Atlanta Hawks vs. Boston Celtics Prediction, NBA Odds

Payton Matthews | Updated Jan 18, 2025

It’s the second of a back-to-back for the reigning NBA champion Boston Celtics on Saturday night as they welcome the Atlanta Hawks for the final time this season.

Atlanta
26-29
AT
January 18, 2025, 7:00 PM ET
TD Garden
Boston
39-16
Pointspread +9.5 -110
Moneyline +350
Over / Under o +237.5
Pointspread -9.5 -110
Moneyline -450
Over / Under u +237.5

The C’s are 9-point favourites on the NBA odds, but be aware a player or two or three could sit on both sides.

Hawks vs. Celtics NBA Betting Odds

We are getting to the dog days of the NBA regular-season schedule with guys looking ahead to the upcoming All-Star break, so it wouldn’t surprise me if Boston coach Joe Mazzulla gave one of his stars in Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown the second of back-to-back off here (see below). The Celtics don’t much care about the regular season and most likely will not finish with the East’s best record and home-court advantage through the conference playoffs. That’s probably going to Cleveland. The C’s just want to be healthy when the postseason starts and they begin official defence of their title.

That said, I do expect the Boston players to be a bit motivated to win Saturday in the final meeting of the season with the Hawks and they have split the first two, each winning on the road. The Celtics were stunned 117-116 by Atlanta on Nov. 12 even as the Hawks were without All-Star point guard Trae Young. That loss – Brown missed a 15-foot jumper at the buzzer — ended up costing Boston a chance to advance to the knockout rounds of the NBA Cup competition. 

We could see these two meet in the first round of the playoffs if the seeding works out right and Atlanta gets through the play-in tournament, where it is currently headed. Boston is 7-3 SU and 6-4 ATS in the past 10 meetings. The over-under is 5-5. 

Atlanta Hawks

The NBA is a weird league at times. The Hawks were without most of their key players in the second of a back-to-back on Wednesday in Chicago but still upset the Bulls 110-94 as 7-point underdogs. Among those out were star Trae Young (23.1 points per game, league-best 11.9 assists), forwards Jalen Johnson and De’Andre Hunter, and rookie No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher due to injuries. Some of them should be back Saturday, although Johnson (19.8 PPG, 10.1 RPG) has been out since early this month and is questionable. The 19-year-old Risacher was always going to be a longer-term project and has been solid in his first season in averaging 10.5 points and 3.5 rebounds. He has been ruled out again. Atlanta is 7-4 on the road against Eastern Conference teams, having won six of its last seven, including two in a row. However, the Hawks are 1-5 ATS in their past six away.

Boston Celtics

There is nothing more challenging than trying to predict an NBA game when one team is in the second of a back-to-back because we just don’t know who might rest. That’s the case with Boston, which trounced visiting Orlando 121-94 on Friday but is listing superstar Jayson Tatum, Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford as questionable. I can almost promise those latter two sit out because they don’t play both ends of a B2B and it seems like a natural spot to give Tatum a breather as well. If so, you may want to play over Jaylen Brown’s point total of 24.5 as he would become the clear No. 1 offensive option. Payton Pritchard leads all NBA reserves in points, three-pointers and field goals made and also would have a much bigger role and perhaps start. Boston is 2-4 ATS in its past six. 

NBA Prediction: Who Will Win Hawks vs. Celtics?

NBA Predictions
SportsInteraction