Every one knows the woes of the Atlanta fan and how Georgia sports teams are known for choking hard in the playoffs. This long history of choking has lead Atlanta fans to expect the worse and to start saying "Here we go again" at the first glimpse of bad play. In Atlanta, there was an enormous amount of pressure on this Hawks team to make it to the ECFs. The Hawks have been known for their bad attendance and they made huge strides in turning this around this season. The Hawks had 24 regular season sellouts and their TV viewership, in Atlanta, has been record breaking. A series loss to the Nets or Wizards would have been backbreaking for the franchise and they may have lost the casual fan forever. Now that they are in the ECFs, they are playing with house money. That pressure has been lifted and they can play freely. The Hawks have shot 34% in these playoffs after shooting 38% in the regular season. I think we will see their shooting return to form as they play loose.
PG Matchup -A healthy Kyrie is the best scorer in this series, no doubt about it. The key is will he be healthy? The other problem is Kyrie's lack of defense. The Hawks are an elite team when Teague is on top of his game and I don't see Kyrie or Della being able to slow down Teague/Dennis. There are no players that the Cavs can hide Kyrie/Della on either. Teague/Millsap/Horford are the Hawks most versatile scorers while Korver/Carroll work the hardest on offense. Kyle and Demarre are constantly on the move and does Cleveland want a hobbled Kyrie running through screens all game while trying to chase Korver? I give the Hawks a big advantage at the PG position unless
The frontcourt -The biggest question for me is can Thompson/Mozgov keep up with Millsap and Horford on the perimeter. I don't think they can. I think we will see Mozgov play limited minutes (20 per game tops) with a lot of Lebron at PF and Thompson at Center. Lebron should be able to do a fine job on Millsap but this will take away the Cavs rim protection which is dangerous if Teague/Dennis are having their way with Kyrie/Della.
Keys for the Hawks -Teague has to be aggressive. He has a favorable matchup and he has to take advantage of it. A passive Teague will lead to Cavs wins
-Korver has to find his shot. Beal was a much tougher matchup for Korver than J.R. or Shump will be. The Wizards were relentless in running Beal off of screens and Korver was really giving it his all on defense while Beal was able to stick with him on the other end. He won't have to worry about fighting through so many screens in this series.
Keys for the Cavs -Lebron has to find his shot. I'm guessing that Bud will dare Lebron to take outside shots. Lebron scored 157 pts on 153 shots in the Bulls series while going 3/28 from 3. I'm certain that Lebron will shoot it better from 3 but how much better is the question. Carroll did a good job on Lebron in the limited action they saw against each other in the regular season. These were Lebron's stats when being guarded by Carroll this regular season: 9 pts on 3/15 FG with 5 turnovers. I know it's limited sample size and regular season and I am taking those numbers very lightly. Still, it does count for something.
-Team 3 pt shooting. The Hawks do a lot of rotating and force teams in to taking a lot of 3 pt shots. The Hawks forced their opponents in to taking the most 3 pt shots per game in the regular season at 25.8 per game. Kyrie, Della, J.R., Shump and Jones have all been hot from 3 so far. They will need to keep this up if they are going to score with the Hawks.
Stat that will determine the series: Team 3 pt percentage
-I believe that the team who shoots the better percentage from 3 will win this series. The Hawks are going to need to win games comfortable to avoid the ref bias that will favor Cleveland. To do this, they must shoot the 3 ball at a high clip. They will get plenty of open looks from 3 and they must convert them.
Every one knows the woes of the Atlanta fan and how Georgia sports teams are known for choking hard in the playoffs. This long history of choking has lead Atlanta fans to expect the worse and to start saying "Here we go again" at the first glimpse of bad play. In Atlanta, there was an enormous amount of pressure on this Hawks team to make it to the ECFs. The Hawks have been known for their bad attendance and they made huge strides in turning this around this season. The Hawks had 24 regular season sellouts and their TV viewership, in Atlanta, has been record breaking. A series loss to the Nets or Wizards would have been backbreaking for the franchise and they may have lost the casual fan forever. Now that they are in the ECFs, they are playing with house money. That pressure has been lifted and they can play freely. The Hawks have shot 34% in these playoffs after shooting 38% in the regular season. I think we will see their shooting return to form as they play loose.
