The Charlotte Hornets (31-31) have an opportunity to make a statement tonight and extend their road winning streak to ten games when they take on the Boston Celtics (41-20).
Moments ago, both teams submitted their starting lineups, so let's take a look at the first group on the floor.
The Hornets starting five
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**G LaMelo Ball -** Melo had 15 points, nine assists, and five boards in the win over Dallas, but he shot just 4/13 from downtown and turned it over four times.
**G Kon Knueppel -** For the first time in over a month, the rookie has posted back-to-back cold shooting nights. Against Portland and Dallas, Knueppel combined to shoot 3/14 from three. Perhaps he's saving it for tonight's massive matchup.
**G/F Brandon Miller -** Following a little cold patch before and after the All-Star break, Miller has regained his shooting touch, hitting five or more triples in five of the last six games.
**F Miles Bridges -** The Bugs will be without Grant Williams and Tidjane Salaün tonight, so Bridges is going to have to play a bunch of minutes, meaning he's got to stay out of foul trouble.
**C Moussa Diabaté -** Moose dealt with a little bit of foul trouble and didn't play toward the end with the game out of control, which prevented him from recording a third straight double-double.
The Celtics starting five
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**G Derrick White -** The 31-year-old just continues to get better year after year. He's currently on pace to set career highs in scoring (17.1) and assists (5.8).
**G Baylor Scheierman -** For the majority of the year, Scheierman was a non-factor offensively. Here, as of late, that's not been the case. He's reached double figures in three straight and in seven of his last eleven.
**F Jaylen Brown -** With Jayson Tatum out, Brown has taken up a huge responsibility on the offensive end and is having a career year, answering a lot of questions as to whether or not he can be a franchise's centerpiece. He's scoring 29 points a night on 48% shooting.
**F Sam Hauser -** Since the turn of the calendar, Hauser has been a consistent frontcourt scoring option for the Celtics, posting a solid 11.4 points per night.
**C Neemias Queta -** Queta has been a nice suprise for Joe Mazzulla and Co., going from a limited role player to a key piece of the starting lineup. So far this season, he's averaged 10.1 points and 8.4 rebounds per game.