Atlanta ended a 3-game slate thanks to a big win over Cleveland on Thursday. Once again ball movement is what got the Hawks the win, they accumulated 34 assists as a team. This has been a staple of this team in the first 6 games played, they actually lead the league averaging 32.5 assists per game. Saturday’s opponent the Pelicans rank only 20th in this category and to nobody’s surprise they’re just 1-4 SU after 5 games played. Atlanta also does a fabulous job taking care of the basketball, turning it over just 13.8 times per game which is the 3rd lowest mark in the NBA. They’ll need to be on top of their game offensively here though, the Pelicans love to push the tempo.
Only the Chicago Bulls average more possessions per game than the Pelicans do, but sadly for their fans this has not contributed to their win total as much as they would want to. Zion Williamson and co. have really struggled defensively, only once in the 5 games so far have they allowed under 120 points and that’s the number one priority to sort out in the coming weeks for head coach Jamahl Mosley. They’ve really struggled in this match-up over the past two seasons, suffering four double-digit losses in a row. Not having their center Yves Missi will be a big problem here, as the Hawks score the 2nd highest number of points in the paint at 55 per game.
In a high paced game, I trust the Hawks way more. They’re the 10th most efficient three-point shooting team and unlike the Pels they’re capable of getting timely stops when it matters the most. I’ll take Atlanta to cover on the road.
Hawks vs Pelicans Predictions: Hawks -4.5 is available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.
