Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Atlanta Hawks: Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 2/24/2023

Time: 7:30 p.m. ET

Venue: State Farm Arena, Atlanta, GA

Where to watch: BSSE-ATL, BSOH

DraftKings: Hawks -1

FanDuel: Hawks -1

BetMGM: NL

Caesars: Hawks -1

Cavs: 38-23

Hawks: 29-30

The All-Star break is over in the NBA and it's time to get on the horse and finish up the final home stretch of the season. Big trades, uncertainty, and absolute hilarity across the board all gearing up for the final home stretch of this season. You know who is also gearing up for the home stretch? Our champion handicappers at bigal.com who are ready to win their way all the way to the playoffs. There's a lot going on that we can't wait for in these final 23-25 games and you're going to need every bit of hardcore analysis you can get from this group. Just in the last 30 days we've had some big winners. Doc's Sports has posted a 16-6-0 record in the last month (+$9,200). AAA Sports has killed it at 17-8-0, and then Al McMordie with a dominant 20-11-1 mark over the last 30 days. Everything you need to know and more about what's going on this league and sports in general will be a fun finish to the end. All you have to do is go to bigal.com and find our Best Bets page and put forth something that only you think is good. Here's a hint: Go to the bigal.com website and happy betting!

Cavs: lost 118-112 at 76ers

Hawks: lost 122-101 vs. Knicks

From the time you read this, the Cleveland Cavaliers are in the midst of playing the first game of a back-to-back against the Denver Nuggets. So they’re hitting the ground running and will be playing the second half, with some travel, against the Atlanta Hawks in State Farm Arena on Friday.

 

Immediately, off the bat, I don’t like this setup for the Cavs. Yeah, they’re walking into a winnable situation against Atlanta, who comes into this game having lost three of five going into the break. But the Cavs are coming off a game against the Denver Nuggets, which will be as hard of a game as any coming out of the break. Trying to slow down Nikola Jokic, no matter who is around him, is never going to be easy.

 

But knowing they are going to exhaust more energy on Denver than Atlanta doesn’t bode well for going into this matchup for the Cavs, though if they can do that out of the break it wouldn’t be surprising. Donovan Mitchell, who is averaging 27.3 points on 48 percent shooting, is going to need to be the catalyst in leading the way in both of these games, much like he scored 33 points against the Philadelphia 76ers before the break.

 

“They did a great job of physically out of our stuff,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “They were aggressive on both ends of the floor and it took us too long to recover from that first punch. We showed what we are capable of in the second half with 17 assists and just one turnover.”

 

On top of getting Cleveland on the back-to-back, there’s also the new coach feel for Atlanta coming out of the break, as the Hawks fired coach Nate McMillan this week. The Hawks traded for Dejounte Murray to bring together a Big Three with John Collins and Trae Young, but they’re only eighth in the Eastern Conference.

 

“I would like to thank Nate for his leadership and professionalism during his time with the Hawks,” Hawks general manager Landry Fields said in a statement. “He is truly a class act, and we appreciate the graciousness and work ethic he brought with him every day.”

 

The Hawks entered the break on a 122-101 loss to the New York Knicks in what was the final straw in the McMillan era. Young was held to just 19 points on 4 of 14 shooting, and DeAndre’ Hunter led the way with 20 points on 9 of 15 shooting. That, of course, isn’t going to cut it when Murray is 3 of 12 and Collins is just 2 of 8.

 

“We definitely need a break,” Young said. “I've got faith in my team. I've got trust that we can make a special run.”

 

The other component of this is Saadiq Bey, who should see an increased role if Collins is not producing. The newcomer had just 2 points in 18 minutes. He needs more touches, and whomever is the new coach going forward (Quin Snyder?) is going to need to get this team into shape. Hawks 114, Cavs 112

Cavs are 7-1 against Southeast opponents this season.

Cavs are 12-16 ATS on the road this season.

Hawks are 12-19 ATS as a favorite this season.

PG: Darius Garland

SG: Donovan Mitchell

SF: Isaac Okoro

PF: Evan Mobley

C: Jarrett Allen

PG: Trae Young

SG: Dejounte Murray

SF: De'Andre Hunter

PF: Saddiq Bey

C: Clint Capela

Cavs: Ricky Rubio (knee, out)

Hawks: John Collins (face, out)