Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Predictions, Odds, Picks

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

6 minute read

Oct. 27, 2021

Michael Crosson
VI Betting Expert
VegasInsider.com

Regular season NBA action will resume on Wednesday night with a prime-time non-conference showdown at the Smoothie King Center with the Atlanta Hawks set to visit the New Orleans Pelicans. Coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Score Prediction

Hawks 116, Pelicans 105

Best Bets

Atlanta -6

Clint Capela – Over Points

Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Predictions

After falling to the Bucks in last year’s Eastern Conference Finals, Atlanta kicked off the new season on an incredibly encouraging note, as the Hawks hosted Luka Doncic and the Mavericks in their opening contest – and effortlessly handled business on their home floor (W, 113-87).

The Hawks experienced some minor shooting struggles in their second event though, considering Atlanta scored just 95 points 38% FG during their six-point loss to the Cavs’ (L. 101-95), yet immediately bounced back in the next matchup – racking up 122 points on 51% FG and 38% 3FG during their commanding victory over Detroit on Monday night (W, 122-104).

On the other hand, New Orleans somewhat tucked its head between its legs following Zion Williamson’s season-ending injury with just six games remaining on the schedule, as the Pelicans ended up coasting to a lowly 1-5 finish to solidify their disappointing 31-41 campaign.

New Orleans seemingly picked up right where it left off to open the new season too, considering the Pelicans stumbled out to a brutal 0-3 start by posting ugly losses against the Sixers, Bulls, and Timberwolves (-43) – before finally escaping with a victory during the second of a back-to-back set with Minnesota this past Monday (W, 107-98).

I’ll lay the points with the Hawks here, as the Pelicans lost their first three matchups of the season by an average margin of 14.3 PPG to a trio of somewhat underwhelming opponents (PHI, CHI, MIN) – while Atlanta stomped the Mavericks and Pistons by roughly 22 PPG, and they’ll likely handle this ailing New Orleans squad in a similar fashion.

Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Betting Odds

More Odds | Futures Odds

Odds Provided by BetMGM - Subject to Change

• Hawks -250
• Pelicans +195
• Hawks -6 (-110)
• Pelicans +6 (-110)
• Over 220.5 (-110)
• Under 220.5 (-110)

Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Betting Resources

• Matchup: Southeast vs. Southwest
• Date: Wednesday, October 27, 2021
• Venue: Smoothie King Center
• Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
• TV-Time: ESPN - 7:30 p.m. ET

• Injury Report

Atlanta Hawks Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 2-1
• ATS: 2-1
• O/U: 1-2
• ATS - Home: 2-0
• ATS - Away: 0-1

Atlanta was a bit of an afterthought heading into last year’s postseason, considering the Nets (+105), Sixers (+270), Bucks (+350), and Heat (+1300) were all given drastically better odds than the Hawks (+3000) to win the conference before the start of the playoffs.

They ended up falling just short in the conference finals, but the Hawks still undeniably blossomed into legitimate Eastern Conference contenders over the course of their impressive playoff run, considering Atlanta dominated the Knicks in a five-game set in the first round – and then stunned the top-seeded Sixers in the second.

Consistently expecting Trae Young and company to contend at such a high level is likely a losing wager though, considering Atlanta seemingly reached last year’s ECF due to some devastating injuries throughout the conference – but I doubt they’ll find trouble against bottom-tier opponents like New Orleans.

New Orleans Pelicans Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 1-3
• ATS: 2-2
• O/U: 1-3
• ATS - Home: 0-1
• ATS - Away: 2-1

New Orleans appeared to be making a bit of a playoff push down the stretch of last season, as the Pelicans closed out the month of May with wins in four-of-six games – remaining somewhat competitive in the race for the final spot in the Play-In Tournament.

Everything completely fell apart for New Orleans in the early stages of May though, as Zion ended up suffering a season-ending foot injury, which resulted in the Pelicans dropping six of their final seven games – and missing the playoffs by a pretty wide margin.

Once Williamson returns, New Orleans serves as a sneaky upset play in certain spots, and that’s pretty much all the confidence I have in them – but until they get healthy, I’d steer clear of New Orleans completely.

Atlanta has won five straight games when facing New Orleans. (AP)

Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Head-to-Head

The Hawks and Pelicans squared off twice during last year’s regular season, which resulted in a pair of commanding victories for Atlanta (+39).

Zion actually participated in the slightly more competitive of those two matchups (123-107) – but even his magnificent 34-point effort 67% shooting wasn’t nearly enough juice to keep things competitive with Atlanta throughout that affair.

Key Players to Watch

• ATL: Trae Young - PG (25 ppg, 10 apg)
• ATL: Cam Reddish - SF (18.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg)
• NOR: Brandon Ingram - SF (27 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 4.8 apg)
• NOR: Devonte' Graham - PG (17.8 ppg, 5 apg)

Injuries

• ATL: Danilo Gallinari - PF (Out)
• ATL: De'Andre Hunter - SF (DTD)
• ATL: Lou Williams - SG (DTD)
• NOR: Josh Hart - SG (Out)

Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Betting Conclusion

After finally nabbing their first win of the season in Minnesota this past Monday (W, 107-98), the Pelicans will travel back home for Wednesday night’s affair as six-point underdogs against the visiting Hawks – marking the fifth straight game New Orleans has been an underdog in.

I’ll lay the points with Atlanta here, as I highly doubt New Orleans will conjure an adequate defensive solution for the Hawks’ very talented frontcourt – which is why I’m also backing Clint Capela to enjoy a solid night scoring in Wednesday’s affair.

Atlanta Hawks vs. New Orleans Pelicans Betting Trends

• Atlanta has won five straight games when facing New Orleans.
• The point total has gone OVER in three of the last four meetings.
• Atlanta has covered the spread in five straight games when facing New Orleans.
• New Orleans has gone UNDER the point total in three of its last four games.

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