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Suns face Hawks in Atlanta Tuesday
By: Zach Cohen - StatFox
Published: 4/7/2015  at  11:10:00 AM
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PHOENIX SUNS (39-38)

at ATLANTA HAWKS (57-19)

Tip-off: Tuesday, 7:30 p.m. ET
Line: Atlanta -8.5, Total: 203.0

The Hawks continue their quest towards winning 60 games when they host the Suns Tuesday.

The Suns hosted the Jazz on Saturday and won 87-85 as 1-point home favorites. Phoenix had lost five straight games SU before that win, but it has covered in two straight contests. The Hawks, meanwhile, won 131-99 as 10-point home favorites against the Nets on Saturday. Atlanta has won four of its past six games both SU and ATS and has shot 45% or better from the field in four of the past five. The Hawks are starting to find their offense and must gain some rhythm heading into the postseason. These teams met once this season and the Hawks won that game 96-87 as 6.5-point road favorites. Over the past three seasons though, the Suns are 3-2 SU and ATS when facing the Hawks. The Suns are 49-26 ATS in road games over the past two seasons and 19-10 ATS in non-conference games this season. The Hawks, however, are 25-9 ATS when the total is 200 to 209.5 this season. They are also 22-10 ATS after playing three straight games as a favorite this season. SG Brandon Knight (Ankle) is out for the season for Phoenix, which is also without SG Marcus Thornton (Toe) in this game and C Alex Len (Nose) indefinitely. Atlanta, meanwhile, will not have PF Paul Millsap (Shoulder) or PG Dennis Schroder (Toe) in this one.

Can the Suns upset the Hawks in Atlanta on Tuesday? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2014-15 season. In terms of Best Bets, the experts have a huge 59% ATS (199-136-4) record since Jan. 2, led by StatFox Brian who has a lofty 61% ATS (26-17-1) mark in Best Bets since Feb. 4, and is now 57% ATS (65-49-1) in season Best Bets. StatFox Gary has a strong 55% ATS (37-30-1) mark in NBA Best Bets since Jan. 1, and is 54% ATS (62-52-1) this season. StatFox Scott is also sizzling with a 60% ATS record (44-30-1) in Best Bets since Dec. 21, improving his record to 55% ATS (63-51-1) for the season. StatFox Zach is a scorching 64% ATS (43-24-1) in NBA Best Bets since Jan. 2, while StatFox Dave is a robust 63% ATS (31-18) in NBA Best Bets since Jan. 28.

The Suns beat the Jazz on Saturday and will now look to end the season on a positive note. They’ll be facing an elite Hawks team on Tuesday and PG Eric Bledsoe (17.2 PPG, 6.0 APG, 5.4 RPG, 1.6 SPG) will need to be on his game in this one. He finished with 21 points, six assists and a steal in 35 minutes the last time he faced the Hawks. He is stronger than Jeff Teague and must attack the basket in this game. C Brandan Wright (7.2 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 1.2 BPG) has played very well with Len not in the lineup. Over the past two games, the big man is averaging 15.0 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 3.0 BPG. He’ll need to do a solid job on Al Horford in this one. PF Markieff Morris (15.5 PPG, 6.1 RPG, 1.3 SPG) will need to find his stroke in this game. He had just 10 points against Utah but 17 points and 12 boards the game before against Golden State. He scored 22 points the last time he faced the Hawks and must use his speed to create mismatches at the power forward position. SF Marcus Morris (10.5 PPG, 4.6 RPG) had 18 points the last time he faced the Hawks. He also grabbed six boards in that game and he can really change this game if he is scoring. He’s very inconsistent but is tough to stop once he gets going. Morris will need to rebound from his four-point performance against Utah.

The Hawks have been dealing with injuries and resting players recently, so C Al Horford (15.1 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 1.3 BPG) has had to step it up. Horford is shooting 66% from the field over the past four games and averaging 17.3 PPG in those contests. He’ll need to use his big body to get himself some solid positioning against Brandan Wright on Tuesday. PG Jeff Teague (16.1 PPG, 7.0 APG, 2.4 RPG, 1.7 SPG) had 17 points, eight assists and two steals in just 24 minutes against the Nets on Saturday. Teague will have to be on his game against Phoenix or the Hawks will not have a good chance of winning this game. He had just eight points and nine assists the first time he played the Suns this season and can’t afford to not hold his own against Eric Bledsoe on Tuesday. SG Kyle Korver (12.2 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.6 APG) is 6-for-9 from the outside over the past two contests and has found his stroke after slumping big time in February. He shot 48% from three in March and will have plenty of good looks at the basket against a Suns team that plays a very up-and-down style of game. The last time Korver played Phoenix, he had 14 points, four rebounds and two blocks in 38 minutes of action. He’ll need to play like that once again in this game.


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