- Charlotte Hornets at Orlando Magic (Amway Center)
- Thursday, Dec. 17 at 7 PM EST
- Fox Sports Southeast and WFNZ 610 AM
- Last time out: Orlando won, 112-100 on Feb. 3, 2020 in Charlotte
Magic Provide Another Great Test for Hornets’ New-Look Offense
Head Coach James Borrego was fairly pleased with the Hornets having the opportunity to face the Toronto Raptors for their first two preseason outings, mainly because the latter’s defensive prowess was a great tune-up for the regular season. Charlotte’s offense will have another solid test in Orlando, a team it averaged just 91.5 points against in two meetings last year. And on the other end, the Hornets will work to slow down one of the NBA’s top play-making centers in Nikola Vučević (16.0 PPG, 13.0 RPG, 3.5 APG and 1.0 BPG in 2 preseason GP).
Continue Focusing on Protecting the Paint
Charlotte has surrendered an average of 39.0 points in the paint over its first two exhibition games, a category it ranked 23rd in last season (50.5). The Magic are shooting under 30% from distance in the preseason so far and with Markelle Fultz, Aaron Gordon, Dwayne Bacon, Evan Fournier and Michael Carter-Williams all scoring at least 5.0 points per game in the paint right now, look for the hosts to get their offense going by attacking the basket.
Gordon Hayward’s Injury Impact
The Hornets announced on Wednesday afternoon that forward Gordon Hayward will miss tonight’s game and be day-to-day moving forward with an avulsion fracture on the fifth finger of his right hand. How the starting lineup will look in the short term is to be determined, but the most logical candidate would probably be last year’s starting three, Miles Bridges. The third-year Michigan State product is averaging 7.0 points on 50.0% shooting, 6.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 blocks in 18.5 minutes off the bench through two preseason appearances.
Preview Quote
“I think a lot of our guys improved defensively [on Monday night]. We picked up our intensity a little bit. If we can control our turnovers, I think we’ll be fine as our pressure continues to rise. Overall, I think guys are more focused and now, we’re starting to get settled down. Going to Orlando, it’s a great challenge for us. It’s a good defensive team, so it’s good for us to go and compete with those guys.” – Bismack Biyombo
Final Thoughts
Through two preseason games, the Hornets have certainly looked like the team they want to be on offense (minus the somewhat expected high turnover rate) and the half-court defense hasn’t been too shabby either. How the squad adjusts to Hayward’s absence tonight will be something to look out for in the first of its two preseason road outings in Orlando.
Additional Notes: This will be the first time the Hornets play the Magic in the preseason since Oct. 3, 2015, a contest they won on the road, 106-100… F Al-Farouq Aminu (right knee rehab), F Johnathan Isaac (left knee rehab) and G James Ennis III (right hamstring/right calf) will not play for Orlando. G Terrence Ross (left big toe) is probable.