NBA Betting Free Picks: Utah Jazz at Atlanta Hawks

Added on Nov 11, 2010 by Jack Thurman in

NBA

NBA betting on Friday night offers a matchup between top contenders from the East and West as the Utah Jazz head to Phillips Arena to take on the Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta opened the season with a 6-0 record but has now lost three straight. The Jazz lost their first two games and have won five of six since. The Hawks are in a tie with Orlando atop the Southeast Division while Utah trails the Portland Trailblazers by 1/2 game in the Northwest.

Utah Jazz at Atlanta Hawks
November 12, 2010 4:00 PM Pacific

The Utah Jazz haven’t always been a good road team but regardless what happens the rest of the way on this 4 game Eastern swing they’ve got to be happy with the results. They started the trip with that incredible second half comeback and OT victory over the Miami Heat, and followed that up with another come-from-behind win over the Orlando Magic. That success has a downside, however, as two consecutive efforts against top flight talent leaves Utah susceptible to a letdown at some point. We’re thinking that the public is overvaluing the Jazz based on their previous two results–consider that Utah was a +10′ underdog against the Magic and only a +4 underdog here. That looks like some serious overcompensation based on the Utah winning streak and Atlanta’s losing streak.

Besides, it’s not like Atlanta has been humiliated in these losses–the lost a close game against Phoenix which isn’t surprising since Eastern Conference teams just don’t see that uptempo style as often as their Western counterparts. They lost by four at Orlando easily covering as +9 underdogs and came out with their only really flat performance of the year in their last game at home against a Milwaukee team that has proven to be a tough tactical matchup for them. Now they catch Utah playing their third road game in four nights–and off of two monumental efforts against Miami and Orlando. Those wins also make this a more significant game for Atlanta than the run of the mill non conference tilt.

The Jazz have struggled with the Hawks’ depth and athleticism in recent years–Atlanta has won and covered 3 of the last 4 meetings. The Hawks have proven to be a strong early season ATS team in the past couple of years and we don’t expect that 2-2 SU/0-4 ATS mark at home to be indicative of their performance this season. Good situational spot for Atlanta and we look for the Jazz to come out flat after a couple of amazing comebacks against the best of the East.

Bet Atlanta Hawks -4 over Utah Jazz