Sixers -3 (-107)
76ers vs. Hawks NBA Playoffs Game 4 Preview and Best Bet (Archive)
It was all good just a week ago. Or, around a week ago anyway. The Hawks took Game 1 behind a commanding first quarter, Joel Embiid looked like he may be injured, and Atlanta’s offense seemed to have a clear path to dominance once again against a good defense. Well, the Sixers pulled the next two games back in commanding fashion, once again ripping home-court advantage away from the Hawks. Will the pain continue for Atlanta, or can it get back in this series at home? The lines are tight, but oway or another, there’s value to be found here, and we’ll help you find it. Here’s where you should be looking the top-rated sportsbooks.
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Atlanta Hawks
Monday, June 14, 2021 – 7:30 PM EDT at Phillips Arena
Philadelphia Is Back to Dominating on Both Ends of the Floor
That moment where we all thought the Sixers would lose this series seems so far away now. Even entering this series with the Hawks, the Sixers were short favorites of –210 or so, with many believing in this Hawks offense and selling Embiid against the dangerous Clint Capela, who had just shut down an All-Star bigman in Julius Randle.
Well, that’s really not the case anymore. So far in the conference semifinals, the 76ers have scored 123 points per 100 possessions, which rates as the third-best offense out of the eight teams still alive in the postseason. Tobias Harris has been the scorer that the Sixers need to complement the talented Embiid, and in Game 4, Furkan Korkmaz quite easily filled in for an injured Danny Green with 14 points in 27 minutes and a +24 rating to boot. Philadelphia has great depth, and it will get the chance to showcase it here with injuries (and fatigue) piling up.
Surely, the Sixers will want to manage Ben Simmons’ minutes if they can, getting a guy like Shake Milton (who’s been great in this series) some more run. They will also have to be cautious with Embiid, who enters this game as questionable with a partially-torn meniscus that’s been bothering him. On top of all of that, they lost Green for the remainder of the series last game, and will lean on Korkmaz and perhaps a little more Seth Curry on the wings.
The Sixers are back to dominating, and it seems unlikely they will let up on the defensive end.
Atlanta Needs to Get Back to Shooting the Three
Atlanta’s offense has been pretty miserable since its explosive first half of Game 1, but that’s to be expected when you’re facing a defense as good as the Sixers. It now has an offensive rating just north of 112 for the series, and the pace has slowed considerably after a ridiculous 107 pace rating in Game 1.
Put quite bluntly, the Hawks have been out of their element. They’re looking for answers against one of the league’s best defenses, and that’s why the puzzling call to abandon the three came in Game 3. Atlanta took just 23 — a playoff-low — and hit six of them just one game after it had shot decently from deep, knocking down 11 of 30 in Game 2. Guys like Danilo Gallinari, Kevin Huerter and Bogan Bogdanovic have become stars this postseason behind some exceptional shooting, and that is the calling card for this team.
Atlanta doesn’t play well enough on defense to be messing around like this on the offensive and, and needs to try desperately to push the tempo just a little bit in this Game 4. It needs to find that game that got it here in the first place to have any way back in this series.
I think the Sixers should continue to control this series from a defensive standpoint, frustrating a confused Atlanta offense and giving their injured offense more time to operate. Korkmaz and Matisse Thybulle should play well enough where Philly doesn’t miss Green here, and I expect Embiid to continue playing through his injury, as he has been all series long to great success. The Sixers should roll on the road en route to a 3-1 lead.
NBA Pick: Sixers -3 (-107) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
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