Hornets look to continue improved play in Chicago

The Charlotte Hornets are back in action tonight at 9:30 pm EST. They have one more road game before returning home, and it's against the Chicago Bulls. This game will cap a very eventful trip away from home, as the Hornets have won twice (more than they did in the entire month of January) and had two games postponed.

Injury Report

Here is the injury report for the Charlotte Hornets:

PROBABLE - Mark Williams (left knee soreness). QUESTIONABLE - Moussa Diabate (illness), Brandon Miller (right wrist sprain). OUT - Tre Mann (disc irritation), Grant Williams (right ACL)

And for the Bulls:

QUESTIONABLE: Lonzo Ball (knee), Talen Horton-Tucker (knee), Ayo Dosunmu (calf), Coby White (neck), Josh Giddey (hip). OUT: Torrey Craig (leg), Adama Sanogo (knee).

Game Preview

The season is likely over for the Hornets. While every win puts them further away from potentially landing Cooper Flagg, there just aren't that many games they have a genuine shot in on the schedule, so they should take advantage. The Bulls have twice as many wins as the Hornets, but that's still not saying a whole lot.

Could these two teams have another historically bad game? The NBA record for most missed threes in a game is 75, and these two teams have equaled that in both contests this season. For whatever reason, all skill goes out the door with these two clubs.

That said, they're overdue for at least a normal shooting game. The Bulls aren't that bad, and the Hornets have won two of three and their loss in that span was a late collapse against a Western Conference playoff hopeful. That should lead to better basketball tonight.

Key Matchup - Josh Green and Zach LaVine

Josh Green has really struggled offensively as of late. Fortunately, with LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, Mark Williams, and Miles Bridges surrounding him, that's not as detrimental to the team. What Green is doing is defending, and he's doing it at a decent level. His 111.8 is third among Hornets playing at least 18 minutes a night.

He will probably draw Zach LaVine a lot tonight, and that's the key matchup. Can Green slow him down? LaVine has morphed into a true three-level scoring threat. He's averaging almost 24 points on over 50% from the field and 45.5% from three.

Those numbers haven't translated against Charlotte. He's averaging just 13 points in their matchups this year and shooting 36.4% from the field an 25% from three. As mentioned, the Hornets and Bulls have built a house of bricks together, and LaVine has not been immune. Can Green shut him down again?

Projected Starting Lineups

Position	Hornets	Bulls
PG	LaMelo Ball	Josh Giddey
SG	Brandon Miller	Coby White
SF	Josh Green	Zach LaVine
PF	Miles Bridges	Patrick Williams
C	Mark Williams	Nikola Vucevic

- MORE STORIES FROM HORNETS ON SI -

LaMelo Ball continues to lead the charge in latest NBA All-Star voting results

LaMelo Ball leads the NBA in a HORSE-esque shooting stat

Dream vs. Reality: The Charlotte Hornets' 2025 trade deadline targets

LaMelo Ball rises into The Ringer's top 25 player rankings