The Phoenix Suns will open a new era when they face the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday night at State Farm Arena. Phoenix was involved in a blockbuster trade late Wednesday night, acquiring star Kevin Durant from Brooklyn. Meanwhile, Atlanta is coming off consecutive losses, but the Hawks cruised to a 132-100 win over Phoenix last week.
Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. Atlanta is favored by 7 points in the latest Hawks vs. Suns odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under is set at 228.5. Before entering any Suns vs. Hawks picks, you’ll want to see the NBA predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past four-plus seasons. The model enters Week 17 of the 2022-23 NBA season on a stunning 52-28 roll on all top-rated NBA picks this season, returning nearly $2,000. Anyone following it has seen HUGE returns!
Now, the model has set its sights on Hawks vs. Suns. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several NBA betting lines for Hawks vs. Suns:
Hawks vs. Suns spread: Hawks -7Hawks vs. Suns over/under: 228.5 pointsHawks vs. Suns money line: Phoenix +220, Atlanta -280Hawks vs. Suns picks: See picks here
Featured Game | Atlanta Hawks vs. Phoenix Suns
Why the Hawks can cover
Phoenix is going to be dealing with a plethora of distractions on Thursday night, as it was involved in one of the NBA’s biggest trades in recent years on Wednesday night. The Suns dealt Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, Jae Crowder and five draft picks to Brooklyn in exchange for Durant and T.J. Warren. However, Durant and Warren are not going to be available on Thursday night, leaving the Suns shorthanded in this matchup.
Atlanta already blew out Phoenix once this month, rolling to a 132-100 win last week. The Hawks led by as many as 43 points in the third quarter of that game, holding Phoenix to a 4-of-28 mark from 3-point range. They have won seven of the last 10 meetings between these teams, covering the spread in six of the last nine matchups. Guard Trae Young leads Atlanta with 26.8 points and 10.0 assists per game, while Dejounte Murray is adding 21.1 points, 6.3 assists and 5.4 rebounds.
Why the Suns can cover
Phoenix responded to its loss to Atlanta with a three-game winning streak, beating Boston, Detroit and Brooklyn in consecutive road games. The Suns were 10-point underdogs in their 106-94 win over the Celtics, so they are comfortable playing in this role. Deandre Ayton had 31 points and 16 rebounds in the win over the Pistons before scoring a career high-tying 35 points against Brooklyn.
Devin Booker scored 19 points on Tuesday in his return from a 21-game absence due to a left groin strain, but he is going to be out on Thursday night. Atlanta is coming off a five-game road trip that concluded with losses at Denver and New Orleans. The Hawks were nowhere close to covering the spread in either of those setbacks, making them a team to avoid as heavy favorites in this contest.
How to make Suns vs. Hawks picks
The model has simulated Hawks vs. Suns 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you that the model is leaning Over, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 60% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Suns vs. Hawks? And which side of the spread hits nearly 60% of the time? Visit SportsLine to see which side of the Hawks vs. Suns spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that has crushed its NBA picks, and find out.
