Ranking Potential Playoff Opponents for the Charlotte Hornets

The Charlotte Hornets are postseason-bound. Whether or not they make the playoffs, and not just the Play-In Tournament, depends heavily on the next three games and the Play-In Tournament after that. They're not out of the race for the fifth or sixth seed just yet.

Charlotte's win last night pushed the Hornets to 43-36. They're still the eighth seed, but they're a half game back of seventh (Toronto), a half game back of sixth (Philadelphia, who owns tiebreaker), and 2.5 games back of fifth (Atlanta).

The fifth seed is probably out of reach, but sixth is certainly still attainable, even with three difficult games on the horizon. They could genuinely finish anywhere between fifth and 10th, and nothing would be too surprising.

That leaves them with so many plausible options for playoff matchups. They could pretty much play any one of the top four seeds. Here's how they rank based on how well I believe the Hornets could fare in a seven-game series with them.

No. 4: Detroit Pistons

If Charlotte escapes the Play-In Tournament as the eighth seed, then they'll have the worst possible matchup in the Detroit Pistons. Some would love to see this, as it gives Charlotte a chance for revenge after the fight-marred loss earlier this year, and it would be highly entertaining.

But Detroit is an awful matchup for the Hornets. They're big, physical, aggressive, and strong. Those are things the Hornets struggle with. The Pistons get away with a ton of contact, which tends to rattle and frustrate LaMelo Ball, and if he gets in that head space, it's usually not good.

No. 3: Boston Celtics

Boston Celtics forward/guard Jayson Tatum (0) is guarded by Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges | Brian Westerholt-Imagn Images

The Boston Celtics are scary. Yes, the Hornets beat the brakes off of them in Boston, but that was before Jayson Tatum got back. Then, the Tatum-led Celtics came to Charlotte and beat the brakes off of the Hornets without Jaylen Brown.

They're a championship team with plenty of playoff experience and good coaching. They're not a good matchup for a Hornets team without a good point-of-attack defender because they can attack with either Brown or Tatum. Either could go for 40 on any given night and give the Hornets an awful series.

No. 2: New York Knicks

The New York Knicks are not as concerning, no matter what happens this week when the Hornets visit the Knicks. They held them off in Charlotte, winning by double digits last month despite really slowing up at the end of the game.

Plus, the Hornets' league-best offense will be able to get whatever it wants. Jalen Brunson has a team-worst defensive rating. That's good news for the Hornets' guards and wings, and Karl-Anthony Towns was almost unplayable last time out. The Hornets match up pretty well here.

No. 1: Cleveland Cavaliers

Obviously, the Cleveland Cavaliers are the easiest matchup because they're the worst team of the top four. They're good, and James Harden tends to put up gaudy numbers against the Hornets, but this team is beatable.

The Hornets lost three of four to the Cavaliers, but they lost by an average of 6.33 points. Those games could've easily swung in Charlotte's favor, and they'd have a real shot at winning this series if they somehow got the fifth seed.

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