Duncan Robinson was sizzling hot. Trae Young was ice cold – and not with his signature “Ice Trae” celebration.
Young couldn’t hit a shot for much of the night in Game 1, resulting in a 1-12 performance that saw him go 0-7 from three and score just eight total points. This was likely Trae Young’s worst performance of his career, at least in the playoffs.
If the Hawks have any chance to win Game 2, Young will have to lead the way. Unfortunately, the Heat have so many defenders to throw at Young that he will never have an easy matchup.
Between Jimmy Butler, Kyle Lowry, Bam Adebayo on switches, and a host of other solid on-ball defenders, Young has his work cut out for him tonight. Fortunately, he has shown to not be a player who wilts under pressure.
Hawks vs. Heat odds
Odds provided by Caesars
Spread: ATL +7 (-110) vs. MIA -7 (-110)
Moneyline: ATL (+250) vs. MIA (-320)
Total: Over 219 | Under 219
Hawks vs. Heat prediction
Game 1 was just as uncompetitive as the Nuggets vs. Warriors Games 1 and 2. The Heat lineup, featuring Lowry, Duncan Robinson, Tyler Herro, Butler, and Adebayo, is going to cause issues for any team. Especially a team with little depth of talent beyond Young, Kevin Huerter, and Danillo Gallinari.
In terms of expectations, it’ll probably be closer than the first game, but there’s little reason to have faith that the Hawks can steal one on the road here. This is not the time for a Hawks moneyline bet at +245. You’ll probably be able to get it live at +300 at some point in the first half.
Trae Young of the Atlanta Hawks celebrates a win during the regular season Getty ImagesIn terms of prediction for Tuesday’s game, I’ll back the Heat to win the first half. BetMGM is offering the most generous line on this prop. -2.5 is the bet at -145.
In order for this bet to hit, the Heat would need someone other than Young beat them. Which is unlikely to actually happen. Even if Young’s expected increase in production, the Heat should overmatch the Hawks on both ends of the floor.
Hawks vs. Heat prediction: Heat -2.5 first-half spread -145 (BetMGM)
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Hawks vs. Heat player prop bet: Trae Young ‘over’ 34.5 points + assists -121 (PointsBet)
Let’s throw the last game out for a second. Young is over this number in seven straight regular-season games and had a double-double in five of them. Playoff games are a different level of competition, though. Last year in the playoffs, Young crossed this number in 12 of 16 games.
If you take out the Knicks series (due to level of competition concerns, sorry Knicks fans) he is still ‘over’ in 7/11 postseason games last year. PointsBet has the best line on this at the time of writing.
