Final Score Picks and Predictions For Tonight's Celtics vs Hawks Matchup

The hottest team in the NBA heads to Boston tonight to face the Celtics. The Hawks have won 14 of their last 15 games and have jumped all the way to the No. 5 spot in the Eastern Conference following their win over the No.1 team in the Eastern Conference, the Detroit Pistons.

There is a similar theme with that game and tonight's however and that is that the best players on the opposing team is out. Cade Cunningham did not play for the Pistons on Wednesday and the Celtics are going to be missing MVP candidate Jaylen Brown tonight. I know that Boston still has Jayson Tatum and he is their best player most of the time, but this season that distinction belongs to Brown.

So who wins tonight?

Matchup

This is going to be the first time that we see Jayson Tatum as the primary option this season for the Celtics.

Tatum is one of the five best players in the NBA when healthy and he has been coming along well since re-entering the lineup in recent weeks. Will he be able to navigate a Hawks defense that has improved by quite a bit over the last couple of months?

Jalen Johnson is coming off his 43rd double-double of the season on 3/25, the third-most in the NBA, finishing with 27 points on 9-18 shooting from the floor, eight rebounds and 12 assists in 42 minutes. It's Johnson's 14th game of the season with 20+ points and 10+ assists, the fourth-most amongst all players in the league and the most amongst forwards.

Per Stathead, Johnson's 14 games with at least 20 points and 10 helpers are seven more than the next closest forward (LeBron James: 7). Johnson has dished out 519 total assists this season, the third-most in the NBA and the second-most by a Hawks forward in a single season in franchise history, trailing only Joe Johnson (536, 2005-06).

CJ McCollum recorded 27 points, five assists, one rebound, and one steal in 35 minutes against Detroit, knocking down five three-pointers, his 123rd career game with 5+ makes from deep, breaking a tie with Ray Allen (122) for the seventh-most such games in NBA history. McCollum netted 14 of his game-high tying 27 points during clutch time.

I think Johnson and McCollum are going to be two of the most important players in tonight's game.

It should be noted that Hawks backup center Jock Landale is questionable for tonight's game and if he is unable to go, forward Mouhamed Gueye could see minutes behind Onyeka Okongwu, who could play major minutes.

Despite health being on the side of the Hawks, I am picking Boston to win this game. They still have the shooting to be able to counter the Hawks defense and with Tatum and White, they can slow down the Hawks ball handlers and shooting.

Final Score: Celtics 119, Hawks 113