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The Atlanta Hawks will travel South to take on the Orlando Magic in a Wednesday night NBA matchup at the Amway Center. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our NBA odds series, which includes a Hawks-Magic prediction and pick, laid out below.
Atlanta has lost four of their last five games to fall to 14-14, sitting in seventh place in the Eastern Conference. An awkward altercation last week between head coach Nate McMillan and star guard Trae Young has sent this team into a bit of a tailspin recently.
Orlando has played about as well as could be expected. going 8-20, 13th place in the Eastern Conference. A rebuild in is in full effect for Orlando, although the team should be slightly better than their 22-60 record from last season. Head coach Jamahl Mosley is in his second season at the helm of Orlando.
Here are the Hawks-Magic NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel
NBA Odds: Hawks-Magic Odds
Atlanta Hawks: -2.5 (-110)
Orlando Magic: +2.5 (-110)
Over: 225 (-110)
Under: 225 (-110)
Why The Hawks Could Cover The Spread
Trae Young leads the team with 27.1 points and 9.6 assists per game. Dejounte Murray is second with 20.8 points and 6.2 assists per game and leads the team with an impressive 1.8 steals per game. Murray will be out for at least another week with an ankle injury, however. Big man Clint Capela is the only Hawks player averaging a double-double, with 11.9 points and 12.2 rebounds per game. Atlanta has averaged 44.3 rebounds per game, which is 10th in the league, while Memphis has allowed only 43.0 rebounds per game. AJ Griffin has provided a spark off the bench, averaging 10.1 points while playing 20.8 minutes per game across his 24 appearances. Griffin hit the game-winner in overtime in Sunday’s victory.
Clearly, the team has missed John Collins, who has been out since the beginning of the month with an ankle injury. Collins could be back next week. The big man, the subject of trade rumors, has averaged 12.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per game.
Atlanta has averaged 113.1 points per game, which ranks 15th in the league, but ranks third by turning the ball over just 13.6 times. Atlanta’s defense has been slightly below-average, ranking 19th with 114.6 points allowed per game.
Why The Magic Could Cover The Spread
Orlando has dealt with their fair share of injuries this month, losing three more players for a significant time. First-overall pick Paolo Banchero has been healthy, leading the team with 21.8 points per game, shooting 45.5 percent from the field. Banchero has also pulled in 6.9 rebounds per game, which is third on the team. The team's leading rebounder, Wendell Carter, Jr., is out for at least the rest of this week with a foot injury. Orlando has limited their opponents to 40.9 rebounds per game, which is third in the league. Franz Wagner, the team's second-leading scorer, has averaged 19.8 points per game. Jalen Suggs and Gary Harris are two other Magic averaging double-digit points that will miss this game.
Orlando has had a rough go on offense, ranking 28th in the league by averaging 108.2 points per game. Defense has also been a bit of an issue, ranking 17th by allowing 113.3 points per game. Orlando has been great at limiting rebounds, allowing the third fewest rebounds to their opponents.
Final Hawks-Magic Prediction & Pick
Orlando's injuries will likely be too much for them to overcome in this one. Two bad defenses will push the total over.
Final Hawks-Magic Prediction & Pick: Atlanta -2.5 (-110), over 225 (-110)
