Hornets' Superstar Will Miss Game vs. 76ers
On Friday night, the Philadelphia 76ers are set to welcome the Charlotte Hornets into the Wells Fargo Center, as they look to win their third match in the season series.
In their last time out on Tuesday night, the Sixers traveled up to TD Garden as they took on the Boston Celtics, in a match that much similar to other meetings earlier on in the season, remained close until the final few minutes.
Tyrese Maxey led the way for Philadelphia, ending the night with 32 points on 50 percent shooting, while managing to disrupt Boston on defense, coming away with two steals and one block.
Despite the match ended in an 18-point difference, Cameron Payne's work off the bench kept the Sixers well in the fight, scoring 10 of his 13 points in the final quarter, which included two makes from beyond the arch.
These efforts were smothered by the work of the Celtics' big trio, as Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum, and Kristaps Porzingis combined for 83 points.
While Boston had their star players in against the Sixers, the same can't be said for Charlotte on Friday night, as they are set to be without LaMelo Ball.
The 22-year-old will miss his 17th straight match due to tendinopathy in his right ankle, which has kept him out of action since January 27th, which has coincided with an extremely rough patch for the Hornets, only managing to win five games since his initial injury.
While it will be his 17th straight game on the bench, it will be his third missed outing against the Sixers this season, having sat in both of their prior outings, which have resulted in two losses for Charlotte.
It would be safe to say that Steve Clifford has missed Ball's offensive output in these two meetings, as the former third overall pick averages 16 points and six assists against Philadelphia in his career.
Since coming over from the Oklahoma City Thunder right before the trade deadline closed, Tre Mann has proven to be Clifford's starting option, appearing in all but one match since the trade, putting up 11 points and four assists.
The Sixers are set to take on the Hornets on Friday night, with tip-off slated for 7:00 p.m. EST.
