Spread & Over/Under Predictions: Charlotte Hornets vs Orlando Magic

Can the Hornets cover the spread?

Apr 3, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Aleksej Pokusevski (17) / Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

Star ratings:

1 Star - Not very confident

2 Star - A little confident

3 Star - Fairly confident

4 Star - Very confident

5 Star - Should be a lock to happen

Spread: Magic -11.5

3 Star play on the Magic (-11.5): The Hornets are missing key bodies in LaMelo Ball, Mark Williams, etc., and even more have other injury tags for tonight like Miles Bridges and Nick Richards.



Charlotte simply doesn’t have the fire power to take this one. Orlando is playing very well and have their minds on home court advantage through multiple rounds of the playoffs, whereas the Hornets might be starting J.T. Thor at center.



No matter who ends up suiting up for Charlotte tonight, the door is open for a cover with Orlando’s defensively-minded approach potentially leading to some higher variance, but I wouldn’t take that bet. 

Over/Under: 205.5

1 Star play on the over: This total is fascinatingly low, but totally makes sense. Both teams are bottom-five in the NBA in scoring, while the Magic boast the second-best defensive rating in the NBA at 110.5.



With all of that said, I’m leaning the over ever so slightly. To put it simply, I don’t think the Hornets have the length or skill defensively to keep Orlando from dragging this game to the over on their own. Even an average shooting night from Orlando should get it done. 

My picks this season

ATS: 10-5 (66.6%)

O/U: 5-10 (33.3%)

Overall: 15-15 (50.0%)