Hornets aim for back-to-back victories as west coast trip begins in LA vs. Lakers

Following a Tuesday night win over the Suns, the Hornets will look to win consecutive games for the first time since early November.

Ali Jawad | 10 Hours Ago

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

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Charlotte Hornets

The Charlotte Hornets (8-27) visit the Los Angeles Lakers (20-16) in a cross-conference matchup on Thursday, January 9th at 10:30 PM ET at Crypto.com Arena.

The Hornets and Lakers will meet for the first time this season. The Lakers swept the season series last year, winning all three matchups.

Los Angeles holds a 42-25 all-time series advantage over Charlotte and has won six of the last eight meetings.

All-Star voting szn is here!

Vote LaMelo for 2025 #NBAAllStar🕺🛸💕
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) December 19, 2024

The Main Point

The Hornets ended their 10-game losing streak on Tuesday night with a 115-104 victory over the Phoenix Suns, marking their first win in a month, and have only played five games against Western Conference opponents so far with a 2-3 record against the conference.

Charlotte has struggled on the road this season, posting a 2-14 record, the fourth-worst in the league. Their last road win came on December 8th against the Indiana Pacers.

The Lakers have lost their last two games, falling to the Houston Rockets and most recently, the Dallas Mavericks 118-97 on Tuesday. While LA ranks ninth in field goal percentage at 47.3%, they struggle on the boards, ranking 27th in rebounds per game with an average of 41.4.

Every day, it's just a beauty 🤷‍♂️ #HiveMentality | @MELOD1P pic.twitter.com/se6JC3eHRx
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) January 8, 2025

Leading Contributors

Hornets: LaMelo Ball continued his impressive play on Tuesday night, leading the Hornets with 32 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists, and 4 steals in their victory over the Suns. Ball is averaging 29.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 7.3 assists, and 1.4 steals on 42.3% shooting.

Lakers: Anthony Davis is averaging 25.8 points, 11.9 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and 2.1 blocks on 51.9% shooting.

he is in fact like that@MELOD1P | 📹 @FDSN_Hornets
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) January 8, 2025

Last 10 Matchups

The Hornets have lost nine of their last ten games. Offensively, they rank 31st in the league, averaging 106.1 points per game. Defensively, they are 15th, allowing 112.2 points per game. While Charlotte excels at offensive rebounding, averaging 13.0 boards per game ranking second best, their ball movement has been a struggle, ranking 27th with 23.4 assists per game.

The Lakers have won six of their last ten games. They average 111.8 points per game (15th in the league) and allow 114.0 points per game (20th in the league). At home, they allow 112.9 points per game (18th in the league).