Upcoming Match-ups

NBA Playoff Betting – (1) Hawks at (2) Cavaliers (Game 4)

Zack Garrison

by Zack Garrison in News

Updated Jan 17, 2018 · 9:39 AM PST

Atlanta Hawks at Cleveland Cavaliers (-8, 193.5 o/u)

At this point, the top-seeded Atlanta Hawks (60-22, 25-16 Away) are just looking to avoid the embarrassment of getting swept. Down 3-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals, the Hawks will look to get in the win column tonight when they visit the Cleveland Cavaliers (53-29, 31-10 Home) at Quicken Loans Arena (8:00 PM Eastern).

Point guard Jeff Teague had a chance to win Game 3 for Atlanta, but couldn’t convert on a three with the score tied late in the fourth quarter. Cleveland went on to take the game 110-107 in OT.  No team in NBA history has come back from a 3-0 deficit, but Atlanta insists they’re not out of it.

“No matter what happens, we’re still going to be confident,” forward Paul Millsap said to the Associated Press. “We believe in our team. We believe in the guys that we have. We feel like we can do something special, whether this year, next year, whatever. We’re going to stick to this. It’s not over ’til it’s over.”

Lebron James once again led the Cavs offensively and defensively in Game 3, posting a monster triple-double with 37 points, 18 rebounds, and 13 assists. James is now averaging over a triple-double per game in the series (32.6 points, 11.6 rebounds, and 10.0 assists per game). James’ stellar performance – even by his standards – has been crucial for a Cavs team missing the other two members of its “Big 3”. (Kevin Love is out for the season with a shoulder injury while Kyrie Irving is dealing with a knee injury and hasn’t played in the last two games.)

James is battling through his own health issues (ankle/calf), but didn’t look any worse for wear.

“When you want to win, you’ve got to sacrifice your body feeling good,” James told to the AP on Monday. “That’s just what it’s about.”

While the Cavs are picking up wins straight up, the team is too injured to win comfortably and cover a big spread even when playing at home. Moreover, Atlanta will have Al Horford back in action after he was ejected following an altercation with Cavs shooting guard Matthew Dellavedova. Add in the fact that the Hawks are 4-1 ATS in their last five games following a SU loss and 4-1 ATS in their last five road games and the Hawks plus the points looks like the stronger play tonight.

Pick: Hawks +8.

(Photo credit: Keith Allison [CC BY-SA 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Commons. Photo has been cropped.)

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