NBA Saturday : Atlanta Hawks vs Toronto Raptors - Preview and Prediction

?My first attempt at predicting a game's result here in my blog turned awfully sour as the Golden State Warriors suffered their third loss in the hands of the Houston Rockets. Two overtimes failed to bail me out as the Rockets showed poise and focus from start to finish. I did say that Houston will appear to have a chance in the early minutes but never did i foresee a Rockets side fighting it out till the very end, and coming out victorious too. If there is any consolation from that bungled prediction, it's that a super team just got beaten, and it should be great for the fans and the league to get some kind of assurance or a semblance of that,  that the Warriors are not invincible and there is hope for a thrilling 2017 NBA playoffs. Now enough of that, and allow me to shoot straight to my second prediction. This one features two potential headaches for the Cavs' reign in the East. The Atlanta Hawks visiting the Toronto Raptors.

Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports
It's the Raptors, and not the Hawks, who'll be flying in this game

The caption says it all. I pick Toronto to add to the woes of a struggling Atlanta side, losers of 5 straight games. When you lose that much,  it means there is a serious problem with your team, and most probably it is the kind which cannot be addressed overnight. And to think that it is a SEGABABA (second game of a back to back) for the Hawks, it makes it all the more tiring and depressing with no time to practice or make an in depth study of what is hobbling the team.

Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports
Dwight could be thinking, " What in the world is happening? "


When Dwight Howard came to town, the Hawks went flying with him, stringing up wins that put them just behind the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference.  Then came the plunge, and the man the Hawks thought was the answer to their prayers, started to question himself.  The Hawks may have deliberately or unintentionally made Howard the centerpiece of their offense. Either way, if it clicked at first, it obviously is shut down right now. Perhaps the entire league has gotten wind of what the Hawks were up to, and immediately found ways on how to counter and yes, how to strike. Their bench is also not helping , having not much of reliable players on their second unit to back up the starters in times of need.

And help they will need indeed against a Toronto team led by the backcourt duo of Demar Derozan and Kyle Lowry.  Toronto will win this one easily not only because they are well rested coming into the game, nor because they are playing at home. All factors simply  point to a Raptors win. There is really not much of a challenge in predicting the outcome of this game so i will rather give  the winning margin as well as the final score. Raptors by 15 points,  106-91. If, like in my previous pick, i fail to nail this prediction, it will only be because the Raptors' winning margin is a lot higher than that.