Charlotte Hornets at Utah Jazz Game Preview
INJURY REPORT:
HORNETS - QUESTIONABLE: LaMelo Ball (L ankle, R wrist) DOUBTFUL: Cody Martin (L Knee soreness) OUT: Kelly Oubre (L Hand surgery).
ROCKETS- OUT Kelly Olynyk (ankle)
GAME PREVIEW:
For just the second time this season, the Hornets have won two straight games. With a win tonight in Salt Lake City, it'll mark their longest winning streak of the year. Yes, it's been THAT bad for the bugs.
In order to do so, they're going to need another rockstar performance from Terry Rozier, who is coming off a 37-point outing in which he hit seven triples in the win over Atlanta on Saturday.
LaMelo Ball is dealing with soreness in his right wrist and landed awkwardly on P.J. Washington's foot during a rebound attempt in Houston last week and is deemed "questionable" for this one. Even if he is able to suit up and play, I wouldn't expect Ball to be at 100%. This could mean more floor time for Dennis Smith Jr., who right now, is their best on-ball defender off the bench.
As for Utah, they've surprised a lot of people this year. Everyone assumed they would be tanking after trading away Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, and others but they've been competitive and are currently in the mix for the Play-In tournament, holding the No. 9 seed in the Western Conference.
A lot of Utah's success can be attributed to the breakout year of Lauri Markkanen - one of the players they received in the Mitchell trade with Cleveland. This season, Markannen is averaging 24.8 points and 8.7 rebounds.
Key for the Hornets: Ramp it up defensively.
Look, I know the Hornets haven't played well on the defensive end of the floor this year. As a matter of fact, in many games, it looks optional. But for Charlotte to give themselves a chance in this one, they need to "muddy" the game up a little bit. Pressure the point, create some traps, and force Utah into some turnovers. The Jazz have been sloppy with the ball all year long averaging 15.2 turnovers per game. And oh yeah, when they turn it over, they don't get back. Utah's transition defense is awful and that's putting it nicely. They rank 29th in fastbreak points allowed (16.4 ppg). If the Hornets can create 15 turnovers, they'll have a shot to pull this one out.
PROJECTED STARTERS
Hornets: PG Ball, SG Rozier, SF Hayward, PF Washington, C Plumlee
Jazz: PG Conley, SG Clarkson, SF Beasley, PF Markkanen, C Kessler
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