PG Matchup -A healthy Kyrie is the best scorer in this series, no doubt about it. The key is will he be healthy? The other problem is Kyrie's lack of defense. The Hawks are an elite team when Teague is on top of his game and I don't see Kyrie or Della being able to slow down Teague/Dennis. There are no players that the Cavs can hide Kyrie/Della on either. Teague/Millsap/Horford are the Hawks most versatile scorers while Korver/Carroll work the hardest on offense. Kyle and Demarre are constantly on the move and does Cleveland want a hobbled Kyrie running through screens all game while trying to chase Korver? I give the Hawks a big advantage at the PG position unless
The frontcourt -The biggest question for me is can Thompson/Mozgov keep up with Millsap and Horford on the perimeter. I don't think they can. I think we will see Mozgov play limited minutes (20 per game tops) with a lot of Lebron at PF and Thompson at Center. Lebron should be able to do a fine job on Millsap but this will take away the Cavs rim protection which is dangerous if Teague/Dennis are having their way with Kyrie/Della.
Keys for the Hawks -Teague has to be aggressive. He has a favorable matchup and he has to take advantage of it. A passive Teague will lead to Cavs wins
-Korver has to find his shot. Beal was a much tougher matchup for Korver than J.R. or Shump will be. The Wizards were relentless in running Beal off of screens and Korver was really giving it his all on defense while Beal was able to stick with him on the other end. He won't have to worry about fighting through so many screens in this series.
Keys for the Cavs -Lebron has to find his shot. I'm guessing that Bud will dare Lebron to take outside shots. Lebron scored 157 pts on 153 shots in the Bulls series while going 3/28 from 3. I'm certain that Lebron will shoot it better from 3 but how much better is the question. Carroll did a good job on Lebron in the limited action they saw against each other in the regular season. These were Lebron's stats when being guarded by Carroll this regular season: 9 pts on 3/15 FG with 5 turnovers. I know it's limited sample size and regular season and I am taking those numbers very lightly. Still, it does count for something.
-Team 3 pt shooting. The Hawks do a lot of rotating and force teams in to taking a lot of 3 pt shots. The Hawks forced their opponents in to taking the most 3 pt shots per game in the regular season at 25.8 per game. Kyrie, Della, J.R., Shump and Jones have all been hot from 3 so far. They will need to keep this up if they are going to score with the Hawks.
Stat that will determine the series: Team 3 pt percentage
-I believe that the team who shoots the better percentage from 3 will win this series. The Hawks are going to need to win games comfortable to avoid the ref bias that will favor Cleveland. To do this, they must shoot the 3 ball at a high clip. They will get plenty of open looks from 3 and they must convert them.
For Game 1, I am looking at the Hawks team total Over 99 points. With the extra rest, Kyrie should see additional court time and he is a huge liability on defense. I think the Hawks come out and play freely and they shoot well from 3 on shots created by Teague's penetration and the resulting ball movement. I also think that Game 1 will be one of the more evenly called games of the series.
For Game 1, I am looking at the Hawks team total Over 99 points. With the extra rest, Kyrie should see additional court time and he is a huge liability on defense. I think the Hawks come out and play freely and they shoot well from 3 on shots created by Teague's penetration and the resulting ball movement. I also think that Game 1 will be one of the more evenly called games of the series.
Definitely got to ride that Hawks to win East future buddy!!!
Flamingo, do you think the series price is about right? (I see -230 / +195 currently). From your writeup I'm assuming you believe the Hawks have a better shot to win than the odds say.
Also, I'm assuming you feel like you have the healthier team right now. How much have the Hawks missed Sefolosha, and do you see his absence being an issue in this series?
Definitely got to ride that Hawks to win East future buddy!!!
Flamingo, do you think the series price is about right? (I see -230 / +195 currently). From your writeup I'm assuming you believe the Hawks have a better shot to win than the odds say.
Also, I'm assuming you feel like you have the healthier team right now. How much have the Hawks missed Sefolosha, and do you see his absence being an issue in this series?
