Sixers vs. Hawks Odds, Game 3 Preview, Picks, & Prediction

by Sloan Piva (SloanPiva) Last Updated 2021-06-11 19:28:43

Sixers vs. Hawks Game 3 Odds

NBA Picks: Sixers vs. Hawks Odds Update

Updated 3:25 pm ET, Friday, June 11

• GM 3 Moneyline: The moneyline handle is divided at sportsbooks, with close to 50% of bettors, give or take, on each side of the line. Currently the Sixers are -125 favorites, while the Hawks are +105.

• GM 3 Spread: There’s similar disagreement among bettors when it comes to the spread for the Sixers-Hawks. With 55% of money on the home team, the odds for this one haven’t budged. Either way, it’s probably safe to make your picks now, as I don’t foresee any major movement behind the counter before the game tips off at 7:30 Friday night.

• GM 3 Over/Under: The public predicts a high-scoring affair in Game 3, with 63% of money on the Over. As a result, oddsmakers have moved the Over/Under up to 224.5 after opening 223.5.

• Sixers vs. Hawks Props: Looking for prop picks for Friday night’s two-game slate? Don’t worry, thanks to prop projections from our friends at Scores and Odds, we’ve got you covered with a handful of player prop bets that we like for the Sixers vs. Hawks and Suns vs. Nuggets. Check out the article and then check out Scores and Odds for additional information that will help you make money throughout the NBA Playoffs.

Sixers vs. Hawks Betting Preview

Sports and sports betting are funny sometimes. Sometimes, the best (or at least must-see) playoff series are the ones that are completely unpredictable from a betting angle. We saw that with the Clippers-Mavericks series in Round 1, and now we are seeing it again with the Sixers-Hawks in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Atlanta stole one of the first two tilts in Philly, but yet NBA oddsmakers have them listed as slight underdogs at home in Game 3 — Hawks +1.5, Over/Under 223.5. As my daughter’s fuzzy blue Sesame Street friend Grover would say, “hubba-whah?”

Yes, I just referenced Sesame Street in a playoff basketball betting preview. It’s been a long week, okay! The point is: expect the unexpected with this series, and like your friend that’s really into cryptocurrency right now, please don’t hold me accountable if you lose a few bucks following my lead.

One thing is for sure: Trae Young and Joel Embiid are generational talents, and most likely among the leading names in the long-term future of the Eastern Conference.

Young has looked like every bit the player Atlanta thought he would be when the organization boldly traded Luka Doncic to the Mavericks for him on Draft night 2018. He’s incendiary, and he might be as close as his generation will get to Steph Curry 2.0. He’s an explosive playmaker, he’s tremendous at drawing contact on penetration (and capitalizing at the line), and he can stroke treys from anywhere within 40 feet.

Embiid, meanwhile, often looks like Hakeem Olajuwon with handles and long-range accuracy. He’s such a big, strong guy, and yet he plays with effortless finesse with the ball in his hands. His moves on the post and interior would make any ‘90s hoop aficionado blush, yet his jumper from deep fits perfectly in today’s NBA. He can rebound, pass, and defend as well as any big in the league. If he played a full season, he probably would have won MVP over Nikola Jokic (don’t @ me, bro!).

Sixers-Hawks Storylines Go Beyond Trae, Embiid

But this series is not just about one alpha against another. There’s plenty of other storylines, and plenty of reasons to believe in either squad. For one, each has great coaching—Philly with Doc Rivers in his first year back to the east coast (and going against the pro team he played for back in the day), and Atlanta with Nate McMillan in his first year since leaving Indy.

Both coaches are in their first season with their current team after spending seven years coaching another franchise—Doc was with the Clippers, Nate was with the Pacers. And both coaches have transformed their teams from playoff squad to legitimate contender. The NBA even took notice—both coaches received Coach of the Month honors this season.

These well-respected veteran coaches are getting the most out of their young rosters. McMillan, a former guard, has harnessed all the greatness in Young and found a way to help him make everyone around him better. And Rivers, an NBA champion head coach with the Celtics in 2008-’09, has turned a team with great individual pieces into a great team.

In both Game 1 and Game 2, the two superstars showed up. But in Game 1, the Hawks ‘others’ outlasted the Sixers’ ‘others,’ and in Game 2, the Sixers’ supporting cast got the last laugh.

Atlanta sunk 20-of-47 treys in Game 1, compared to just 10-of-29 for Philly. Young dropped in four treys—pedestrian for him—but finished with 35 points and 10 assists. Bogdan Bogdanovic nailed five from deep. Kevin Huerter and John Collins each had three from three. ATL native Sweet Lou Williams had a pair. Hell, even Solomon Hill dropped in a pair. It was like 2K fire mode in the City of Brotherly Love, but the Hawks were the only ones blazing.

Game 2 hit different. Rivers must have given a hell of a pep talk to his guys, because the Sixers actually stepped up on defense and played with some pride. Young still scored 21 points and dropped 11 dimes, but everything was harder on him. Philly denied him the ball, kept him off his spots, and converged on him on drives. He shot just 1-of-7 from deep. Collins and Clint Capela combined for just 18 points, and a collective plus-minus of -34. Philly won the three-point contest whether the game was by quantity (12 to 11) or quality (46% to 36%).

Sixers vs. Hawks Picks & Predictions

And that’s why Rivers’ Sixers are favored on the road Friday. Philly is older, wiser, more experienced, and better at defending. The 76ers are also better coached. Rivers just has an innate ability to make the right lineup calls at the drop of the hat. Case in point: in the second half when Philly’s offense started to lag a bit, Rivers inserted Shake Milton. Before long, the commentators were yelling “Shake and Bake—Ricky Bobby!” and the young sharpshooter had four treys, 14 points, and a game-high plus-minus of +15.

Now, it’s worth noting that Embiid had 40 points and 13 rebounds in Game 1, and 39-9-4 in Game 2. But the supporting players pushed the Sixers over the top Tuesday. Tobias Harris had an efficient 20 and 10. Ben Simmons hit 7-of-7 shots and played his customarily stifling D. Rivers’ son-in-law Seth Curry hit five huge treys. Matisse Thybulle and Danny Green played great perimeter defense. And Milton brought the Shake n’ Bake.

Watch out for a motivated Sixers squad Friday night, as they do everything in their power to reclaim home-court advantage. I’m not about Philly’s -1.5 spread, as anything can happen with Trae Young at home, but I’m leaning toward taking the favorites, 76ers -120 on the moneyline. And for that matter, I like the UNDER on the 224.5 total. For the 76ers to win, they have to replicate their defensive intensity from Tuesday night.

I expect Rivers’ guys to do just that, and to neutralize pretty much everybody but Trae. Because if I had to bet on Trae staying quiet, I’d say all bets are off.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION: 76ers 112-111

Image Credit: Imagn