New Look Hornets Host Pacers

Preview of Pacers (30-24) at Hornets (11-41)

Author:
Pat Fitzsimmons
Feb 12, 2024 5:41 PM EST

In this story:

Charlotte Hornets

Injury Report

Hornets: OUT Mark Williams (back), LaMelo Ball (ankle)

Pacers: OUT Jalen Smith (back); QUESTIONABLE Tyrese Haliburton (hamstring)

Game Preview

The Hornets host the Pacers for their second time this month, but this time with five new players in the rotation. Charlotte is coming off a win on Saturday night against Memphis that stopped a 10-game losing streak, and the Pacers got a win in New York on Saturday and are 3-2 in their last 5.

This is the second game for the "new look" Hornets, who added five new players at the trade deadline on Feb 8th. All five new additions saw playing time Saturday against Memphis, despite the team not able to be able to have full practice with each other, Micic (18 pts, 9ast) and Williams (15 pts, 8 reb) stood out, particularly in the team win.

Now after having an opportunity to practice together as a new team, the Hornets host the Pacers once again, after just losing to them 115-99 on Feb 2nd. The Hornets are still without Lamelo and Mark Williams and have a tough task to slow down a Pacers team that leads the NBA in points per game with 124.1. Although NBA All-Star Tyrese Haliburton is recovering from a hamstring injury and is listed as questionable, he is expected to play. He will be a priority for the Hornets to contain if they want to pull off the win tonight.

Key Matchup: Cody Martin vs Tyrese Haliburton

Haliburton is a well-deserved starter in this year's all-star game averaging 22.1 ppg. 11.7 assists, while shooting 39.6% from 3. The 6'5 guard is a great playmaker who uses his size and passing abilities to create opportunities for his teammates and has developed into a consistent scorer for all levels. In the three previous matchups against Charlotte this year, Haliburton has averaged 26.3 ppg. 9.7 assists, shooting 60.5% from the field, and 53.8% from three. It will be a team effort to contain Halliburton for the Hornets, with Cody Martin likely being the primary on-ball defender.

Projected Starting 5