NBA Picks: Knicks vs. Hawks

December 5, 2009

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An interesting game from a scoring standpoint if not a competitive one for Friday, December 4th will be when the New York Knicks head to Atlanta to take on the Hawks. The NBA lines makers are favoring Atlanta pretty heavily here, listing the Hawks as 11.5-point favorites with the total sitting at 216.5. If you are going to be doing any betting on this game or others this weekend then why not take advantage of the $500 match bonus offered given to our readers by BetUS!

Here are some of the NBA betting trends as they relate to this matchup:

* NY has lost six of its last seven games SU
* NY has covered six of its last nine games
* NY has lost four of its last five road games SU
* NY has played five of its last seven road games UNDER the total
* ATL has won nine of its last 12 games SU
* ATL has covered 14 of its last 19 games
* ATL has won eight of the last nine home games SU
* ATL has covered eight of its last ten home games
* ATL has played six of its last seven home games OVER the total

Nate Robinson is arguably the most explosive offensive player on the New York Knicks’ roster. He is also probably the most popular, and at the same time, the most enigmatic.

Robinson does not have the best attitude in the world, and has never played any defense, but he can score in tremendous spurts. Last Sunday he had 22 points in the fourth quarter against the Orlando Magic. He also did a lot of “dancing in the end zone” in that game, which happened to be a 12-point Knick loss. He has become enough of an overall problem that coach Mike D’Antoni, waiting till after the Knicks had scored a win over the Phoenix Suns, benched him for the return match against Orlando, which was Wednesday night.

“We want to win,” D’Antoni said. “And if he’s conducive to winning then he’ll obviously be back in the lineup. If not he’s not.”

Somebody may want to tell Knicks president Donnie Walsh a little about “winning,” because it appears the only thing they’re concerned with in the front office is cutting salary and clearing all the cap room they can so they can take a swing at potential free agents in the summer.

Robinson and D’Antoni were going to sit down for a talk, and I presume Robinson will be made available for action on Friday night against the Hawks, who have become a major power in the East.

Here are some of the head-to-head pro basketball betting trends involving this game:

* NY has covered seven of the last ten meetings
* ATL has won six of the last eight meetings SU
* Six of the last seven meetings have gone OVER the total
* NY has covered four of the last five meetings as the road team
* ATL has won six of the last seven meetings SU as the home team
* Eight of the last 11 meetings in Atlanta have gone OVER the total
* ATL has had the shooting edge in eight of the last nine meetings
* ATL has had the rebounding edge in five of the last seven meetings
* NY has made more three-pointers in four of the last six meetings

Robinson isn’t the only guy not playing defense for the Knicks, who are permitting 49% shooting on the part of opponents. Atlanta comes into this game having shot very well lately, hitting more than half their shots for three games in a row, highlighted by 59% in a 146-115 win over Toronto on Wednesday, where, if something I read was correct, it was their highest shooting percentage in a game in 17 years.

That doesn’t sound like an atmosphere that is conducive to the Knicks winning. New York has covered four of its last six road games, because the oddsmaker has been generous. The Hawks, however, have sizzled at the Philips Arena, where they are 8-1 SU and 7-2 ATS in the pro basketball sportsbook odds. Inasmuch as Robinson has all but admitted wrongdoing and will take some of his “street” stuff and leave it at home, it night leave the Knicks without some of thr usual spark he can provide off the bench.

With one of his free NBA picks for Friday, Charles Jay is taking the Hawks -11.5. If you want more help figuring out which teams are going to cover, then get signed up for a long-term subscription of NBA picks from one of our top handicappers!

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