3 Bold Predictions for Bucks-Hawks Game 1
By Peter Dewey
The Eastern Conference Finals is set to tip off on Wednesday night, and the Milwaukee Bucks are major favorites to take down the No. 5 seed Atlanta Hawks.
Milwaukee and Giannis Antetokounmpo survived the Brooklyn Nets in the second round, while Trae Young and the Hawks upset the top-seeded Sixers in seven games to advance to the Conference Finals.
The Bucks are massive eight-point favorites on WynnBET in Game 1, and Vegas has Milwaukee winning the series in five games (+250) as the most likely outcomes.
After proving everyone wrong in the first two rounds, Atlanta seems to deserve a little more respect going forward until the Bucks prove they are the far superior team.
After hitting on two of my three player prop predictions for the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Clippers Game 2, here are three more bold predictions for tonight’s Eastern Conference Finals opener:
Clint Capela Goes Over 23.5 Points and Rebounds
Capela has been key for the Hawks defensively this postseason, but he also has proven to be an integral part of the Atlanta offense.
Young has been lethal in pick-and-roll situations and getting to the rim, and Capela has been the perfect lob threat to compliment him. Capela has averaged 10.3 points and 11.6 rebounds per game this postseason.
WynnBET has Capela’s player prop for points and rebounds set at 23.5 tonight. If you’re feeling Capela as a scorer, the over on his 11.5-point player prop (+104) could be a great value as well since he’s scored 12 or more points in three of the Hawks’ last four games.
During the regular season, Capela averaged 11.0 points and 15.0 rebounds per game against Milwaukee, and he will likely be on the floor a lot with the Bucks having Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez down low.
John Collins Will Get a Double-Double
Collins is making some money for himself this postseason in a contract year. He’s averaging 13.9 points and 8.3 rebounds per game while shooting 38.9 percent from downtown, and he was great in the last four games of the Hawks’ series with the Sixers.
Collins posted a double-double in three of the final four games of the series, and WynnBET has him as an underdog to complete the feat tonight at +185 odds. Here’s a look at Collins’ last four games against Philly:
- Game 4: 14 points, 12 rebounds
- Game 5: 19 points, 11 rebounds
- Game 6: 7 points, 10 rebounds
- Game 7: 14 points, 16 rebounds
The Bucks present a new challenge, but Collins has been a great rebounder this postseason and at +185, it’s worth a shot that he continues to stay hot.
Kevin Huerter Goes Over 12.5 Points
The Kevin Huerter show continues tonight. Huerter has been magnificent for the Hawks since Bogdan Bogdanovic suffered a knee injury, as he scored 17 and 27 points over the final two games against the Sixers.
Huerter has only scored over 12.5 points four times this postseason, but his usage has been way up since entering the starting lineup over the past four games of the series.
WynnBET has Huerter’s over (-120) as a slight favorite to the under (+100), but I think the over is still the way to go. Huerter has taken 33 shots in his last two games, and if he’s anywhere near that same usage, he should hit the over on his prop.