The NBA postseason gets underway on Tuesday night with the start of the play-in tournament. The seventh and eighth seeds in each conference meet, with the winner getting the seventh seed in its conference. The loser awaits the winner of the ninth- and tenth-place teams in each conference, and they will square off for the eighth seed. In the Eastern Conference, Miami is currently in seventh place and hosts eight-place Atlanta on Tuesday night. The teams met four times during the regular season, with Miami winning three of those. We have your NBA betting prediction for this game right here.
NBA Preview: Eastern Conference Play-In (7-seed vs 8-seed)
Atlanta Hawks at Miami Heat
When: Tuesday, April 11, 2023, 7:30 pm ET
Where: American Airlines Arena, Miami
TV: TNT
Radio: WZGC 92.9 FM Atlanta / WQAM 560 AM Miami
Live Stream: Sling TV
NBA Odds: Atlanta +5.5 / O/U 227.5 / Atlanta +170 / Miami -210
Why should you bet on the Hawks?
The Hawks have had a lot of drama during the 2022-23 season. During the off-season, they pulled off a swap with the San Antonio spurs to bring guard Dejounte Murray to town so he could join Trae Young to make one of the NBA’s best backcourts. During the regular season, this pair averaged more than 46 points and 16 assists per contest. However, Young was rumored to be unhappy with the arrangement, and this may have led to the firing of head coach Nate McMillan. Quin Snyder has taken over the job on an interim basis, and the team has gone just 10-11 since then, including a 5-5 record in their last 10 games.
In their four games with Miami, Atlanta has scored 114 points per game, shooting 50 percent from the floor. Their ball security was a little sloppy, as they turned the ball over almost 13 times per game, and they only pulled down 36 rebounds per contest. Both Young and Murray were held below their season average, as they only combined to score 38 points per contest in these meetings. If you like the Hawks, you see them shaking off some of the drama and inconsistency that have plagued them all season and pulling off what would be a significant road upset. This is a team that has worked some playoff magic in the past, delivering a resounding upset of the Philadelphia 76ers two offseasons ago.
Why should you put your money on the Heat?
Miami rolled to the top seed in the Eastern Conference last year, winning 53 games during the regular season. They didn’t make it to the NBA Finals, though, getting knocked out in seven games. Injuries and depth issues made this season less successful. All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo led the way this season, but they missed 25 games over the course of the year. The team did finish strong, winning four of five to finish in seventh place.
The Heat won both of their games with Atlanta on their home floor, and in their four meetings, the Heat outrebounded Atlanta by over four per game, and they shot 50 percent from the floor overall and 36 percent from behind the arc. Butler and Adebayo played in all four games and combined to score just under 50 points per game. Kyle Lowry, who missed 27 games during the season, will also return, and that should help ball security for a Miami team that turned the ball over 56 times in their four games against Atlanta.
Final Score and Prediction
While Miami went 3-1 against Atlanta this season, those three wins came by an average of just over two points per contest. Atlanta will have Clint Capela inside, which should keep Adebayo from putting up a dominant game. The Heat are 27-15 SU at home but just 14-25-2 against the spread, and they have covered just three times in their last ten games against teams in their division. I predict a final score of Miami 106, Atlanta 103.
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