With a date with the No. 1 Miami Heat on the line, the No. 9 Atlanta Hawks will take on the No. 8 Cleveland Cavaliers in the last Eastern Conference game of the play-in tournament. The Cavaliers will host this one at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse with tipoff scheduled for 7:30 pm ET.
Coming into this one, the Hawks decimated the Charlotte Hornets in their play-in game Wednesday night.
In the win, Trae Young had a team-high 24 points with 11 assists. De’Andre Hunter added 22 points while Clint Capela had a double-double with 15 points and 17 rebounds.
For the Cavaliers, they are coming off of a loss to the Brooklyn Nets 115-108 on the road. The advantage of being the No. 8 seed, though, is the Cavs get back-to-back opportunities to make the playoffs.
The Hawks open as the favorite despite playing on the road. They are -126 to win while the Cavaliers’ moneyline sits at +108. The spread features Cleveland +2 (-110), and the over/under for total points is 225.
By The Numbers
The Hawks have the much better offense of the two. They rank sixth in scoring averaging 113.9 points per game (111.2 on the road). The Cavaliers rank 25th averaging 107.8 points (108.1 at home).
Defensively, it is all Cleveland. They rank fifth in scoring defense allowing opponents an average of just 105.8 points per game (103.7 at home). The Hawks rank 21st allowing 112.4 points (113.1 on the road).
Hawks Look To Make Another Run In Playoffs
After last year’s run to the Eastern Conference championship, the Atlanta Hawks are hungry for another chance to shine and have some momentum coming into this game. Not only did they outplay the Hornets on Wednesday, but Atlanta has won seven of their last ten games.
Leading the way for the Hawks is All-Star Trae Young. On the season, he is averaging 28.4 points on 46 percent shooting. He is also averaging 3.7 rebounds and 9.7 assists per game.
Other major contributors for the Hawks include Clint Capela (11.1 points, 11.9 rebounds), Bogdan Bogdanovic (15.1 points, 4 rebounds, 3.1 assists), De’Andre Hunter (13.4 points, 3.3 rebounds), and Kevin Huerter (12.1 points, 3.4 rebounds).
There is some belief that John Collins (16.2 points, 7.8 rebounds) could give it a go, but having not played since March 11 with a sprained foot and finger, there is no certainty he will be on the floor.
Cavaliers Hope To Use Home Court Advantage To Pick Up Win
Despite being 44-38 overall this season, the Cavaliers were significantly better at home (25-16) than they were on the road (19-22). They will try to use that home court advantage to make their way into the playoffs.
Adding to the advantage, the Hawks have been dreadful on the road. They were 27-14 at home, but they are just 16-25 outside of Atlanta.
Like the Hawks, the Cavaliers have been dealing with a major injury as they have Jarrett Allen on the sideline with a middle finger fracture. Cleveland.com’s Chris Fedor calls him a coin flip for this one.
If Jarrett Allen is out, point guard Darius Garland will have to lead the way for Cleveland. In 68 games, he averaged 21.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 8.6 assists.
While the loss of Allen would hurt in the interior, they do have rookie phenom Evan Mobley to help man the middle. He is averaging 15 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.7 blocks this season.
The other main scoring options for Cleveland include Lauri Markkanen (14.8 points, 5.7 rebounds), Caris LeVert (13.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists), and Kevin Love (13.6 points, 7.2 rebounds).
Take Cleveland And The Points
This one is a tough call. Atlanta has admittedly been playing better basketball, but the biggest variable in this one is the home court advantage for Cleveland.
The Cavaliers have been a whole different team at home and Cavaliers’ fans will bring the energy as the team looks for its first championship since LeBron.
On the flip side, for as strong as Atlanta has played, they have been miserable for much of the season on the road.
It wouldn’t be a shocker if Atlanta wins, but there is a lot of value in taking Cleveland and the two points.
Take the Cavaliers +2.
