention that the Hawks’ shooting has been terrible this year and that on the other side, we have one of the most annoying backcourts in the league in terms of aggressive defense. So, when you add these two factors, the Warriors’ win is a logical choice.

Pick: Warriors -3.5