**What:** Charlotte Hornets (19-56) (7-30 away) at Indiana Pacers (44-31) (25-10 home)
**When:** 7:00pm Eastern
**Where:** Gainbridge Fieldhouse; Indianapolis, IN
**How to watch:** FanDuel Sports Network, NBA League Pass
**Outfitting:** Hornets–Statement (purple), Pacers–City (white with the gray court)
**Game Lines:** Hornets +14.5, Hornets money line +750, O/U 224.5
**Injuries:**
Hornets: Nick Smith Jr.-probable (ankle), LaMelo Ball-out (ankle), Brandon Miller-out (wrist), Tre Mann-out (back), Grant Williams-out (knee)
Pacers: Myles Turner-questionable (illness), Benedict Mathurin-questionable (calf), Isaiah Jackson-out (achilles), Tony Bradley-out (illness)
If the Hornets really wanted to win this one, they can look no further than their own organization for motivation. The Greensboro Swarm flew to Indiana a day prior to the Hornets to face the Indiana Mad Ants in the G League playoffs, but the Hornets’ affiliate [fell to the Pacers’ affiliate in the single elimination tournament](https://atthehive.com/2025/04/02/greensboro-swarm-eliminated-from-first-ever-playoff-appearance/). Surely the varsity squad will want to do right by their G League counterparts.
Unfortunately, the Pacers aren’t looking like a team that will be easily picked off. They’re 7-2 in their last nine, and the two losses came on the road to the Thunder and at the buzzer to the Lakers. They’ve beaten up on a lot of bad teams during the stretch, but wins are wins. They also put on one of the most explosive performances in NBA history by scoring [162 points in regulation](https://www.espn.com/nba/game/_/gameId/401705627/pacers-wizards) against the Wizards last week. And that’s with them taking three consecutive shot clock violations to end the game.
Tyrese Haliburton is starting to rediscover last year’s early season form that had him looking like a superstar in the making. Bennedict Mathurin and Pascal Siakam have been struggling from three, but they’re still putting up points in bunches. The role players are hitting their threes, which can make this Pacers team very dangerous.
The Hornets almost look kind of healthy if you don’t consider that their two best starters and two best bench players are shut down for the season. Miles Bridges and Mark Williams cruised to very good games against the hapless Jazz last time out. They’ll have a tougher go of it this time around, but it’s a good time for both to assert themselves and show some leadership traits.
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