Charlotte Hornets seek third home win in a row as they host the Houston Rockets

Though they’ve only won two of the first four games of the season, the Charlotte Hornets have played fairly well. Still, the team surely wants to be above .500 this early in the season. They’ll have a tough go of it, however, when James Harden and the Rockets come to town.

Injuries are a sad and unfortunate aspect of sports. The Charlotte Hornets (2-2) have certainly dealt with their share thus far. Still, they’ve played fairly well despite the circumstances and look to keep their undefeated home streak alive as the Houston Rockets (4-1) stroll into the Spectrum Center Friday night.

Charlotte is coming off a blowout win against the Denver Nuggets who they defeated 110-93 in the Spectrum Center. They are currently tied for third with three other teams in the Eastern Conference. The Rockets are coming off a narrow 105-104 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in Philly. They are currently tied for second in the West.

It’s safe to assume the focal point for the Hornets will be All-Star guard and MVP runner-up, James Harden. With two of their core players, Chris Paul and Trevor Ariza, out with injuries, look for Harden to shoulder the burden, much like he did last season. Eric Gordon is also a valuable asset to the Rockets. The reigning Sixth Man of the Year is averaging over 24 points a game this season.

Houston Rockets @ Charlotte Hornets

7 p.m. EST, Friday, October 27th, 2017

Spectrum Center

Broadcast on FOX Sports Southeast

Injury Report:

CHA:

Nicolas Batum – Left Elbow

Michael Carter-Williams – Knee

Cody Zeller – Knee

Julyan Stone – Hamstring

Treveon Graham – Quad

HOU:

Chris Paul – Knee

Trevor Ariza – Foot

Nene – Achilles

Things to keep an eye on:

Dwight Howard is averaging 17.8 rebounds per game. It’ll be interesting to see if he can continue feasting. Needless to say, his rebounding has been a boon. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist should be playing more minutes in his second game back. Hopefully, his defense can stifle some of the Rocket’s offense.

Keys to the game:

Harden will be a handful; he almost always is. The key is trying to limit his damage. He’s not just a scorer, he’s an excellent facilitator as well. If the Hornets can disrupt his passing lanes, they can help make him one-dimensional. While Eric Gordon is scoring a lot, he’s only shooting 40% on the year, the lowest of his career. Five games may be a small sample size, but if the Hornets can put pressure on him, they can negate his output. Howard’s aforementioned rebounding will be key as well, especially on the offensive end.

Next: Top-five things to look forward to this season

Both teams are missing players vital to their gameplans, so this may end up being a war of attrition. It’s a war I personally think the Hornets can win. We’ll see Friday night in the Spectrum Center.

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