The Atlanta Hawks have a date with the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday.
The pregame narrative: Atlanta has dropped four straight but I expect it to cover a hefty alternate spread tonight. Additionally, bet on 2024 No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher from deep and fade a teased-up Zion Williamson point total.
Check out my Hawks vs. Pelicans same-game parlay predictions for Nov. 3.
Hawks vs. Pelicans predictions
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Parlay: Hawks +10.5 + Risacher over 1.5 threes + Williamson under 30.5 points (+290)
Hawks +10.5 (-278): Tonight seems like a prime spot to back the struggling Hawks.
The Pelicans will be without three guards (C.J. McCollum, Trey Murphy III, Dejounte Murray) due to injury which severely hampers their perimeter offence.
Atlanta has been a disaster defending the deep ball, allowing opponents to shoot a league-high 41.0% from beyond the arc. Zion barely shoots from deep and Ingram only averages 6.2 attempts per game, preferring to attack from the midrange or at the rim.
The Hawks have been great at defending that area of the court, allowing the sixth-fewest paint points per game.
Atlanta is 4-2 against this line despite its 2-4 record while New Orleans is 1-5 against a -10.5 spread.
SGP legs
Risacher over 1.5 threes (-106): Atlanta fell backwards into the No. 1 pick and Risacher last year by winning the draft lottery with just a 3.0% chance.
The rookie has had an up-and-down start to his career, as expected, but tonight should be a good matchup for the Frenchman.
Like Atlanta, New Orleans’ 3-point line has been open season as opponents are connecting at a 38.2% clip (sixth-highest in NBA).
Risacher has only cleared this line in one of six games and was 1-for-6 from deep his last time out but he’s attempting 4.5 a night and should keep firing.
Williamson under 30.5 points (-177): We already talked about Atlanta’s ability to defend the paint, which has me looking to fade Zion on an alternate total.
The big man is coming off a 34-point outing against the Indiana Pacers but they’re one of the league’s worst defensive units. Before that, he was 1-3 against this line, failing to crack 20 points in each of those games.
Williamson is shooting just 44.2% from the field so far and Atlanta would be wise to focus its energy on stopping him tonight.
Picks made at 8:49 a.m. on 11/03/24.
Avery joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2022 before stepping into a full-time role soon after. He loves betting on and analyzing golf — mainly because it’s easier than actually playing — but is a fan of all sports, from the NFL to the UFC.