Definitely got to ride that Hawks to win East future buddy!!!
Flamingo, do you think the series price is about right? (I see -230 / +195 currently). From your writeup I'm assuming you believe the Hawks have a better shot to win than the odds say.
Also, I'm assuming you feel like you have the healthier team right now. How much have the Hawks missed Sefolosha, and do you see his absence being an issue in this series?
I think it goes like this. The Hawks win in 5/6 if they shoot the 3 well. If they struggle with the 3 while the Cavs shooters remain hot, the Cavs may take this series in 6/7.
I think there is value in the Hawks series price because I believe the Hawks should be the favorites. Lebron finding his outside shot and going completely nuts and the refs are the only two things that scare me about this series. If Kyrie is hobbled, this will be a one man show and the Hawks were built to beat one man teams. The Hawks struggle against teams who move the ball around and do very well against ISO-dominant teams that have one player with very high usage.
You saw evidence of this in the Washington series. Washington was much better on offense without Wall than they were with him. Wall's absence forced Washington to spread the ball around and every one became a scoring threat. With Wall, he held the ball for the majority of possessions and it allowed the Hawks defense to key in. The Wizards shot 38.6% in the 3 games with Wall and 44.9% in the 3 games without Wall.
Thabo's absence will be HUGE and it has been HUGE all postseason. What Korver is to the Hawks offense is what Thabo was to the Hawks defense. The Hawks are an elite defense with Thabo and he had the ability to guard either Kyrie or Lebron well. I expect Carroll and Millsap to pick up some very cheap fouls at times in this series and having Thabo would give the Hawks a solid 3 man rotation of Lebron defenders. He had the 2nd highest on/off differential on the team in the regular season. He led the league in opponents FG% for the majority of the year. The Hawks should be OK without him and there is no excuse since Love is out and Kyrie may be gimpy. With Thabo, I would be dumping a lot of money on the Hawks series price. Without him, I am probably just going to let my Hawks to win the East future ride.
Definitely got to ride that Hawks to win East future buddy!!!
Flamingo, do you think the series price is about right? (I see -230 / +195 currently). From your writeup I'm assuming you believe the Hawks have a better shot to win than the odds say.
Also, I'm assuming you feel like you have the healthier team right now. How much have the Hawks missed Sefolosha, and do you see his absence being an issue in this series?
I think it goes like this. The Hawks win in 5/6 if they shoot the 3 well. If they struggle with the 3 while the Cavs shooters remain hot, the Cavs may take this series in 6/7.
I think there is value in the Hawks series price because I believe the Hawks should be the favorites. Lebron finding his outside shot and going completely nuts and the refs are the only two things that scare me about this series. If Kyrie is hobbled, this will be a one man show and the Hawks were built to beat one man teams. The Hawks struggle against teams who move the ball around and do very well against ISO-dominant teams that have one player with very high usage.
You saw evidence of this in the Washington series. Washington was much better on offense without Wall than they were with him. Wall's absence forced Washington to spread the ball around and every one became a scoring threat. With Wall, he held the ball for the majority of possessions and it allowed the Hawks defense to key in. The Wizards shot 38.6% in the 3 games with Wall and 44.9% in the 3 games without Wall.
Thabo's absence will be HUGE and it has been HUGE all postseason. What Korver is to the Hawks offense is what Thabo was to the Hawks defense. The Hawks are an elite defense with Thabo and he had the ability to guard either Kyrie or Lebron well. I expect Carroll and Millsap to pick up some very cheap fouls at times in this series and having Thabo would give the Hawks a solid 3 man rotation of Lebron defenders. He had the 2nd highest on/off differential on the team in the regular season. He led the league in opponents FG% for the majority of the year. The Hawks should be OK without him and there is no excuse since Love is out and Kyrie may be gimpy. With Thabo, I would be dumping a lot of money on the Hawks series price. Without him, I am probably just going to let my Hawks to win the East future ride.
Cavs -220 to win series..put 660 to win 300..you either make 265 (300-35) or 800 (460-660)..
Either way guaranteed cash instead of possibly being down 35.
