Can The Hawks Start New Winning Streak Without Clint Capela?
The Hawks vs Celtics Lines Heavily Favor Boston
The Atlanta Hawks will look to start a new winning streak with a road tilt against the Boston Celtics.
The Hawks had won four consecutive games before their most recent loss to the Clippers. Atlanta continues to play in high-scoring games and couldn’t earn the home victory over the Clippers, losing 149-144.
Meanwhile, they’ll take on a Celtics squad, which is currently 38-12 on the season. Boston has won three of its last four games after a 40-point win over the Grizzlies on Sunday.
Memphis had 13 players listed on the injury report for that game and ultimately played with many backups and former G-League players. It was like a pick-up game for the Celtics.
This one won’t be. However, the Celtics are still favored by 11.5 points, with the total at 244.5.
Will the Celtics get within one game of 40 wins?
We’ll break down the Hawks vs Celtics lines for this Eastern Conference game.
Atlanta Hawks vs Boston Celtics 
Date, time:
Location: ETD Garden
Streaming: Live Sports Stream
Hawks vs Celtics Lines & Trends
The Atlanta Hawks have only won 14 games against the spread this season. They’re 14-36 against the spread this year, which is a horrid record.
Meanwhile, the Hawks have watched 29 games go Over in the 50 games played this season. Still on the road, Atlanta has dropped 14 of 24 games this season.
On the other hand, the Celtics might be impressive straight up, but they’re just 24-24-2 against the spread. They haven’t been a profitable team against the spread this season. Boston has also been relatively even with its Over-Unders, going 24-25-1 with totals this season.
What stands out the most is how the Celtics are 23-3 at home this season. That bodes well for Boston in this game.
Clint Capela’s Injury Update
After the Hawks defeated Golden State on February 3, Clint Capela started to feel some discomfort. After an MRI the next day, Capela was sidelined for two weeks with a left adductor strain. He’ll be re-evaluated in a week, and they’ll go from there.
When he didn’t play against the Clippers, the Hawks couldn’t get stops defensively and almost gave up 150 points in the loss.
Atlanta is aiming for his return to be February 12. But nothing is completely set. That’s ultimately his timetable at this time.
However, remember that the NBA will hit an All-Star break in the middle of the month. The Hawks could consider keeping Capela out until February 23 against the Raptors. That would be about three weeks off the court for Capela.
The Celtics Want To Upgrade Before The Deadline
The NBA Trade Deadline is set for February 8. There isn’t much time for the Celtics to strike a deal.
However, they’ve been in many rumors over the last few weeks and will likely strike a deal when the deadline hits.
Players we’ve seen in rumors include Andre Drummond, Kelly Olynyk, and Delon Wright. They could also consider smaller players like Svi Mykhailiuk and Lamar Stevens.
Boston won’t bring in a star. They’ve got one of the best starting lineups in the NBA. They need some role players who can give their other guys a break and gel well with the team.
Boston’s Offense Should Have a Field Day
The Atlanta Hawks have played in many games that have gone Over the total despite the total already being high throughout their games.
That’s due to Atlanta’s lack of defense this season.
The Hawks rank 27th in points per 100 possessions and have allowed an effective field goal percentage of 58.1%, which is 28th in the NBA.
That’s music to Boston’s ears. The Celtics rank third in the NBA in points per 100 possessions offensively and have shot a 57.2% effective field goal percentage this season.
The Celtics shouldn’t have a problem getting open looks and scoring. But on top of that, the Celtics have only turned the ball over 12.5% of the time and have been average on the offensive glass while also getting to the foul line at an average rate.
The Hawks have done well limiting foul shots and will sneak in some turnovers. But the Celtics should get some easy looks and earn many offensive rebounds, with the Hawks already allowing 28.1% of offensive rebounds this season.
Again, Clint Capela not being around won’t help.
Conversely, the Hawks are above average offensively but don’t blow teams away. They’re 10th in points per 100 possessions, 9th in free throw rate, and have added 30.5% of offensive rebounds. But Clint Capela led the team in offensive rebounds. Now, he’s no longer playing.
With the Celtics holding teams to 111.9 points per 100 possessions and an effective field goal percentage of 52.7%, Boston looks to have a real advantage in this game.
The Celtics have held opponents to 26% of offensive rebounds and allowed a free throw rate of 14.8 on the defensive end, the best rate in the NBA.
It’s unlikely any NBA trade rumors go through until after the NBA games today. Therefore, our NBA picks today include the Celtics at -11.5 (-110) after reviewing the Hawks vs Celtics lines.
