Charlotte Hornets vs Milwaukee Bucks Game Preview
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The mighty Milwaukee Bucks are coming to Charlotte to take on the Hornets on Saturday. All-NBA talent Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Bucks are currently 15-6 on the season, good for the second-best record record in the NBA. The Hornets meanwhile are 7-15 on the season, good for 13th-best record in the Eastern Conference
The Bucks are one again in championship-caliber form this season. Giannis is currently averaging a career high in scoring at 31.8 PPG, which tops even his two MVP seasons in 2019 and 2020. This scoring has been welcome, as fellow all-star Khris Middleton had been unavailable while recovering from a wrist surgery until his debut last night.
Thankfully for the Hornets, Antetokounmpo and Middleton, as well as Jrue Holiday are all expected to rest for tonight's matchup for a variety of reasons. Brook Lopez also has a questionable designation ahead of the game, so the Bucks may very well be missing all of their starters, sans Grayson Allen.
The Hornets will be missing many of their own top players, as LaMelo Ball, Gordon Hayward, Cody Martin, and Dennis Smith Jr. will all be out once again on Saturday. The Hornets reserves who have seen many more minutes that expected this season might actually have the edge tonight at home, given that the team is much more used to playing without its pillars.
Even without many of their key players, the Hornets have won three of four games, including last night over the Washington Wizards. Kelly Oubre has been the most consistent player for the team to this point in the season, and his scoring at a career-high 19.8 ppg will continue to be vital to the squad until other important names are back in the lineup.
What to Watch for:
The Milwaukee Bucks attempt the fifth-most three-pointers per game in the NBA, converting them at a respectable 35.3% clip. Despite conceding the third-most three-point attempts per game in the league, the Hornets are allowing a league-best 31.5% from those attempts. If Milwaukee continues the trend of heaving lots of three pointers over the course of tonight's game, the Hornets could see the game tip more in their favor than many are expecting.
2022-23 Team Stats
PPG: 113.1 (MIL), 109.5 (CHA)
RPG: 48.4 (MIL), 45.5 (CHA)
APG: 28.7 (MIL), 25.3 (CHA)
FG%: 46% (MIL), 44.5% (CHA)
3FG%: 35.1% (MIL), 32.3% (CHA)
FT%: 72.1% (MIL), 73.2% (CHA)
2020-21 Team Leaders (Returners only):
Minutes: Giannis Antetokounmpo - 32.9 (MIL), Terry Rozier - 37.4 (CHA)
FG%: Giannis Antetokounmpo - 54.4% (MIL), Nick Richards - 62% (CHA)
3FG%: Grayson Allen - 44.3% (MIL), Gordon Hayward - 38.1% (CHA)
PPG: Giannis Antetokounmpo - 31.8 (MIL), Kelly Oubre - 19.8 (CHA)
RPG: Giannis Antetokounmpo - 11.2 (MIL), Mason Plumlee - 8.9 (CHA)
APG: Jrue Holiday - 7.4 (MIL), Terry Rozier - 5.8 (CHA)
SPG: Jrue Holiday - 1.6 (MIL), Dennis Smith Jr. - 1.8 (CHA)
BPG: Brook Lopez - 2.9 (MIL) , PJ Washington - 0.9 (CHA)
Stat key: PPG - points per game | RPG - rebounds per game | APG - assists per game | SPG - steals per game | BPG- blocks per game
Wizards roster
PG: Jrue Holiday, George Hill, AJ Green
SG: Grayson Allen, Jevon Carter, Wes Matthews
SF: Khris Middleton, Pat Connaughton, Jordan Nwora
PF: Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bobby Portis, Thanasis Antetokounmpo
C: Brook Lopez, Serge Ibaka (OUT), Sandro Mamukelashvili
Head coach: Mike Budenholzer
Hornets roster
PG: LaMelo Ball (OUT), Dennis Smith Jr. (OUT), Theo Maledon
SG: Terry Rozier, Kelly Oubre Jr., James Bouknight
SF: Gordon Hayward (OUT), Jalen McDaniels, Bryce McGowens
PF: P.J. Washington, Kai Jones, JT Thor
C: Mason Plumlee, Nick Richards, Mark Williams
Head coach: Steve Clifford
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