NBA Game 3 Expert Picks For Washington At Atlanta

The Atlanta Hawks are a perfect example of how fleeting success can be in the NBA, as they have slid a long way from the team that won the Eastern Conference just two seasons ago. The Hawks are a playoff team every year, but they routinely struggle against the better teams in the conference once it comes to crunch time. They had a real rollercoaster regular season, and there has been talks of locker room dissension throughout the year. That appears to have carried over to the postseason, as they find themselves down 2-0 in their series with the Washington Wizards as they prepare to head home for Game 3. It goes without saying that this is a game that the Hawks need to win, as you get the sense that they will go out with a whimper if they end up falling behind 3 games. The Wizards have looked very good through the opening two games, but the fact that they have not been great on the road this season may explain why they are coming into this one as a 3-game underdog. Find out more about the updated NBA betting spreads here.

In Depth Analysis On The NBA Game 3 Expert Picks For Wizards At Hawks

When: Saturday, April 22 at 5:30 PM EST Where: Phillips Arena, Atlanta TV: TNT, FOX SPORTS SOUTHEAST, CSN, NBATV CANADA Radio: WZGC-FM, 1500 AM Live Stream: Watch NBA NBA Odds: Atlanta Hawks -2½ (-110)    

Why bet on the Washington Wizards

It’s no real secret that the Washington Wizards are going to need to get into shootouts if they want to make a deep run in these playoffs. There is no denying that their offense, led by the enigmatic John Wall, is potent, but they have a difficult time in their own end of the court. They gave up over 100 points in each of the opening 2 games against Atlanta, but the good news is that they scored at a little over the pace of their PPG season average. It’s a dangerous game to play, though, as there are going to be nights when the offense will be unable to hold up their end of the bargain. The Wizards were 3 games below .500 on the road on the regular season, so Saturday could prove to be one of those nights.

Why bet on the Atlanta Hawks

There were many who believed that bringing Dwight Howard to Atlanta this season was a mistake, and there have certainly been times when the big man has proven to be more of a distraction than a help. He was benched for the 4th quarter in Game 2, with coach Budenholzer saying that the decision made had nothing to do with the way in which Howard was playing. Regardless of the reason, the changes made had little effect, as the Hawks had no answer to the Wall/Beal duo. Atlanta had a 23-18 SU record on home court this season, although they were just 17-24 ATS in those games. Those numbers suggest that Atlanta can win this one, but not in a big way.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

John Wall and Bradley Beal have been magnificent this series so far, and it’s tough to see how Atlanta are going to be able to shut them down. The Hawks will, I believe win this one, but things look bleak in the series as a whole.

Washington Wizards 104 Atlanta Hawks 106