Tonight’s game is a really solid bounce back opportunity for the Atlanta Hawks who have lost 2 games in a row to the Clippers and Celtics. There’s no shame in losing to arguably two of the best teams in the NBA right now, before those games the Hawks were actually doing solid with 4 wins on the bounce. Trae Young’s wish came true as he was named on to the All-Star team as a injury replacement, he has been posting 30-point and 10 assist double-doubles on a regular basis in the last couple of weeks. Atlanta actually beat Philadelphia in the most recent meeting 139-132 back in mid-January, however they’re still down 2-1 in the regular season series. Nevertheless, with the injury situation the Sixers are dealing with, the Hawks enter tonight’s game as 3.5 point favorites. In this role they are 15-11 SU for the season.
Life without Joel Embiid has been tough. The 76ers have dropped 3 games in a row, in their last 2 against Dallas and Golden State they really struggled scoring the basketball, averaging just 103 points per game. They did make a couple of moves before yesterday’s trade deadline, but nothing too significant which could alter their trajectory this season. Their faith, at least until Joel Embiid comes back, lies in the hands of first time All-Star Tyrese Maxey. With the Hawks not being the best defensive team out there, there is a chance that Maxey goes nuts here, so don’t be surprised if he goes for 40+ points in tonight’s game. Will that be enough to get a win? That’s hard to say, because in 16 games without Embiid the Sixers have just 4 victories, so the odds are stacked against them.
