by Chuck Sommers
Wednesday, Mar 02, 2022
Time: 7 p.m. ET
Venue: Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, Cleveland, OH
Where to watch: BSOH, BSSE-CHA
Opening Odds at USA Sportsbooks
DraftKings: Cavs -3.5
BetMGM: Cavs -3.5
Caesars: NL
Season record
Hornets: 30-33
Cavaliers: 36-25
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Hornets - Cavs preview and analysis
Hornets analysis
The sky might be finally falling for the Charlotte Hornets. Things are not fun anymore. There may be no saving this season. I've accepted the fact that nothing is going right and as a supporter of this group, all is about to be thrown out the window.
Charlotte has lost 11 of its last 13 and has come out of the All-Star break with just one win in three games. That one win was against the Toronto Raptors, winning 125-93, but nothing has gotten better since. After that win, Charlotte lost 127-126 in overtime to the Detroit Pistons and losing 130-106 to the Milwaukee Bucks on Feb. 28.
Things were going well, until the Bucks scored 44 points in the second quarter and pulled away from that point on. LaMelo Ball had 24 points but just two assists, and Terry Rozier had 17 points and eight assists but shot 7 of 16 from the floor.
"This is the process you go through. It's painful. But you get up every day, you get better, you learn from it, you grow," Horntes coach James Borrego said. "One of the quotes that is resonating right now is: ‘In these moments when you feel buried, it's really you being planted.'"
Well if they're being planted, there might be a giant boot coming soon to step on the dirt and smash it into bits and pieces. Perhaps the growing pains of being a young team with accelerated expectations is what this is the result of.
But man, this is just some bad things to come for Charlotte. I had so much hope for the likes of Ball and Miles Bridges to make things happen, and there's a chance that they can make the play-in tournament and things of that sort, but holy cow it's just such a sad thing.
Cavs analysis
Okay, so maybe the sky isn't falling for the Cleveland Cavaliers but things aren't any rosy for them either. Cleveland has lost four of five, but unlike the Hornets, there's viable reasons as to why the Cavs are on this losing run.
The Cavs are still without Darius Garland, but it's not even just the fact that their All-Star guard is out for the next little while. But it's Cleveland's depth that has made some waves in being out. Along with Garland, Rajo Rondo is out, and Caris LeVert is also going to miss time.
Cleveland is coming off a 127-122 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, who are on a bit of a roll themselves. The depth was terrific, though. Kevin Love had 26 points in 26 minutes while Cedi Osman and Jarrett Allen had 21 points. It was just a part of six players scoring in double figures.
"We've been in that situation a couple times before," Osman said. "We never gave up. We're upset we lost because we fought really hard. I apologize for that last shot. I have to be better in those positions."
It's just the way things are for Cleveland right now. They acquired LeVert from the Indiana Pacers as a perfect piece to add to a playoff rotation, and then he goes down. That seemed to be just a situation where it could be overcome because there was still the thought of having Garland running the show. Now with him out, it continues to be on Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen to do more in terms of scoring while also carrying the load on the defensive side.
Prediction
It's going to come down to which guards make the most plays. Right now, that edge goes to Charlotte if Ball and Rozier are playing a complete game. I want to see the dynamic between the Hornets guards and Cavs' big men to see how they cancel out. Hornets by 7
Betting trends
The Hornets are 46-28 ATS after the second loss in three games.
The Cavs are 4-13 ATS after failing to cover in five or more straight games.
The Cavs are 96-103 ATS when playing five games or less in 14 days.
Projected starting lineup
Hornets:
PG: LaMelo Ball
SG: Terry Rozier
SF: Miles Bridges
PF: P.J. Washington
C: Mason Plumlee
Cavaliers:
PG: Brandon Goodwin
SG: Isaac Okoro
SF: Lauri Markkanen
PF: Evan Mobley
C: Jarrett Allen
Key injuries
Hornets: Gordon Hayward (out), Jalen McDaniels (doubtful)
Cavaliers: Darius Garland (out), Rajon Rondo (out), Caris LeVert (out), Collin Sexton (out)
Statistical leaders
Hornets:
Points: LaMelo Ball -- 19.9
Rebounds: Mason Plumlee -- 8.0
Assists: LaMelo Ball -- 7.4
Cavaliers:
Points: Darius Garland -- 20.3
Rebounds: Jarrett Allen -- 11.0
Assists: Darius Garland -- 8.0
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Chuck Sommers
About the Author:
Chuck Sommers has camped outside of sportsbooks since he can remember, learning the tricks and nuances of the trade. He still has nightmares of betting $5,000 on the Raiders in the Tuck Rule game but has since turned that to 25 years of veteran handicapping greatness. You can find him mostly in the shadows at the Red Rock or Aliante casinos wondering if the over is cashing on any given Sunday.
