Atlanta Hawks vs Chicago Bulls Prediction, 12/23/2020 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Atlanta Hawks vs Chicago Bulls

Date: Wednesday, December 23, 2020

Location: United Center in Chicago, IL

TV: NBC Sports Chicago

Odds/Point Spread: Atlanta (-2)

United Center is the site where and the Chicago Bulls (22-43 last year) will play the Atlanta Hawks (20-47 last season) on Wednesday. The line on this matchup has Atlanta as 2-point favorites. The over/under opens at 227.

Atlanta enters this game after finishing with a win-loss mark of 20-47 last season. They had an average of 111.8 pts per game (17th in the league) while hitting 44.9% from the floor. The Hawks shot 33.3% on 3-point shots (805 of 2,416) and 79.0% from the free throw line. As a team, Atlanta pulled down 43.3 rebounds per game and totaled 1,605 assists last season, which had them ranked 21st in basketball in terms of passing the ball. They gave up possession 16.2 times per contest and as a unit committed 23.1 personal fouls on a nightly basis. On the defensive end, the Hawks were able to force their opponents into 15.0 turnovers per contest and they drew 21.0 personal fouls. They surrendered 36.3% from beyond the arc and they ranked 30th in basketball in points per game allowed (119.7). The Hawks defensively allowed an opponent shooting percentage of 47.8% (2,903 of 6,078) and they surrendered 47.0 boards per contest as a group. They were ranked 11th in the league in allowing assists to the opposition with 1,674 conceded last year.

The Atlanta Hawks took the court against the New York Knicks and ended up losing by a score of 136-131 in their last contest. Atlanta ended with a 45.3% FG percentage (48 out of 106) and knocked down 14 of their 41 shots from 3-point land. From the charity stripe, the Hawks converted 21 of 26 tries for a percentage of 80.8%. In terms of grabbing rebounds, they compiled 53 with 15 of them being of the offensive sort. They also doled out 26 assists in the matchup as well as earning 6 steals and 3 rejections. In the matter of defense, Atlanta allowed 53.2% from the floor on 50 out of 94. New York earned 32 assists and 14 steals for the matchup. In addition, the Knicks pulled down 47 rebounds (6 offensive, 41 defensive) and earned 9 rejections. New York ended up shooting 73.5% when shooting free throws by knocking down 25 of 34 tries. They also buried 11 of 28 shots from 3-point land.

John Collins is a guy who was a major contributor for this contest. He recorded 22 points on 9 of 20 shooting. He played 41:07 and also collected 15 boards. Collins ended up going 45.0% from the field and also recorded 2 dimes. An additional guy that was a major contributor in this contest for the Hawks was Trae Young. He snagged 2 boards and had 11 assists. He finished the contest at 48.0% from the floor for the game via 12-of-25 (42 points). At the conclusion of this game, Young saw the court for 37:45.

Chicago had a win-loss record of 22-43 last season. On the offensive side of the court, the Bulls connected on 44.7% from the floor, which ranked them 26th in the NBA. Chicago earned 6,945 points last season (106.8 per contest) and they snagged 41.9 rebounds per contest. They assisted teammates 23.2 times per contest (23rd in the league) and they turned it over 15.5 times per contest. The Bulls committed 21.8 fouls per game and they connected on 75.5% from the free throw line. The Bulls on the defensive end were ranked 14th in basketball in PPG given up with 109.9. The Chicago defense surrendered 35.3% on 3-point shots (726 of 2,057) and their opposition knocked down 75.9% of their foul shots. They were able to force 18.3 turnovers on a nightly basis and let teams shoot 47.9% from the floor (27th in basketball). They surrendered 25.4 assists and 45.5 boards per contest, which had them ranked 25th and 20th in those categories on the defensive end.

The last time they took the court, the Chicago Bulls got the victory with a final of 108-103 when they played the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Bulls were able to snag 32 defensive rebounds and 14 offensive boards totaling 46 in this contest. They also turned away 6 shots while getting 8 steals for the game. The Cavaliers were called for 15 fouls for this game which took the Bulls to the charity stripe for 15 attempts. They were able to knock down 12 of the free throws for a clip of 80.0%. In the matter of three-point shots, Chicago made 12 of 34 tries (35.3%). When the game finished, the Bulls ended up shooting 42 for 84 from the field which had them sitting at 50.0%. The Bulls allowed the Cavaliers to make 40 of 80 attempts from the field which had them at 50.0% for the matchup. They shot 25.0% from behind the 3-point line by going 6 of 24 and ended up going 17 of 23 from the free throw line (73.9%). In the matter of team rebounding, Chicago permitted Cleveland to pull down 35 in total (9 offensive).

Coby White saw the court a lot for the Bulls for the game. He made 7 out of 17 in this game giving him a field goal percentage of 41.2%, which had him sitting at 20 points. White collected 5 boards in his 37:57 of time on the court and had 5 assists in the game. An additional guy that ended up playing a role for Chicago was Lauri Markkanen. He totaled 15 points in his 29:42 played via 6 out of 13 shooting in this contest. Markkanen ended up shooting 46.2% from the field as well as contributing 2 assists and 4 rebounds.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Atlanta (-2)

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