Celtics vs Hawks Prediction

Will the Boston Celtics maintain their second place in the NBA Eastern Conference? The New York Knicks are closing in, so it's crucial to defeat the Atlanta Hawks. Moreover, the game will take place at the TD Garden. However, recently, the hosts have not been showing their best results. Therefore, we will consider different options to make the prediction optimal.

Head-to-Head

In a stretch of 60 head-to-head matches, Boston holds the advantage with 35 wins. In November, they achieved success away without much trouble (123:93). Surprisingly, just a week later, the Celtics stumbled in a head-to-head match on their court (116:117). Notably, Jaylen Brown was absent in the winning match, but in the second case, he participated directly in the loss, although he was the top scorer for his team with 37 points.

Boston Celtics

Boston is not in its best form. At least recently, they have been alternating between wins and losses, which is unacceptable for a championship contender. The loss against Oklahoma was relatively expected (92:105). It was less expected in the game against Sacramento (97:114) and even more so against Toronto (97:110). Boston played with a full roster. Even Kristaps Porzingis had recovered. However, the team managed to gather themselves and played well against Orlando (121:94). They won each individual quarter as well. This time, Jayson Tatum was the top scorer with 30 points.

Atlanta Hawks

Atlanta is having a decent stretch of four games, during which they only lost to Phoenix (115:123). However, a few days later, they took revenge on their home court (122:117). After that, the Hawks didn't notice any resistance from Chicago (110:94). Several players did not participate in the game, including Trae Young. In his absence, Keaton Wallace became the attack leader with 27 points, which is 4.5 times more than his season average. It is expected that a large group of players will not play in the upcoming match as well. Among them are Trae Young, Zakkari Risache, and Larry Nance Jr. The participation of Jalen Johnson and De’Andre Hunter is questionable.

Match Prediction

The favorite for the upcoming match is Boston. They are almost at full strength and it's unlikely any of the leaders will miss the game. For Atlanta, up to three of their top scorers might not play. On the other hand, this is a chance for the reserves to show themselves. Moreover, the Celtics have been losing a lot recently. Therefore, as a key bet, we suggest Atlanta's victory with a +15.5 handicap.