We’ve got another exciting Eastern Conference matchup on Friday’s NBA schedule as the Toronto Raptors will visit the Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta is 24-31 overall and 13-15 at home, while Toronto is 20-36 overall and 8-20 on the road. The Hawks have won four of the last five matchups, including three straight at home. Atlanta is an NBA-worst 17-38 against the spread, while Toronto is 27-29 versus the number.
Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m. ET at State Farm Arena in Atlanta. The Hawks are favored by 7 points in the latest Raptors vs. Hawks odds, per SportsLine consensus, and the over/under is 246 points. Before entering any Hawks vs. Raptors picks, you’ll want to see the NBA predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past five-plus seasons. The model enters Week 18 of the 2023-24 NBA season on a sizzling 60-36 roll on all top-rated NBA picks this season, returning nearly $2,300. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
The model has set its sights on Toronto vs. Atlanta. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several NBA odds and betting lines for Raptors vs. Hawks:
Hawks vs. Raptors spread: Hawks -7
Hawks vs. Raptors over/under: 246 points
Hawks vs. Raptors money line: Hawks: -282, Raptors: +227
Hawks vs. Raptors picks: See picks at SportsLine
What you need to know about the Raptors
The Raptors can finally bid farewell to their three-game losing streak thanks to their game on Thursday. They put the hurt on the Brooklyn Nets with a sharp 121-93 win. The Raptors got their win on the backs of several key players, but it was Immanuel Quickley out in front who scored 24 points to go along with six rebounds and three steals. The team also got some help courtesy of Gary Trent Jr., who scored 25 points.
Toronto has had several roster changes this season due to various trades, but a constant with the offense has been ball movement. The Raptors rank third in the NBA in assists, with Dennis Schroder averaging 6.1 dimes, and Scottie Barnes averaging 5.9 assists. Quickley is one of those newcomers, and the former Knicks guard is averaging 5.7 assists in Toronto after putting up just 2.5 per night in New York. The Raptors are going for their third straight ATS victory, which would tie a season high. See which team to pick here.
What you need to know about the Hawks
Meanwhile, it’s hard to win when your 3-point shooting is a whole 16.8% worse than the opposition, a fact the Hawks found out the hard way last Wednesday. They suffered a painful 122-99 loss at the hands of the Charlotte Hornets. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for the Hawks in their matchups with the Hornets: they’ve now lost four in a row.
Trae Young and Dejounte Murray struggled in the defeat as they combined to shoot just 9 of 27. However, Atlanta is deep and has eight players averaging in double-figures. One of those in Clint Capela (11.5 points, 10.6 rebounds) will return on Friday after missing the last six games before the All-Star break. Despite having the worst ATS record in the NBA, Atlanta has managed to cover in six of its last nine games. See which team to pick here.
Key Betting Info
The Hawks will be relying on another big game from Young to pull off a victory. On the year, Young has averaged 26.7 points, 10.9 assists, and 1.4 steals.
Some of the betting trends to consider are:
The Hawks are 8-20 against the spread in their last 28 home games.
The Hawks are 4-10 against the spread in their last 14 games vs teams that win less than 45% of games.
The Raptors are 14-14 against the spread in their last 28 road games.
How to make Hawks vs. Raptors picks
The model has simulated Raptors vs. Hawks 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you that the model is leaning Under, and it’s also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in over 60% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.