NBA Parlay (+268) for December 9: Back the Pacers and Hawks Tonight
Washington Wizards vs. Indiana Pacers
Friday, December 9, 2022 at 7 p.m. ET at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis
Indiana's Transformation
Since deciding to replace head coach Nate McMillan in 2020, Indiana has been undergoing a transformation that affects the way in which they match up against other teams.
Last season, the Pacers ranked 15thin three-pointers attempted per game.
Their transformation is statistically evident in the fact that they are currently attempting the fourth-most three-pointers per game.
Relevantly to tonight's bet, they are even more inclined to attempt three-pointers in the comfort of their home arena in Indianapolis.
Built to Shoot Threes
In a lot of ways, Indiana is built to be a three-point shooting machine.
For starters, their offense is peppered with shooters in both the backcourt and the front court.
Center Myles Turner, for example, attempts 4.1 threes per game and converts 41.6 percent of them.
Having power forwards and centers who are willing and able to shoot threes creates more space for Pacer players to operate inside and generally to create more three-point shooting opportunities.
Indiana's current head coach Rick Carlisle often likes to employ two point guards on individual possessions.
These point guards, Tyrese Haliburton and Andrew Nembhard, thrive at penetrating inside the arc and kicking the ball back out to a shooter behind the arc.
One such shooter is likely Buddy Hield, who is perhaps the biggest reason and the biggest symbol for Indiana's dangerousness behind the arc.
Throughout his career, Hield has always been known as a high-volume and threatening shooter.
He's also coming off a sizzling effort in Minnesota, which propelled his three-point conversion rate to 43.2 percent in December.
Pacer Offensive Outlook
Given Indiana's offensive transformation, we must assess the outlook of this year's Pacer offense primarily by judging whether it will perform well from behind the arc.
Tonight's game will provide an ideal opportunity for Indiana to thrive, given Washington's defensive issues.
To be fair, Washington as a team cannot help its injuries.
But it is what it is: the absence of Delon Wright takes away a crucial perimeter defending piece for the Wizard defense.
His absence makes life easier for opposing three-point shooters.
The stats bear all of this out: when the Wizards played Indiana without Wright, Indiana scored 127 points while converting 15 of 29 three-point attempts.
Spiraling Wizards
Washington has lost four games in a row while allowing at least 113 points every time.
Inefficacious perimeter defending has been a consistent reason for their ongoing failures.
Recent Bull and Laker teams, for example, were able to shoot efficiently from deep against Washington's Wright-less defense.
In addition to struggling defensively, the Wizards are struggling to score.
They miss star guard Bradley Beal and his 22.9 points per game.
Beal is listed as 'out' with a hamstring injury.
Atlanta Hawks vs. Brooklyn Nets
Friday, December 9, 2022 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Barclays Center in Brooklyn
Brooklyn's Defensive Woes
It might not seem readily obvious when Brooklyn is going to be vulnerable defensively because, overall, the Net defense has some promising stats.
But observing when the Net defense flounders yields a different insight into the team's defensive quality in a way that is totally relevant to tonight's game.
To explain, Brooklyn's defense struggles against teams that are strongly inclined to operate offensively via the pick-and-roll for the ball-handler play type.
The Nets' worst defensive outputs have come against such teams.
One such team is Memphis, which his averaging over 120 points in two games against the Nets so far.
Another such team is the Bulls, who beat Brooklyn 108-99.
What Chicago and Memphis have in common is that they rank top-four in points off the pick-and-roll ball-handler play type.
Atlanta Ball-Screen Offense
Video footage reveals the extent to which Brooklyn's ball-screen coverage issues are IQ-related.
Uncertain positioning from different defenders and hesitant commitment from help defenders help ensure that opposing players score easily on ball-screens.
Led by star Trae Young, Atlanta has one of the best ball-screen attacks.
While operating off a screen, Young will slither his way to the basket, find a teammate inside, or pop up for a jump shot.
Atlanta's Defense
Given the success of its offense, Atlanta is not going to have to do much defensively.
But the Hawks benefit from ably limiting opposing three-point scoring, which is important because three-point shooting efficiency is supposed to be a strength for Brooklyn.
Atlanta's defense is perhaps more obviously improved in the paint where the Hawks benefit from the determined defending of AJ Griffin, from Clint Capela's health, and from a schematic emphasis on obstructing the opponent's path to the basket..
The Hawks' defensive improvement is most obviously evident in its improvement in defensive rating from 26th last year to 12th this year.
