Cavaliers vs. Hornets predictions, picks and odds for tonight, 3/12

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With the NBA regular season coming to a close soon, teams are working now to get into their best possible position for the postseason. As of right now, the Cleveland Cavaliers are a top five team in the entire NBA holding fourth place in the Eastern Conference with less than 15 games left to play. The Charlotte Hornets, however, are in second-to-last place in the East and are not in playoff contention. In what should be a get-right game for the Cavaliers tonight, the Hornets will be hosting them as home underdogs. Both teams will be competing, but the Cavaliers will be playing this game almost desperate for a win in a crucial spot after losing their last game.

This article will explore this game in greater detail and we’ll give you our Cavaliers vs. Hornets predictions for tonight with odds provided by Caesars Sportsbook.

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Tonight, the Cleveland Cavaliers will travel to Charlotte for a matchup with the Hornets in a game between one of the East’s best and one of the East’s worst teams.

The Cavaliers only have 13 games left in the season. They currently hold a record of 42-27 and are in fourth place in the East. It looks like that may be the most likely ending spot for them heading into the playoffs. They not only have the fewest games left to play in the regular season, but they also have the softest schedule with their remaining games. They will only play five more games against teams over .500. After losing in their last game in a tough game against the Heat, they will be looking to get back into winning form tonight against the Hornets.

It could be argued that the Hornets are currently in one of the worst situations in the NBA. Despite having high hopes after drafting LaMelo Ball in 2020, they’ve had setback after setback, including Miles Bridges’ situation that led to him being out of the league, poor draft picks and persistent injury issues with Gordon Hayward. As a result, the future looks rough for the Hornets and they may have to start from scratch once again with little optimism for improvement. With all of that said, they lost last night in a game against the Jazz where they never had a lead or even tie score yet only lost by eight. They will be looking to try and stay close in tonight’s game.

We expect a good game, but for the Cavaliers to get back to winning tonight. The Cavaliers have a lot to play for still and want to keep from sliding down in the standings at all. The Hornets will also come into this game with less rest as it is the second leg of a back-to-back set for them. We’re expecting the Cavaliers to get back on track with a win here tonight, but also expect to see the Hornets cover the large spread.

These teams have less than 15 games left in the regular season and their rankings are not finalized yet. The Cavaliers are in a positive situation as they are three games ahead of the fifth-place team in the Eastern Conference. Still, it’s important for them to win the game tonight to further solidify their position. A win would increase the gap between them and the teams behind them. They also want to keep pushing for the chance to jump into third place before the season’s end. They are only 3.5 games behind the third-place team which makes this game even more important for them.

Conversely, the Hornets don’t have much to play for at this point in the season. They are in second-to-last place in the East, only ahead of the Pistons. In fact, some would argue losing helps Charlotte more than winning as it increases their chance at a high draft pick in this year’s rookie draft. Either way you look at it, the Hornets are just building for the future at this point, but getting some wins here at the end of the season could help them feel like they have a good enough core to build on currently.

The Cavaliers are coming into this game with a must-win mentality and we expect them to make the necessary adjustments to get the win tonight. On the flip side, the Hornets are coming into tonight’s game having lost last night but playing some good basketball right now. This spread seems a little high with the Hornets’ playing well of late and having home-court advantage. Therefore, our best bet from our Cavaliers vs. Hornets predictions is to take Charlotte +8 with -110 odds at Caesars Sportsbook.

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Caesars Sportsbook has the Cavaliers as an eight-point favorite with -110 odds, making the Hornets an eight-point underdog with the same -110 odds. So, an $11 wager on Cleveland profits $10 if they win by least nine points, while an $11 wager on Charlotte profits $10 if they lose by seven or fewer or win the same outright. If the Cavs win by exactly eight points, wagers on both sides of the spreads are graded as a push and all bets are refunded.

The total (over/under) is listed at 220 points with -110 odds on either side. Remember, you can bet on any market with up to $1,250 worth of insurance when you create a new account using Caesars promo code MLIVEFULL.

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