Riding a stellar performance from Devonte’ Graham, the Charlotte Hornets took down the Brooklyn Nets. Can they win their third game in a row when they travel to the Windy City to take on the Chicago Bulls?
Devonte’ Graham had a very Kemba Walker-like game against the Brooklyn Nets, scoring a career-high 40 points and 7 made threes en route to just their second victory over a team with a winning record. That’s not a dig on the Charlotte Hornets (11-16) or anything, though, as the team’s schedule thus far has mainly been against teams with losing records.
That will continue Friday night when the Hornets head to Chicago to take on the Bulls (9-17). The two teams have already faced off twice this year, with both games being in Charlotte. The Hornets took the first one, and the Bulls took the second. Each game has been as close as you can get, with both games being decided by a single point.
So, it would seem these two teams are relatively evenly matched, and with nearly even records, that may be the case. Both teams rely on a young core for much of their output, and both are clearly rebuilding, or at least trying to. So, this could be another fun matchup that may end up being another close one.
Charlotte’s last game, again, was a 113-108 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. As usual, they are at the 10th spot in the Eastern Conference. Chicago’s last outing was a 136-102 demolishing of the Atlanta Hawks. They are right behind the Hornets in 11th place. This is the third of four matchups against the Bulls.
Charlotte Hornets at Chicago Bulls
8:00 p.m. EST, Friday, December 13th, 2019
United Center
Fox Sports Southeast
Stream: Fubo.tv
Injury Report:
CHA:
Nicolas Batum – Hand (Doubtful)
Marvin Williams – Knee (Out)
Malik Monk – Finger (Probable)
CHI:
Cristiano Felicio – Wrist (Questionable)
Chandler Hutchison – Shoulder (Questionable)
Wendell Carter Jr. – Abdomen (Questionable)
Denzel Valentine – Ankle (Questionable)
Kris Dunn – Knee (Questionable)
Ryan Arcidiacono – Elbow (Questionable)
Zach LaVine – Shoulder (Questionable)
Otto Porter Jr. – Foot (Out)
Things to watch for:
Yet another banged-up team for the Hornets to play. The Bulls are looking like the Tune Squad when they faced the Monstars in Space Jam, minus the Iron Lung, of course. It’ll be interesting to see who can go for the Bulls, but the Hornets should be prepared for any group, nonetheless.
I mentioned how close the two previous games have been. Well, that’s a bit indicative of a trend taking place over the past few years. In their last twelve matchups, nine of the games have been decided by 5 points or less. The other three were outright blowouts. Close games are always fun yet stressful, so we may have another one.
Keys to the game:
Guard the three. The Bulls made an astonishing 22 three-pointers in their win over the Hornets back on November 23rd. Charlotte would have won if just one of those hadn’t fallen. By this point, it’s become a broken record discussing their paltry defense, but allowing a team to make 22 from deep is just ridiculous.
The Bulls average just under 10 steals a game, putting them at number one in the league in that category. And of course, that came back to bite them in the last game against the Bulls, committing 20 turnovers, 12 of which were the result of steals. Ball security is key.
Charlotte can tie their longest winning streak of the season with a win over the Bulls. They’ll have their hands full, but if they play well, they can steal a win. We’ll see if they can leave Chicago on a good note Friday night.