Atlanta Hawks vs Denver Nuggets Prediction, Odds and Picks for Friday, 01/09/26

Fresh off their trade that sent Trae Young to Washington, the Atlanta Hawks will travel to take on the Denver Nuggets in a nonconference matchup. The Hawks have a record this season of 18-21, and they are 11-10 when playing on the road. Atlanta lost 2 of their its 3 games but are coming off a 117-100 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. Zaccharie Risacher led the team in scoring with 25 points, and Jalen Johnson added 19 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists. The Nuggets have a record of 25-12 this season, and they are 10-5 on their home court. The Nuggets have won their last 2 games, including their last win over the Boston Celtics at a score of 114-110. Peyton Watson led the team in scoring with 30 points, and Jamal Murray added 22 points and 17 assists. 

The Nuggets are still trying to find their way without Nikola Jokic. After the last 2 wins, the Nuggets are 3-2 without Jokic in the lineup. In the 5 games without their star, the Nuggets have seen significant decreases in their team rebounding, assist totals, and points per game. With Jokic in the lineup, the Nuggets averaged 124.1 points, 43.2 rebounds and 29.1 assists per game. Without Jokic, those numbers dip to 113.6 points, 37.8 rebounds and 25 assists per game. We are seeing in live action how impactful a player Jokic is.

CJ McCollum will not get his first start as a Hawk tonight, but I still think the Hawks are in a better place after moving on from Young. The Hawks were in an opposite situation as the Nuggets, where they actually were playing better without their star player. The Hawks were only 2-9 this season with Young in the lineup, which means they were 16-12 without him. We have seen Jalen Johnson grow into a budding star this season, and effective role players such as Nickeil-Alexander Walker and Kristaps Porzingis have excelled. The Nuggets are fundamentally a different team without Jokic, and I like for the Hawks to take advantage of his absence tonight.

Hawks vs Nuggets prediction: Atlanta Hawks +1 is available at the time of publishing. Playable to PK.

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