A Charlotte Hornets Fan's Guide to Hate-Watching the NBA Tonight

The Charlotte Hornets do not play today after dismantling the Brooklyn Nets last night. That may have been an expected result, but it's a big win nonetheless. At this stage of the season, all wins are monumental, especially as the Hornets inch towards finishing over .500.

You know what else matters? Other teams losing. The Hornets have won 29 of their 43 games since January 1. That's the sixth-best record in the sport during that span, but all it's done is get the Hornets to 10th in the East.

To move up and even potentially make the playoffs outright, they will need help in important games from other teams. Some of those teams play tonight, so here's how you can hate-watch to support the Hornets.

The most important game of the night is at 7:00 pm when the Orlando Magic host the Atlanta Hawks. In theory, this is a win-win for the Hornets. They trail both teams. Atlanta holds a playoff spot, while Orlando is ahead in the Play-In.

But truthfully, the playoffs are almost out of reach for Charlotte. They're 2.5 games back with six games to go. It's not insurmountable, but the Hornets have a tougher schedule than most other East contenders.

Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) tries to drive to the basket past Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges | Brian Westerholt-Imagn Images

So to that end, a Hawks win is more important. That would put the Hornets into a tie with the Magic at 40-36, and with Charlotte having taken three of four versus Orlando, they'd have the tiebreaker and move ahead of them in the standings.

The second important matchup is the Washington Wizards hosting the Philadelphia 76ers. This one's pretty cut and dry, as the Hornets trail the 76ers by 1.5 games for the seven seed. A loss would cut it to one game. Unfortunately, the Wizards are tanking, but maybe they can steal a home win.

Finally, the Miami Heat are hosting the Boston Celtics. Neither Jaylen Brown nor Jayson Tatum is on the injury report, which bodes well for a hate-watch. The Celtics had rested those players in some key games for the Hornets recently.

If the Heat lose tonight, Charlotte would pass them in the standings. This would put the Hornets into the eight seed at 40-36, with the Magic and Heat sitting in the nine and 10 spots, respectively, at 40-36 and 40-37.

Of course, a half-game lead with six to go means almost nothing, but as the wins for the Hornets and losses for others stack up, it will all help out. So for tonight and tonight only, go Hawks, Wizards, and Celtics!

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