Spread & Over/Under to Charlotte Hornets vs Portland Trail Blazers
Each game day, we at All Hornets will release an article on our thoughts on the spread and the over/under of Charlotte Hornets games. The star ratings next to the play describe the overall confidence in that particular play.
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: Blazers -5.5
Charlotte looks to get over .500 and climb to a 3-2 record on their long, west coast road trip. They have fared pretty well thus far on the trip, with victories in Sacramento and Los Angeles. LaMelo Ball's return to the team has sparked an offense that was really struggling without him and has the team playing more up to expectations. The Blazers are coming in with losses in each of their last three games and have hit a bit of a dry spell on offense as of late. They are averaging just 108 points over their last five games. However, the Hornets are still not playing well on defense, giving up over 124 points a game on their road trip so far. In the end, I think Lillard and Grant will be too much for Charlotte and they will pull away with a win and a cover. Four star play on the Blazers in this one.
Over/Under: 237.5
Five star play on the over. For as well as the Hornets have been playing on offense since LaMelo's return, they are playing just as poorly on defense. As mentioned above, they are giving up about 124 points per contest on the road trip and I don't see much changing Monday night in Portland. The Blazers have an all-world offensive talent in Damian Lillard, as well as Simons and Grant who are both very talented scorers. Although Portland hasn't been firing on all cylinders offensively lately, the Hornets haven't shown much to lead us to believe they will be able to shut down the Blazers as well.
Terry Rozier had one of his best pure performances of the season in LA on Friday, as he might be the player to benefit the most from Ball's return. Rozier's best offensive skill is his movement shooting, and that is able to shine through when he doesn't have to run the show himself. He shot five of eight from three against the Lakers, and he just looked so much more comfortable than he has in quite some time. If he can continue this shooting and Ball continues to push the pace and get the team easy opportunities in transition, I don't see how this total can go under.
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