My 2 cents
Why would I do that when I expect the Hawks to win. I have had a great betting season and am in a position to let this one ride. If I put money any money on the ECF series price, it will be on the Hawks and not the Cavs.
Cavs -220 to win series..put 660 to win 300..you either make 265 (300-35) or 800 (460-660)..
Either way guaranteed cash instead of possibly being down 35.
My 2 cents
Why would I do that when I expect the Hawks to win. I have had a great betting season and am in a position to let this one ride. If I put money any money on the ECF series price, it will be on the Hawks and not the Cavs.
Good break down barnes. One point I sort of disagree on is Korver vs shumpert/JR smith. They are pretty lengthy. Jump shots should be tougher for him. Beal had the quickness to stick Korver. Bottom line is Korver has been missing wide open 3's, he needs to find his arc, I agree that he needs to improve quickly. He is playing far from a guy who made the all star team, let alone being in the 3 pt contest
Good break down barnes. One point I sort of disagree on is Korver vs shumpert/JR smith. They are pretty lengthy. Jump shots should be tougher for him. Beal had the quickness to stick Korver. Bottom line is Korver has been missing wide open 3's, he needs to find his arc, I agree that he needs to improve quickly. He is playing far from a guy who made the all star team, let alone being in the 3 pt contest
Good break down barnes. One point I sort of disagree on is Korver vs shumpert/JR smith. They are pretty lengthy. Jump shots should be tougher for him. Beal had the quickness to stick Korver. Bottom line is Korver has been missing wide open 3's, he needs to find his arc, I agree that he needs to improve quickly. He is playing far from a guy who made the all star team, let alone being in the 3 pt contest
My point about Korver was moreso about his legs being fresher. The Cavs won't be running J.R. and Shump off of screens all game lik the Wizards were doing with Beal. Korver will expend far less energy guarding those two than he did vs Beal. He will still get some open looks each game and he will have fresher legs when those looks come. Teague/Dennis should have a much easier time driving past Kyrie/Della than they did vs Wall and them getting in to the paint starts a ton of quick movement which will lead to open perimeter shots for the Hawks and Korver.
I'm sure the Hawks will be more than happy if the Cavs face guard Korver like the Wiz did. That will lead to a game of 4 on 4 with no one to stay in front of Teague/Dennis.
Good break down barnes. One point I sort of disagree on is Korver vs shumpert/JR smith. They are pretty lengthy. Jump shots should be tougher for him. Beal had the quickness to stick Korver. Bottom line is Korver has been missing wide open 3's, he needs to find his arc, I agree that he needs to improve quickly. He is playing far from a guy who made the all star team, let alone being in the 3 pt contest
My point about Korver was moreso about his legs being fresher. The Cavs won't be running J.R. and Shump off of screens all game lik the Wizards were doing with Beal. Korver will expend far less energy guarding those two than he did vs Beal. He will still get some open looks each game and he will have fresher legs when those looks come. Teague/Dennis should have a much easier time driving past Kyrie/Della than they did vs Wall and them getting in to the paint starts a ton of quick movement which will lead to open perimeter shots for the Hawks and Korver.
I'm sure the Hawks will be more than happy if the Cavs face guard Korver like the Wiz did. That will lead to a game of 4 on 4 with no one to stay in front of Teague/Dennis.
I was blown away at this +190/+180 simply because people think the Hawks have 'struggled' and LBJ is on the other side of the ball.
What? There is an adjustment to be made without Thabdo and that takes time (and it's never fully made up defensively). And these are also uncharted waters for the Hawks. So they lost a combined 4 games out of 12 to the Nets and Wizards. That's 'struggling?'
Then you have Love out which is a bigger loss to the Cavs on offense and stretching the floor than Thabo is on D (not by a ton but he's a crucial cog to making that offense work), so I'll take the tradeoff.
Then Kyrie is questionable...on SIX days rest!
He is breaking down before our eyes. Remember this is game 93 for him and he never had a single game of playoff experience. Add to this tendinitis and other lingering injuries. Not good.
I have no idea where this series line comes from. I said from the beginning of the year, even with a healthy Love this Cavs team was not as good as the first Heat team that didn't win it all. Also as noted, Beal on Korver was a very tough match-up for him. He'll be better in this series.
