**What:** Charlotte Hornets (4-9) (1-5 away) at Toronto Raptors (8-5) (2-2 home)
**When:** 7:30pm Eastern
**Where:** Scotiabank Arena; Toronto, ON
**How to watch:** FanDuel Sports Network, NBA League Pass
**Outfitting:** Hornets–Icon (Teal), Raptors–City (black version of the retro Raptor jerseys)
**Game Lines:** Hornets +8.5, Hornets money line +270, O/U 238.5
**Injuries:**
Hornets: LaMelo Ball-available (ankle), Liam McNeeley-out (illness), Brandon Miller-out (shoulder), Josh Green-out (shoulder), Grant Williams-out (knee)
Raptors: Ochai Agbaji-questionable (back), Jamison Battle-questionable (knee)
The Hornets are coming off a loss to the Thunder in which they were competitive for a half before ultimately succumbing to the suffocating defense and relentlessness of the Thunder. The Thunder’s defensive rating is 6.6 points per 100 possessions better than the second best team. That’s about the same as the gap between the second best team and a bottom 10 defense. That’s to say that playing the Raptors average defense is going to feel like playing the scout team at practice.
The Hornets will need to put up points against that Raptors defense because their offense is going to put up points. After a 1-4 start, Toronto has reeled off seven wins in their last eight games. They’ve done it with an offense by committee. In the winning streak, no Raptor is averaging 20 points per game, but Brandon Ingram, RJ Barrett, Scottie Barnes, and Immanuel Quickley are all averaging 16-plus. They share the ball well and don’t turn it over much. It’s not likely the Hornets are going to get many opportunities to get out and run off turnovers. Their best chance at easy buckets is on the offensive glass, where they’ve been dominant while the Raptors have been mediocre at cleaning up the defensive boards.
It’d be nice to see the Hornets get a little winning streak going. The Raptors have been good, perhaps even better than expected. Hopefully they’ll feel like a much softer opponent coming off a game against the Thunder. There are some easier games coming up, so this could the start of a little win streak if the Hornets can get going.
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