Charlotte Hornets vs. Detroit Pistons Game Preview
CHARLOTTE HORNETS (1-0) vs. DETROIT PISTONS (0-1)
Injury Report
Hornets: OUT Cody Martin (left knee soreness), James Bouknight (left knee), Frank Ntilikina (tibia fracture) QUESTIONABLE Bryce McGowens (left ankle sprain).
Pistons: OUT Isaiah Livers (ankle), Monte Morris (quad), Bojan Bogdanovic (calf).
Game Preview
For the third straight season, the Charlotte Hornets tipped the year off with a victory. It was a hard fought battle against the Atlanta Hawks that featured six Hornets reaching double figures in scoring, including rookie Brandon Miller who went for 13 in his NBA debut.
It was really a tale of two halves as Charlotte got manhandled on the glass in the first half and didn't help the cause by turning the ball over at an alarming rate. They cleaned some things up at the break and were in control for much of the second half.
The Pistons put on a defensive clinic in their season-opener against the Miami Heat, who is a team that also knows a thing or two about good defense. Jalen Duren and rookie Ausar Thompson combined for nine blocks which helped limit Miami to 103 points.
Cade Cunningham played in his first regular season game since last November and did not skip a beat. He led all scorers with 30 points on 13/27 shooting from the field, including a 4/9 night from three.
The key in this one for the Hornets will be to get the ball in the paint more. Head coach Steve Clifford was none too pleased with the lack of paint touches against Atlanta and knows that has to change in order to win games consistently.
Key Matchup: Jalen Duren vs. Mark Williams.
Hornets fans seem to be very happy with the early returns on Mark Williams. But if you go back to draft night, many of those same fans were distraught by the organization techincally passing on Jalen Duren. The Hornets picked Duren but made the selection for Detroit via a trade. A couple picks later they took Williams. Both appear to be well on their way to being a core piece to what their organizations are building and these two will forever be compared to one another.
Projected Starting Lineups
| Position | Hornets | Pistons |
|---|---|---|
Point Guard | LaMelo Ball | Killian Hayes |
Shooting Guard | Terry Rozier | Cade Cunningham |
Small Forward | Gordon Hayward | Ausar Thompson |
Power Forward | P.J. Washington | Isaiah Stewart |
Center | Mark Williams | Jalen Duren |
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