Not sure what Cavs series backers are salivating about. I agree the wrong team is favored. At a minimum, make the series line a pick' um. Hopefully in some small way, the number one seed, the 60 win Hawks, near 2-1 dogs can use this disrespect as a bit of motivation in addition to the tons of talent they have and their unprecedented accomplishments during the year.
I was blown away at this +190/+180 simply because people think the Hawks have 'struggled' and LBJ is on the other side of the ball.
What? There is an adjustment to be made without Thabdo and that takes time (and it's never fully made up defensively). And these are also uncharted waters for the Hawks. So they lost a combined 4 games out of 12 to the Nets and Wizards. That's 'struggling?'
Then you have Love out which is a bigger loss to the Cavs on offense and stretching the floor than Thabo is on D (not by a ton but he's a crucial cog to making that offense work), so I'll take the tradeoff.
Then Kyrie is questionable...on SIX days rest!
He is breaking down before our eyes. Remember this is game 93 for him and he never had a single game of playoff experience. Add to this tendinitis and other lingering injuries. Not good.
I have no idea where this series line comes from. I said from the beginning of the year, even with a healthy Love this Cavs team was not as good as the first Heat team that didn't win it all. Also as noted, Beal on Korver was a very tough match-up for him. He'll be better in this series.
Not sure what Cavs series backers are salivating about. I agree the wrong team is favored. At a minimum, make the series line a pick' um. Hopefully in some small way, the number one seed, the 60 win Hawks, near 2-1 dogs can use this disrespect as a bit of motivation in addition to the tons of talent they have and their unprecedented accomplishments during the year.
I would say that people also need to realize that it took the Hawks a few games to find their stride in this postseason. They clinched the East in February and haven't played a meaningful game in 6 weeks before the playoffs started. Millsap also hurt his shoulder right before the playoffs started. Mike Scott hurt his back right before the playoffs and still hasn't regained his stroke. Dennis missed time with a toe injury right before the playoffs started.
These injuries + Bud resting players led to the Hawks starters playing fewer games as a complete unit. Then, Horford dislocates his finger in the 1st quarter of game 1 vs Brooklyn. This bothered him for most of the series and had a big impact on his midrange shot where he is the best in the league. Teague rolled his ankle in game 6 vs Brook and game 1 vs Wash.
All of these issues are done now. Millsap, Horford and Teague are coming in to this series healthy and the Hawks looked better as each game went on in the Wash series.
I would say that people also need to realize that it took the Hawks a few games to find their stride in this postseason. They clinched the East in February and haven't played a meaningful game in 6 weeks before the playoffs started. Millsap also hurt his shoulder right before the playoffs started. Mike Scott hurt his back right before the playoffs and still hasn't regained his stroke. Dennis missed time with a toe injury right before the playoffs started.
These injuries + Bud resting players led to the Hawks starters playing fewer games as a complete unit. Then, Horford dislocates his finger in the 1st quarter of game 1 vs Brooklyn. This bothered him for most of the series and had a big impact on his midrange shot where he is the best in the league. Teague rolled his ankle in game 6 vs Brook and game 1 vs Wash.
All of these issues are done now. Millsap, Horford and Teague are coming in to this series healthy and the Hawks looked better as each game went on in the Wash series.
What do you make of the Cavs ability to hit the 3 ball of late? JR, shumpert, beladova and a gimpy Kyrie have been nailing them. And keep in mind against a Bulls team who were supposed to be good at defending the tre(I believe 3rd in the league before the series started)
How is Atl's back court at defending the 3? They just faced a wizards team that attempts 17.6 3's a game. The Cavs attempt 27.6.
What do you make of the Cavs ability to hit the 3 ball of late? JR, shumpert, beladova and a gimpy Kyrie have been nailing them. And keep in mind against a Bulls team who were supposed to be good at defending the tre(I believe 3rd in the league before the series started)
How is Atl's back court at defending the 3? They just faced a wizards team that attempts 17.6 3's a game. The Cavs attempt 27.6.
