NBA Furious Previews – Can The Hawks Continue To Soar?
by Tim Furious
Last year, perhaps the most pleasant surprise in the world of NBA betting was the rise of the feisty Atlanta Hawks. The rise of Josh Smith, Al Horford and Joe Johnson pushed the Hawks to the brink of perhaps the greatest upset in NBA history. Though they fell short of toppling the NBA Champion Celtics, the Hawks put themselves on the map in a huge way.
To win the Eastern Conference Championships, the Hawks will have to push past the big, proven teams in the East. The Celtics stand in their way, but the Hawks proved that they are younger, rawer version of them in a way. They have the defense, the shooting touch and the elite scorers to contend with nearly any team. The Raptors, Magic and Sixers have to be worried about this team. The Hawks, in the interim, have to be concerned on whether the acquisition of Mike Bibby will solidify this team down the stretch.
The Hawks were 21-20 ATS at home, and became the best home team to bet on in the second half of the 2007-08 season. They went 20-13 ATS as favorites, and finished the season 37-45 after a sluggish start. Though they will come roaring out of the gates this season, the oddsmakers will have their eyes on this rambunctious team.
The starting five is amongst the best in the league. The bench, however, sucks. To put it simply, if the Hawks have any failings this season, it’s because their bench won’t be able to back up the starting lineup.
It’s easy to get excited about a team that will place heavy expectations on themselves. With all their great, young players taking another step in the right direction, it’s reasonable to get excited about their 2008-09 outlook. However, they have a lot of eggs in one, small basket. If any one of those break, this team’s going to fall harder than Humpty Dumpty ever did.
2007-08 NBA Record: 37-45 SU, 38-44 ATS
Odds To Win Eastern Conference: +4000
Odds To Win NBA Championship: +8000
