Charlotte Hornets vs. Utah Jazz Prediction, Preview, and Odds
We have a huge slate of NBA games on Thursday night, and one of the intriguing matchups is a cross-conference showdown between the Charlotte Hornets and the Utah Jazz. Charlotte comes into this contest at 13-41 (13th in East) while Utah is currently 26-30 (11th in West). Tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 ET from the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, UT.
Hornets Secure Third Straight Win
It has been a pretty ugly season for Steve Clifford and his Hornets. They’ve had injury issues all year to go along with a huge sell-off at the deadline, and that’s why they’re in 13th place in the Eastern Conference. However, Charlotte has rattled off three straight wins after dropping 10 consecutive games. The recent victories came against Memphis (115-106), Indiana (111-102), and Atlanta (122-99), most recently. From a sports betting perspective, the Hornets are 21-33 ATS and they’ve seen 28 of their 54 games go over the total.
The recent home victory against the Hawks saw the Hornets cruise to a cover as 6.5-point underdogs. Charlotte had the edge in every major statistical category, including field goal percentage (49.4% to 40.4%), three-point shooting (40.5% to 23.7%), turnovers (13 to 16), and rebounding (46 to 45).
Individually, Miles Bridges has been the spark for the Hornets, paving the way in scoring (21.5 PPG), assists (3.4 APG), and steals (1.1 SPG). Brandon Miller is putting together a solid rookie season, adding 16.6 points per game. Miller’s currently third in the Rookie of the Year betting market (+20000), trailing Victor Wembanyama (-600) and Chet Holmgren (+450).
Jazz Slumping, Drop Fourth Straight
Utah was hanging around in the Western Conference playoff picture, but they’ve completely fallen off as of late. The Jazz are just 2-7 over their last nine games, which has dropped them out of the play-in tournament. In my opinion, it’s going to be very tough for them to claw their way back up the standings, especially with veteran teams like the Warriors (10th in West) and Lakers (9th) sitting right above them. This current four-game losing streak has seen Utah drop games to Phoenix (129-115), Golden State (129-107), Los Angeles (L) (138-122), and Golden State again (140-137), most recently. As for their sports betting numbers, the Jazz come into this one at 31-25 ATS and they’ve seen 32 of their 56 games go over the total.
Utah was just a 1.5-point home underdog against Golden State last time out, so they failed to cover the spread in the three-point defeat. The Jazz won the rebounding battle (48 to 41), but the Warriors had the edge in every other major statistical category, including field goal percentage (53.3% to 46.2%), three-point shooting (47.6% to 44.9%), and turnovers (13 to 16).
As for individual efforts, Lauri Markkanen is putting together a respectable campaign, paving the way in both scoring (23.4 PPG) and rebounding (8.6 RPG). Jordan Clarkson leads things up top, adding 17.3 points per game while dishing out a team-leading 4.8 assists per night.
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Best Bets
Full-Game Side Bet
Rating:
In part, I understand why the Jazz are nearly laying double digits in this game. Charlotte has been horrendous throughout the whole season and now they’re tasked with a borderline playoff team in Utah, while also being on the road. However, I just can't get there on laying this many points with a Utah squad that’s on a four-game skid, while also losing seven of its last nine games.
So, I’m going to ride with Charlotte, who won three straight games heading into the All-Star Break. They just put up 122 points on the Hawks, who are the worst defense in the league. Now they’ll have a chance against a Utah defense that’s just 25th overall, conceding 116.7 points per 100 possessions. Brandon Miller (16.6 PPG) and Miles Bridges (21.5 PPG) are guys who can take advantage of lousy defenses, and I think this duo will manage to at least keep this game within single digits.
Prediction: Charlotte Hornets +9.5 (-110)
Full-Game Total Pick
Rating:
As I was alluding to, Utah’s defense is one of the worst in the league. Well, Charlotte actually comes in lower on the list, sitting at 29th. They’re conceding 118.2 points per 100 possessions. Meanwhile, the Jazz are one of the quicker teams in the NBA, using 102.8 possessions per game (8th).
The Hornets are averaging 116.0 points per game over their current three-game win streak. On the flip side, the Jazz are surrendering 134.0 points per game over their current four-game slide! These guys cannot stop anyone right now. Ultimately, I expect both offenses to find success in this contest featuring a pair of lousy defenses. I’m locking in the over.
