NBA Sports Betting Action – Reeling Hawks Host Woeful Wizards
The Washington Wizards (1-7 SU, 2-6 ATS, 3-5 O/U) have dropped two straight games in the BetUS Sportsbook and have gotten off to a horrific start this season. The Atlanta Hawks (6-4 SU, 6-4 ATS, 5-4-1 O/U) looked like ‘world beaters’ just over a week ago with a spotless 6-0 record but haven’t won since.
Now the two struggling ballclubs will be looking to get back in the win column in a big way when they battle at Philips Arena tonight.
The Wizards have dropped two straight games, including Monday’s 94-87 home loss to the Miami Heat and are in desperation mode without injured all-star point guard Gilbert Arenas.
Though the Wizards still have two all-star players in forwards, Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler, they have struggles just to look respectable most of the time this season.
“This team is built a certain way, fellows,” coach Eddie Jordan said after Tuesday’s loss. “This team is built for Gilbert Arenas to lead us. This team is built for our All-Star forwards to carry the wings for us, and for Brendan Haywood to have a career year manning the middle for us. We don’t have those things.
Washington got 25 points from Jamison and 21 from Butler but not much else from any other player on the roster as swingman Nick Young was the only other player to reach double figures in scoring, putting up 12 while shooting 4-for-12 from the field. The Wizards failed to cover the spread against the Heat as a 2-point home favorite.
“And this team, you’re asking people to do things that they’re not capable of doing. You’ve got young guys who aren’t going to make veteran plays night-in and night-out. You’ve got to stay positive, but you’ve got to be realistic about things.”
The Hawks are coming off a disheartening 113-96 loss to the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday in which they failed to cover the spread for BetUS NBA sports betting backers as 3-pooint road underdogs and come into tonight’s contest riding a four-game losing streak.
“We haven’t been playing together, playing with any energy, like we were in those first six games,” said shooting guard Joe Johnson. “I think we’ve gotten real complacent and we haven’t been playing team basketball.
Atlanta got 25 points from Johnson on 10-for-21 shooting from the field but shot just 42 percent as a team in the lop-sided loss.
Here is a look at the key trends for each team, followed by my in-depth analysis and NBA Free Picks.
The Wizards are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games playing on 0 days rest.
The Wizards are 2-6 ATS in their last 8 road games vs. a team with a home winning % of greater than .600.
The Hawks are 5-1 ATS in their last 6 home games.
The Hawks are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 vs. NBA Southeast.
The Under is 4-0 in Wizards last 4 vs. NBA Southeast.
The Over is 4-0-1 in Hawks last 5 games following a S.U. loss.
The Under is 6-2 in the last 8 meetings.
The Wizards are 6-2 ATS in the last 8 meetings in Atlanta.
The Over is 11-4 in the last 15 meetings in Atlanta.
NBA Odds
Washington Wizards +7½ -110
Atlanta Hawks -7½ -110
Over 201 -110
Under 201 -110
Analysis: The outcome of this contest may not be in question very much as the Hawks are desperate for a win at this point, but I like the Wizards to find a way to keep this game from getting out of hand. Take Washington, behind Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler to help the Wizards cover the spread while pushing for the outright win.
