The Los Angeles Lakers (24-26) will continue to look for answers to poor form on Sunday against the Atlanta Hawks (23-25) who have kicked into gear in recent weeks with six consecutive wins.
Bookmaker BetOnline has the Lakers as big underdogs for the game offering odds at +270 for a road victory. The Hawks are 7.5-point favorites for the contest with the odds at -110 and the total is at 226.5 points.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: January 30th, 7:30 A.M. (EST)
The Hawks are a great role model for the Lakers having shown that things can start to click if you make the proper adjustments. They have looked well off the pace in the playoff race for most of the season, but only a couple of wins now separate them from the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference.
COVID-19 and injuries have played a big part in Atlanta’s struggles and head coach Nate McMillan has rarely had a full roster available to him, but the worst seems to be behind the Hawks now and there aren’t any selection issues prior to Sunday’s action.
A healthy Hawks squad with Clint Capela patrolling the paint and Trae Young torching teams from deep has a lot of potential and it’s going to be another tough game for the Lakers. Especially if they can’t get Anthony Davis and LeBron James back. The duo missed Friday’s 117-114 loss to Charlotte with injuries.
Russell Westbrook ended up going off for a game-high 35 points against the Hornets and he can look like a one-man wrecking crew on the court, but the former MVP is a very inconsistent performer and he has been heavily criticized lately for his inability to coexist with Davis and James.
Going head-to-head with Young puts Westbrook in a tough spot. He’ll need to produce a big performance defensively and that could have a negative effect on his offensive productivity as chasing around Young will take a lot of energy.
The two sides have already met once this month, and while the Lakers managed to pull off a nice 134-118 victory, Westbrook had a difficult night at the office and finished with just nine points. The team will need a lot more from him on Sunday if Davis and James remain out.
With Atlanta having the fourth-least efficient defense in the league, it’s a favorable match-up for the Lakers, but they will need to produce a solid defensive game themselves to have a chance of ending the Hawks’ winning streak. It will all start with Westbrook’s work against Young.
