701 NETS at 702 HAWKS
Take: NETS +6.5
It’s very possible that this is the first time all season I’ve used the lowly Nets as a free play. But Brooklyn has played a bit better of late and while they’re hardly hot, they’re at least apparently trying to play some good ball.
I can’t the same for the Atlanta Hawks, who will make the playoffs but are clearly crawling rather than sprinting to the regular season finish line. Atlanta is not at full strength with Millsap and Bazemore injured and the Hawks certainly don’t appear to be playing with any real urgency right now.
In sizing up the in-season situational trends that apply to this game, it’s actually advantage Brooklyn. The oddsmakers are also making it very tempting to play Atlanta at what looks like a bargain price. So this should be a game where the betting public lays the points with the Hawks. I won’t be at all surprised to see the sharper dollars show on the underdog, and I lean that way myself. Opinion only, but the view from here is Brooklyn plus the points.