The Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans made a big trade last offseason, with Atlanta sending Dejounte Murray to NOLA, but the Pelicans have yet to reap the benefits.

Murray broke his hand in the first game of the 2024-25 season, and a succession of injuries have left the Pels struggling at 3-3 through six games.

Can their makeshift rotation compete with an Atlanta team that has lost four straight games after a 2-0 start?

Oddsmakers see the Pels as home favorites, but this is expected to be a close matchup.

Let’s dive into the odds, key players to watch, and my best bets for Sunday’s contest.

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

Radiate

money line

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Hawks Injury Report

Pelicans Injury Report

Atlanta Falcons

Trae Young: With Dejounte Murray now in New Orleans, everything in Atlanta this season has been in Young’s hands. The All-Star point guard is averaging 27.7 points, 5.2 rebounds and 11.7 assists per game, but only 39.8 percent of his shots are from the field and 30.5 percent are three-pointers.

New Orleans Pelicans

Brandon Ingram: The Pelicans don’t have much depth right now due to the injuries they’re dealing with, which means Brandon Ingram will have to shoulder more of the scoring and playmaking load day in and night out. Ingram, who is in a contract year, has averaged 23.0 points, 6.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game so far this season.

With so many players colliding on both sides and the Hawks really struggling defensively (28th in defensive rankings), I see a prop bet on this matchup.

I spoiled the game of Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado Peter’s Points today, my NBA Best Bets column for SI Betting:

New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado was in the starting 11 that did not include Herb Jones, CJ McCollum, Dejounte Murray and Trey Murphy III in the last two games.

The experienced point guard scored 16 and 12 points in these matches and made 12.5 shot attempts per game.

This bet is definitely a volume game. The Pels currently have a limited bench with plenty of two-way players despite all the injuries, and Alvarado has played 35 and 32 minutes in their last two outings.

This advantage against the Atlanta team, which ranks 28th in the league in defense this season, is a little low in my opinion.

Pick: Jose Alvarado Over 10.5 Points (-130)

Rates are updated periodically and may change.

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Find Peter Dewey’s NBA betting record is here (including futures). You can also follow my daily games. BetStamp is here.