Potential Playoff Preview in Charlotte? Looking Ahead to Pistons at Hornets

Tonight feels like the Charlotte Hornets' last stand in their quest to avoid the 9-10 Play-In bracket in the Eastern Conference.

The well-rested, fully-healthy Detroit Pistons come rolling into town for a contest that the entire league will have its eyes on for a number of reasons. This is the first matchup between Charlotte and Detroit since the teams brawled at the Spectrum Center earlier this season, leading to multi-game suspensions for Moussa Diabate, Miles Bridges, Jalen Duren, and Isaiah Stewart.

It is also a potential first round playoff preview, as the Pistons have locked up the number one seed in the East, and depending on league-wide results on Friday and Sunday night, the Hornets are most likely going to wind up as the eight seed if they advance out of the Play-In.

Giddy up.

The Pistons' preferred starting five of Cade Cunningham (back in the lineup after missing a few weeks due to a collapsed lung), Duncan Robinson, Ausar Thompson, Tobias Harris, and Jalen Duren haven't suited up together much recently, but when its healthy, it is one of the best five-man units in basketball.

They impose their will in the paint, dominating the offensive glass (86th percentile in OREB% per Cleaning the Glass) and attempting an overwhelming majority of their shots at the rim (96th percentile in rim frequency). These aren't the Bad Boys of yesteryear, but they play a throwback style that directly targets Charlotte's lack of interior size.

Key Matchup: LaMelo Ball vs. Cade Cunningham

The easy (and probably correct) answer is actually Moussa Diabate vs. Jalen Duren, but I'll have my eyes on the battle between the two All-NBA level guards tonight.

Cunningham was a shoo-in for first-team All-NBA and a top-five finish in MVP voting before a freak accident led to him missing a handful of games in March and early April, but Detroit's superstar is back in the mix and looking to re-find his form ahead of a potential deep playoff run.

When these teams played last, Cunningham was unquestionably the best player on the floor, pouring in bucket after bucket from all three levels no matter what the Hornets' defense threw at him. His fourth quarter masterclass stymied a late flurry of threes from Kon Knueppel, and Cunningham will have to be equally as brilliant to match LaMelo Ball's current form.

LaMelo played one of the best games of his career in Tuesday night's loss to Boston. His barrage of three-pointers stole the headlines, but I was equally as impressed by Ball's craft around the basket that he used as a counter when Boston shut off his water beyond the arc. The biggest leap Ball has made in recent weeks is his increase in two-point scoring efficiency which will be necessary to slay the Pistons tonight.

Detroit allows the third-most shots in the 'short mid-range' area (~4-14 feet from the basket), and that is where LaMelo prefers to work inside the arc. He has been ridiculously efficient on floaters since the calendar flipped to March, and his ability to poke and prod opposing big men should be on full display against Duren and company.

Injury Report

Charlotte Hornets: OUT PJ Hall (Ankle) PROBABLE Coby White (Groin)

Detroit Pistons: QUESTIONABLE Kevin Huerter (Illness)

Projected Starting Lineups

Detroit Pistons	Charotte Hornets
Cade Cunningham	LaMelo Ball
Duncan Robinson	Kon Knueppel
Ausar Thompson	Brandon Miller
Tobias Harris	Miles Bridges
Jalen Duren	Moussa Diabate

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