**What:** Charlotte Hornets (34-34) (14-17 home) vs Miami Heat (38-30) (15-18 away)
**When:** 7:00pm Eastern
**Where:** Spectrum Center; Charlotte, NC
**How to watch:** FanDuel Sports Network, NBA League Pass
**Outfitting:** Hornets–Statement (purple), Heat–Association (white)
**Game Lines:** Hornets -3.5, Hornets money line -180, O/U 233.5
**Injuries:**
Hornets: Tidjane Salaun-out (calf)
Heat: Pelle Larson-probable (elbow), Nikola Jovic-probable (back), Bam Adebayo-questionable (calf), Andrew Wiggins-out (calf)
The Hornets will be seeking revenge after the Heat derailed their most recent winning streak. In true Charlotte sports fashion, the Hornets timed up their all time great run of play with the rest of the teams around them doing exactly the same thing, so they’ve gained no ground on their playoff chase. The Heat, who were just a game over .500 a little over a month ago, had won seven straight games before falling to the Magic on Sunday.
The Heat are trying to climb as high as fifth in the Eastern Conference playoff race, so every game is vital from here on out. They’ve been a thorn in the Hornets’ side for the longest time, and there’s nothing to suggest tonight will be any different.
Bam Adebayo made headlines last week when he dropped 83 points on the Wizards. That wasn’t exactly emblematic of a new scoring alpha version of Bam. He got hot in the first quarter going shot for shot with Alex Sarr. Once it seemed like he was in for a special night, he and his teammates forced the offense through him knowing that the Wizards weren’t going to put up much resistance. He actually wasn’t particularly efficient while scoring 83 points and scored the vast majority of his points over the last three quarters from the free throw line. In the two games since, Adebayo has combined to score 41 total points.
Tyler Herro led the Heat last time these two teams played with eight 3-pointers and 33 points. Jaime Jaquez Jr. was his robin with his best jump shooting game of the season. Both have been a little more subdued since that game, so there’s hope that lightning won’t strike assuming the Hornets are locked in on the defensive end.
The Heat are a good defensive team, but they shouldn’t seem quite as difficult one game after having to deal with Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs. The Hornets will need Brandon Miller to get his groove back on the offensive end, and if everyone else holds serve, the Hornets can register a key win to start this pair of games against Eastern Conference rivals.
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