Good write up, I also have a hawks future to win eastern @ +350. I also believe hawks will win game 1, if they do take a 1-0 lead in series its really easy to hedge as I predict cave series price will be around -150 or less? BOL though I really find a hard time for atl to win the series but who knows anything can happen. We need Korver to really zoom in and hit those open 3s as a first step.
Good write up, I also have a hawks future to win eastern @ +350. I also believe hawks will win game 1, if they do take a 1-0 lead in series its really easy to hedge as I predict cave series price will be around -150 or less? BOL though I really find a hard time for atl to win the series but who knows anything can happen. We need Korver to really zoom in and hit those open 3s as a first step.
What do you make of the Cavs ability to hit the 3 ball of late? JR, shumpert, beladova and a gimpy Kyrie have been nailing them. And keep in mind against a Bulls team who were supposed to be good at defending the tre(I believe 3rd in the league before the series started)
How is Atl's back court at defending the 3? They just faced a wizards team that attempts 17.6 3's a game. The Cavs attempt 27.6.
The Wizards actually shot almost 23 3's per game in their series with the Hawks. Like I mentioned previously, the Hawks force teams in to shooting A LOT of 3's. The Hawks scheme to force their opponents out of the paint and in to longer shots. The Hawks were 1st in the league in opponents average shot distance (13.04 feet) during the regular season.
I fully expect the Cavs to shoot over 30 threes per game in the ECFs. Their ability to hit those 3's will determine if they can win the series. I think the Cavs will have to shoot well from 3 to have a chance at beating this Hawks team in a 7 game series. The Hawks do a great job of closing off driving lanes and the Cavs don't have any low post scorers outside of Lebron. The 3 pt shot will be their main source of offense. If it's not falling, they are going to be in BIG trouble. Meanwhile, the Hawks have other options if their outside shot doesn't fall.
For reference, the Cavs attempted 38 threes in their final regular season meeting vs the Hawks. This was the only game played after the Cavs made their trades and every one was on the court for both teams except Thabo.
What do you make of the Cavs ability to hit the 3 ball of late? JR, shumpert, beladova and a gimpy Kyrie have been nailing them. And keep in mind against a Bulls team who were supposed to be good at defending the tre(I believe 3rd in the league before the series started)
How is Atl's back court at defending the 3? They just faced a wizards team that attempts 17.6 3's a game. The Cavs attempt 27.6.
The Wizards actually shot almost 23 3's per game in their series with the Hawks. Like I mentioned previously, the Hawks force teams in to shooting A LOT of 3's. The Hawks scheme to force their opponents out of the paint and in to longer shots. The Hawks were 1st in the league in opponents average shot distance (13.04 feet) during the regular season.
I fully expect the Cavs to shoot over 30 threes per game in the ECFs. Their ability to hit those 3's will determine if they can win the series. I think the Cavs will have to shoot well from 3 to have a chance at beating this Hawks team in a 7 game series. The Hawks do a great job of closing off driving lanes and the Cavs don't have any low post scorers outside of Lebron. The 3 pt shot will be their main source of offense. If it's not falling, they are going to be in BIG trouble. Meanwhile, the Hawks have other options if their outside shot doesn't fall.
For reference, the Cavs attempted 38 threes in their final regular season meeting vs the Hawks. This was the only game played after the Cavs made their trades and every one was on the court for both teams except Thabo.
Cavs really shot the 3 ball well against Bulls. I was surprised to see how well Shumpert and JR play. Cavs really do need that to continue to take pressure off Lebron and Kyrie. Also, Tristan Thomspson played huge against Bulls. That needs to continue. If the Cavs get those same strong performances from these role players, *and* Lebron plays more like vintage Lebron, Atlanta is in trouble. A lot of ifs though. I also have future bets on Atlanta to win the east and the nba championship. I'm letting my bet ride as well.
Cavs really shot the 3 ball well against Bulls. I was surprised to see how well Shumpert and JR play. Cavs really do need that to continue to take pressure off Lebron and Kyrie. Also, Tristan Thomspson played huge against Bulls. That needs to continue. If the Cavs get those same strong performances from these role players, *and* Lebron plays more like vintage Lebron, Atlanta is in trouble. A lot of ifs though. I also have future bets on Atlanta to win the east and the nba championship. I'm letting my bet ride as well.
