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The NBA season continues on Friday. The Denver Nuggets will hit the road and face off against the Atlanta Hawks. It's time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Nuggets-Hawks prediction and pick.
These two teams have been having very similar seasons. Both the Denver Nuggets and the Atlanta Hawks are dead even with a record of 14-14. The Nuggets are coming off a disappointing loss, while the Hawks booked a solid win in their last game. This should be a competitive game.
Here are the odds for the Nuggets-Hawks Friday night NBA matchup, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Nuggets-Hawks Odds
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Denver Nuggets: +3.5 (-110)
Atlanta Hawks: -3.5 (-110)
Over: 226 (-110)
Under: 226 (-110)
Why The Nuggets Could Cover The Spread
The Denver Nuggets have been having an interesting season. Through their first 28 games they have managed to win 14 and lose 14. Denver has shown that they can be a competitive team, yet they have also struggled against worse teams. The Nuggets are coming off a 17 point loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a game that really should have been more competitive. Denver will be looking to bounce back on Friday in another tough match up. If they can improve on their mistakes from last game they should be able to make this game competitive.
Denver fell short of Minnesota in a few key statistics in their last game, the most crucial of which being scoring. The Nuggets took less and made less shots than the Timberwolves. On 84 shot attempts, Denver made 38, while Minnesota took 88 shots and made 45. Denver also struggled to keep up with the three pointers from Minnesota. The Timberwolves took 48 threes and made 23 of them, while the Nuggets took 39 and only made 14. Denver was solid in other aspects of that game, namely in grabbing rebounds and dishing out assists, but that wasn't enough to get them the win. If the Nuggets want to win on Friday they will need to shoot the ball much better.
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The leader of this Nuggets team is without a doubt Nikola Jokic. Jokic has proven himself to be one of the best all around big men, and one of the best players in the league. In their loss to the Timberwolves, Jokic notched a triple double with 27 points, 11 assist, and 10 rebounds. This is not atypical of the big man who seemingly does it all for this Denver team. While Jokic's performance wasn't enough to get his team the win in their last game, if he can have another big game then Friday's match will at least be competitive.
Why The Hawks Could Cover The Spread
The Atlanta Hawks have also had a pretty interesting season thus far. Through their first 28 games they share the same record as the Nuggets, with 14 wins and 14 losses. Atlanta has had lots of variance this season, they have scored wins against tough opponents and have fallen short against weaker ones. They are coming off a solid 12 point victory over the Orlando Magic. While the Magic aren't a top team, it is encouraging to see the Hawks score a win after back to back losses. Atlanta will look to carry momentum from that game into a tougher match on Friday. If they can keep on playing solid basketball, then they should be able to take care of business at home.
Atlanta was dominant across most metrics in their win over Orlando. While the Hawks took less shots than the Magic, 85 vs 90, they made more, 42 vs 35. Atlanta also managed to go 11 for 31 from beyond the arc, while Orlando made only 10 of 35 attempts. The Hawks were also perfect from the stripe, making 16 of 16 free throws. However, the Hawks did fall short in rebounding, as they were out rebounded by 6. Yet they were able to make up for this with their 11 steals compared to Orlando's 4. Overall the Hawks did what they needed to do in order to get the win over the Magic and if they can repeat this performance on Friday they should be able to extend their win streak to two.
Leading the way for this Hawks team is Trae Young. Ice Trae has quickly become one of the best scorers in the league. In only 30 minutes, he managed to score 28 points against the Magic. He is having another great season and has been a big reason that the Hawks have been able to win games. On the season he is averaging 27 points and 9 assists per game. When the Hawks need someone to step up they look to Trae. If he can have a big game on Friday then the Hawks should have no problem pulling out this win.
Final Nuggets-Hawks Prediction & Pick
This is a pretty tough decision, however Atlanta should have the edge here. The Hawks have faced tougher competition than the Nuggets and have been competitive. On the flip side, Denver has been struggling recently and could easily put in another poor performance on Friday. Pick the Hawks to win and cover.
FINAL NUGGETS-HAWKS PICK: Atlanta Hawks -3.5 (-110)
FINAL NUGGETS-HAWKS SCORE PREDICTION: Hawks 113 – Nuggets 102
