NBA: Atlanta Hawks vs. Washington Wizards Preview, Odds, Prediction

The Atlanta Hawks will meet with the Washington Wizards in DC in a highly interesting matchup. Both teams are 3-1 since the season began and play pretty well. This is something expected for the Hawks, while on the other side, just a few expected to see Wes Unseld’s start with the Wizards like this. They are versatile, very fast, and above all, the Wizs look strong and confident while playing. Also, both sides play second of back-to-back nights, and their endurance will be heavily tested.

Preview

Atlanta Hawks (3-1, -130) defeated New Orleans in Louisiana last night, and are now heading for DC. It will be a rough trip, but the boys from Georgia got used to facing adversities in the past year or two.

We saw them in excellent shape against the Pels, bouncing back following a slow start and posting a superb third period in which they scored 31 while allowed 18 buckets. Trae Young dropped 31 points, 13-for-27, and added seven dimes with five assists.

John Collins had a double-double of 16 points and 12 boards. The power forward is making a difference, as the other big guy, Clint Capela, attracts all the attention of the rivals when it comes to controlling the glass. That is when Collins jumps in and uses free space. Bogi scored 12 points, and DeAndre Hunter 13. The Hawks would eventually outrebound the Pels, 55-44.

Washington Wizards (3-1, +150) had a really, really rough schedule, playing three of their four games on the road, against the Pacers, Nets, and the Celtics. That latest one ended in their favor, 116-107, which is a big boost of morale for this newly-formed unit.

Beating the division rival is always a good thing, especially when he is your direct rival for the playoff spot, and the win came on the road. This one came because of Washington’s high shooting percentage, 51.2%, and strong control of the glass, where they allowed only 37 boards of the rivals.

Spencer Dinwiddie had 22 points, Bradley Beal 17, shooting only 7-for-25. However, the All-Star shooting guard added 10 boards on that, compensating for his poor execution. Montrezl Harrell once again shown why he is one of the best sixth players in the league, delivering a double-double off the bench, 25 points, and 11 boards, with only two misses in 13 shots.

Head to Head Games

Hawks won all three games last year. The first was in Atlanta, 116-100, and the remaining two in DC, 125-124 and 126-120.

Prediction

The thing with this match is that the Wizards won’t have Daniel Gafford, who is their biggest weapon under the rim. Even though he isn’t some excellent scorer, Gafford controls the paint and protects the rim very well. It is the only reason why we give an edge in this matchup to the Hawks, who have Capela and Collins, who are, by the way, superior compared to the entire league in terms of rebounding. Imagine what they would do against the weakened Wizards’ frontcourt.

That is why we propose betting on the Hawks’ win, and including the spread in that, because it is not too big, only -1.5 points.

Pick: Hawks -1.5