I would say that people also need to realize that it took the Hawks a few games to find their stride in this postseason. They clinched the East in February and haven't played a meaningful game in 6 weeks before the playoffs started. Millsap also hurt his shoulder right before the playoffs started. Mike Scott hurt his back right before the playoffs and still hasn't regained his stroke. Dennis missed time with a toe injury right before the playoffs started.
These injuries + Bud resting players led to the Hawks starters playing fewer games as a complete unit. Then, Horford dislocates his finger in the 1st quarter of game 1 vs Brooklyn. This bothered him for most of the series and had a big impact on his midrange shot where he is the best in the league. Teague rolled his ankle in game 6 vs Brook and game 1 vs Wash.
All of these issues are done now. Millsap, Horford and Teague are coming in to this series healthy and the Hawks looked better as each game went on in the Wash series.
True True True True True and True again...
And I LOVE the fact the Hawks were pushed to 6 against the Nets and the Wizards (who are no pushovers and posters here are acting like they are on par with the Celtics!).
It makes them face adversity. Adversity fine tunes a team. I'd much rather the 60 win Hawks, with home court ,come in as an almost 2-1 dog (just ridiculous...) and have the now banged up Cavs (and Kyrie is bound to get banged up and/or aggravate an injury once again as the Hawks fly up and down the court) come in with the public salivating all over their -220 ML as they are just supposed to 'take care of business' against a Hawks team that ate them for breakfast 3 of 4 times this year (and to be fair Lebron didn't play one of those games).
One of the more perplexing series lines of the past several years. I'm not sure how many bettors really watched the Bulls series and understand the Cavs lingering injury issues and how much trouble Lebron and Kyrie had getting to the basket without Love on the floor.
And from a guy who watched JR for years, if this guy goes cold WATCH OUT! You are dead in the water because he won't let up until he starts hitting shots and he'll shoot you right out of the game before that time comes.
I would say that people also need to realize that it took the Hawks a few games to find their stride in this postseason. They clinched the East in February and haven't played a meaningful game in 6 weeks before the playoffs started. Millsap also hurt his shoulder right before the playoffs started. Mike Scott hurt his back right before the playoffs and still hasn't regained his stroke. Dennis missed time with a toe injury right before the playoffs started.
These injuries + Bud resting players led to the Hawks starters playing fewer games as a complete unit. Then, Horford dislocates his finger in the 1st quarter of game 1 vs Brooklyn. This bothered him for most of the series and had a big impact on his midrange shot where he is the best in the league. Teague rolled his ankle in game 6 vs Brook and game 1 vs Wash.
All of these issues are done now. Millsap, Horford and Teague are coming in to this series healthy and the Hawks looked better as each game went on in the Wash series.
True True True True True and True again...
And I LOVE the fact the Hawks were pushed to 6 against the Nets and the Wizards (who are no pushovers and posters here are acting like they are on par with the Celtics!).
It makes them face adversity. Adversity fine tunes a team. I'd much rather the 60 win Hawks, with home court ,come in as an almost 2-1 dog (just ridiculous...) and have the now banged up Cavs (and Kyrie is bound to get banged up and/or aggravate an injury once again as the Hawks fly up and down the court) come in with the public salivating all over their -220 ML as they are just supposed to 'take care of business' against a Hawks team that ate them for breakfast 3 of 4 times this year (and to be fair Lebron didn't play one of those games).
One of the more perplexing series lines of the past several years. I'm not sure how many bettors really watched the Bulls series and understand the Cavs lingering injury issues and how much trouble Lebron and Kyrie had getting to the basket without Love on the floor.
And from a guy who watched JR for years, if this guy goes cold WATCH OUT! You are dead in the water because he won't let up until he starts hitting shots and he'll shoot you right out of the game before that time comes.
Flamingo the rebounding is my only concern with the hawks. Thompson is a magnet on the boards. His will and desire to rebound the ball is exceptional. Who slows him down?
Flamingo the rebounding is my only concern with the hawks. Thompson is a magnet on the boards. His will and desire to rebound the ball is exceptional. Who slows him down?
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