Best Bet: Pacers -5 at -108 & Hawks +6.5 at -110 at +268 odds with BetOnline
Washington Wizards vs. Indiana Pacers
Friday, December 9, 2022 at 7 p.m. ET at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis
Indiana's Transformation
Since deciding to replace head coach Nate McMillan in 2020, Indiana has been undergoing a transformation that affects the way in which they match up against other teams.
Last season, the Pacers ranked 15thin three-pointers attempted per game.
Their transformation is statistically evident in the fact that they are currently attempting the fourth-most three-pointers per game.
Relevantly to tonight's bet, they are even more inclined to attempt three-pointers in the comfort of their home arena in Indianapolis.
Built to Shoot Threes
In a lot of ways, Indiana is built to be a three-point shooting machine.
For starters, their offense is peppered with shooters in both the backcourt and the front court.
Center Myles Turner, for example, attempts 4.1 threes per game and converts 41.6 percent of them.
Having power forwards and centers who are willing and able to shoot threes creates more space for Pacer players to operate inside and generally to create more three-point shooting opportunities.
Indiana's current head coach Rick Carlisle often likes to employ two point guards on individual possessions.
These point guards, Tyrese Haliburton and Andrew Nembhard, thrive at penetrating inside the arc and kicking the ball back out to a shooter behind the arc.
One such shooter is likely Buddy Hield, who is perhaps the biggest reason and the biggest symbol for Indiana's dangerousness behind the arc.
Throughout his career, Hield has always been known as a high-volume and threatening shooter.
He's also coming off a sizzling effort in Minnesota, which propelled his three-point conversion rate to 43.2 percent in December.
Pacer Offensive Outlook
Given Indiana's offensive transformation, we must assess the outlook of this year's Pacer offense primarily by judging whether it will perform well from behind the arc.
Tonight's game will provide an ideal opportunity for Indiana to thrive, given Washington's defensive issues.
To be fair, Washington as a team cannot help its injuries.
But it is what it is: the absence of Delon Wright takes away a crucial perimeter defending piece for the Wizard defense.
His absence makes life easier for opposing three-point shooters.
The stats bear all of this out: when the Wizards played Indiana without Wright, Indiana scored 127 points while converting 15 of 29 three-point attempts.
Spiraling Wizards
Washington has lost four games in a row while allowing at least 113 points every time.
Inefficacious perimeter defending has been a consistent reason for their ongoing failures.
Recent Bull and Laker teams, for example, were able to shoot efficiently from deep against Washington's Wright-less defense.
In addition to struggling defensively, the Wizards are struggling to score.
They miss star guard Bradley Beal and his 22.9 points per game.
Beal is listed as 'out' with a hamstring injury.
Atlanta Hawks vs. Brooklyn Nets
Friday, December 9, 2022 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Barclays Center in Brooklyn
Brooklyn's Defensive Woes
It might not seem readily obvious when Brooklyn is going to be vulnerable defensively because, overall, the Net defense has some promising stats.
But observing when the Net defense flounders yields a different insight into the team's defensive quality in a way that is totally relevant to tonight's game.
To explain, Brooklyn's defense struggles against teams that are strongly inclined to operate offensively via the pick-and-roll for the ball-handler play type.
The Nets' worst defensive outputs have come against such teams.
One such team is Memphis, which his averaging over 120 points in two games against the Nets so far.
Another such team is the Bulls, who beat Brooklyn 108-99.
What Chicago and Memphis have in common is that they rank top-four in points off the pick-and-roll ball-handler play type.
Atlanta Ball-Screen Offense
Video footage reveals the extent to which Brooklyn's ball-screen coverage issues are IQ-related.
Uncertain positioning from different defenders and hesitant commitment from help defenders help ensure that opposing players score easily on ball-screens.
Led by star Trae Young, Atlanta has one of the best ball-screen attacks.
While operating off a screen, Young will slither his way to the basket, find a teammate inside, or pop up for a jump shot.
Atlanta's Defense
Given the success of its offense, Atlanta is not going to have to do much defensively.
But the Hawks benefit from ably limiting opposing three-point scoring, which is important because three-point shooting efficiency is supposed to be a strength for Brooklyn.
Atlanta's defense is perhaps more obviously improved in the paint where the Hawks benefit from the determined defending of AJ Griffin, from Clint Capela's health, and from a schematic emphasis on obstructing the opponent's path to the basket..
The Hawks' defensive improvement is most obviously evident in its improvement in defensive rating from 26th last year to 12th this year.
Best Bet: Pacers -5 at -108 & Hawks +6.5 at -110 at +268 odds with BetOnline
