The Atlanta Hawks and Miami Heat meet Sunday in Game 1 of the NBA Playoffs at the FTX Arena. The Atlanta Hawks look for another win after beating the Hornets and Cavaliers. The Miami Heat haven’t played in a week and have won six of their last seven games.
The Atlanta Hawks are averaging 113.9 points on 47 percent shooting and allowing 112.4 points on 47.1 percent shooting. Trae Young is averaging 28.4 points and 3.7 rebounds, while John Collins is averaging 16.2 points and 1.8 assists. Bogdan Bogdanovic is the third double-digit scorer, and De’Andre Hunter is grabbing 3.3 rebounds. The Atlanta Hawks are shooting 37.4 percent from beyond the arc and 81.2 percent from the free throw line. The Atlanta Hawks are allowing 36.4 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 44 rebounds per game.
The Miami Heat are averaging 110 points on 46.7 percent shooting and allowing 105.6 points on 44.7 percent shooting. Jimmy Butler is averaging 21.4 points and 5.5 assists, while Tyler Herro is averaging 20.7 points and 5 rebounds. Bam Adebayo is the third double-digit scorer and Kyle Lowry is grabbing 4.5 rebounds. The Miami Heat are shooting 37.9 percent from beyond the arc and 80.8 percent from the free throw line. The Miami Heat are allowing 33.9 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 43.7 rebounds per game.
The Hawks are 6-15 ATS in their last 21 road games and 7-2 ATS in their last 9 games overall. The Heat are 4-1 ATS in their last 5 games as a favorite and 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games overall. The under is 4-1 in Hawks last 5 overall. The over is 4-1 in Heat last 5 overall. The Hawks are 1-5 ATS in the last 6 meetings in Miami.
There’s potential rust with the Miami Heat after not playing for a week, but there’s also potential fatigue with the Hawks after playing twice and fresh off a big comeback against the Cavs. The Hawks haven’t been good on the road this season, where they struggle defensively and lose by an average of 1.7 points. The Hawks are also 14-27 against the spread on the road. The Heats defense is likely going to be the difference here. I’ll lay the chalk with the home team.