Charlotte Hornets Report: Week of December 2nd
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LAST 4 GAMES
- @ Miami Heat: L, 100-117
- vs. Detroit Pistons: W, 102-101
- @ Detroit Pistons: W, 110-107
- @ Milwaukee Bucks: L, 96-137
The Hornets split last week’s slate and both of the wins came against the Pistons. I think it is safe to say that Charlotte has Detroit’s number this year, because they have won all three matchups this season. The combined deficit for those three wins are only 7 points, so they’re all close games, but wins count all the same. The other two games on the other hand did not look well for the Hornets. These were the humbling games, if you can call it that. The Heat only played nine players last Monday, which is pretty rare in today’s NBA, but they didn’t need their full roster. In both losses, the Hornets didn’t outscore their opponents in one single quarter, but those were some of the toughest matchups that they’ll see this season. PJ Washington has shown flashes of great play throughout the year, but two of his better games of the year, came against Detroit this week. He averaged 21.5 points in those two wins and that is an encouraging sign for the rookie. It seems like each week’s Hornets MVP is going to come down to either Devonte’ Graham or Terry Rozier and last week was no different. I’m going with Devonte’ Graham in back-to-back weeks and the thing that set him apart in a difficult choice was his passing stats last week. He averaged 9 APG in the four contests and even a set a personal career high against the Pistons last Wednesday at 15. The Hornets have four home games coming up and I think they can honestly run the table in this week’s action. Two matchups in particular will be tough, but I think that they can make it out of this week with a decent chance to get back to .500 by sometime next week.
NEXT 4 GAMES
- vs. Phoenix Suns (8-10): Monday, December 2nd at 7pm
- vs. Golden State Warriors (4-17): Wednesday, December 4th at 7pm
- vs. Brooklyn Nets (10-10): Friday. December 6th at 7pm
- vs. Atlanta Hawks (4-16): Sunday, December 8th at 5pm
The Hornets first matchup of the week will be against the Phoenix Suns tonight. This is the first game of their 5-game home stretch. The Phoenix Suns came out of the gate as one of the hottest teams to start the season, but have cooled down a lot since. They have lost 6 of their last 7 and this is the perfect time for the Hornets to play them. Although they haven’t been great lately, this will be a difficult matchup for Charlotte. They still have one of the NBA’s most prolific scorers in Devin Booker and Kelly Oubre is starting to heat up in his first full season with the Suns. They will be without Deandre Ayton, who was suspended after the first game of the season for a failed drug test. It looks like Frank Kaminsky will get the start tonight and it his return back to Charlotte. He spent 4 seasons with the Hornets, but it looks like he will be getting a better opportunity in Phoenix. It’s a very winnable game tonight for the Hornets, but I think it will be a tight contest.
Next on the slate is the Warriors. This will be the last game of the season against Golden State for the Hornets and it should be a giveaway win for Charlotte. Speaking of giveaways, Wednesday is giveaway night in Charlotte, so make it to the game. If you attend, you will receive a free winter hat. The only star that has been playing for the Warriors is Draymond Green and he has been somewhat restricted for the majority of the season. D’Angelo Russell may be back by Wednesday so that is another thing to watch out for, but at the moment, the Warriors don’t have a threatening team. Eric Paschall, Glenn Robinson III, Alec Burks, and Ky Bowman have been their consistent minute getters lately, so it’s safe to say that they are a hurting team. Stephen Curry may come back by the end of the season, but I honestly wouldn’t be shocked if he sits out the rest of the year. It’s going to be scary when this team is fully healthy with a high lottery pick mixed in next season, but for now, it should be a fairly easy win for Charlotte against currently the worst team in basketball.
Next is the Brooklyn Nets and they have been very solid lately. The two teams played a couple weeks ago in Brooklyn and the Nets won by 10. Since that win, the Nets have gone 4-2 and Spencer Dinwiddie has been a monster since filling in for Kyrie Irving. In the last 9 games, Dinwiddie is averaging 25.0 PPG and 7.3 APG. The Nets are going to have a minor dilemma once Kyrie comes back, because putting Dinwiddie on the bench will be a difficult thing to do. It is a winnable game for the Hornets, but it will be the toughest matchup of the week for them. The Nets are a solid team and I’m not sure when Kyrie is coming back, but it looks like they don’t need him to be a solid team.
The last game of the week will be against the Hawks. They are tied for last in the Eastern Conference and they are currently on a 10-game losing skid. They also give up the most points in the NBA, so the Hornets really have no excuses here. This will be the first of 4 season long matchups against the Hawks and I think the Hornets should win all of those games. They don’t play them again until March and April, so they could end up helping the Hornets out if they are going to be in the playoff discussion at that time. Trae Young looks like he is going to be an elite level player for many years to come, so this always makes the matchup a little more interesting, but it should be an easy win. John Collins is currently out of action to serve a suspension for PEDs and their next leading scorer is Jabari Parker. Hopefully this is a win for Charlotte and hopefully this week puts them back on the path to a winning record.
Yacs