The Boston Celtics will be in a tough spot Friday when they visit the Atlanta Hawks in a nationally televised NBA matchup at Philips Arena (8 pm ET, ESPN).
The Celtics will be playing the second game of a tough back-to-back situation, while the Hawks will be well rested and are riding a three-game win streak.
Boston (51-22 SU, 33-38-2 ATS) has struggled mightily recently, and have fallen out of first place in the Eastern Conference.
Atlanta (43-32 SU, 35-40 ATS) has been inconsistent this season but has put together a modest win streak, as well as covering the spread in four straight.
Head-to-head, the Celtics are 6-4 straight up and 4-6 against the spread over the past 10 meetings. This is their third meeting this season, and Boston has won and covered both previous games, including a 102-90 win on Dec. 16, when the Celtics cashed as a 7-point home favorite.
The Celtics faced the Spurs in San Antonio on Thursday. Atlanta beat the Orlando Magic 85-82 in its last game Wednesday.
Later Friday, the free-falling Utah Jazz face the surging Los Angeles Lakers at the Energy Solutions Arena (10:30 pm ET, ESPN).
Utah (36-39 SU, 31-42-2 ATS) has lost six straight and eight of its past 10, and is now completely out of the Western Conference playoff picture. Its latest loss may have been its most demoralizing: a 100-95 home-court setback against the Washington Wizards, the NBA’s worst road team (2-35 SU)
Conversely, the Lakers (53-20 SU, 35-38 ATS) have won seven in a row and an astounding 15 of their past 16 games. The two time defending NBA champion Lakers are looking like they’re ready for another long playoff run. They also look like they’re aiming for first place in the Western conference, as they trail the San Antonio Spurs by just 3.5 games headed into action Thursday.
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