Hornets to Host Red-Hot Knicks on Monday Night

CHARLOTTE HORNETS (10-34) vs. NEW YORK KNICKS (29-17)

Injury Report

Hornets: G LaMelo Ball (R Ankle Soreness) and G Frank Ntilikina (L Hip Discomfort) are questionable. F Gordon Hayward (L Calf) and C Mark Williams (Low Back) are out.

Knicks: Mitchell Robinson (ankle), Julius Randle (shoulder), G Duane Washington (thumb) are out.

Game Preview

Since stunning the Minnesota Timberwolves a week ago, the Charlotte Hornets have dropped three straight - a bad loss to the Pistons, a blowout to the Rockets, and a whacky loss to the Jazz where they battled back to make it somewhat of a game after giving up 82 first half points.

LaMelo Ball sat out Saturday's game against Utah due to ankle soreness and is a game-time decision for tonight's contest. In his last two outings, Ball is 12/37 (32%) from the field and 3/17 (18%) from three to go along with seven turnovers. To help make up for his scoring output when out of the lineup, the Hornets have relied on Miles Bridges who has been very consistent this season, while receiving more than expected from the likes of Nick Richards and P.J. Washington.

Charlotte has dealt with injuries all season long and now the Knicks are starting to take some big hits with Mitchell Robinson and Julius Randle recently suffering injuries that will keep them out of the lineup for the foreseeable future.

Entering tonight's game, the Knicks are winners of six straight and sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference standings. In order to hover in the top half of the playoff picture without two key players, they need to take full advantage of games such as this. So far this season, New York is 18-0 against opponents with a losing record.

Key Matchup: Nick Richards vs. Isaiah Hartenstein

I could have went LaMelo vs. Brunson, but there's a chance we won't get to see that matchup tonight, so we're going in the paint instead.

In the last week alone, Richards has reset his career high for points in a game twice, putting up 21 against the Pistons and 26 against the Jazz. With the trade deadline around the corner, several teams around the league are going to be watching Richards closely and this is matchup he needs to come out on top of. Charlotte has been hammered in the paint all season long, but I don't expect that to be the case tonight. With Robinson and Randle out of the lineup for New York, it's going to put more pressure on Hartenstein.

Projected Starting Lineups:

HORNETS	KNICKS
LaMelo Ball (?)	Jalen Brunson
Brandon Miller	Donte DiVincenzo
Cody Martin	Quentin Grimes
Miles Bridges	OG Anunoby
Nick Richards	Isaiah Hartenstein

Spread & Over/Under Predictions for Hornets vs. Knicks

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