Charlotte Hornets vs San Antonio Spurs Point Spread Picks

The Charlotte Hornets have not been a competitive team for a considerable period. They started this season not looking at all like a potential playoff team. The Hornets were a 16-28 team that seemed more destined for a lottery pick than a playoff team. Suddenly, Charlotte began to put everything together. The Hornets have been as good as anyone recently, sizzling at 18-5 over their last 23 games, and they now have a winning record on the season. San Antonio could be surprised tonight, as the Hornets are playing well. I like Charlotte on the moneyline.

The Hornets have won five in a row. But on closer inspection, that winning streak isn't as impressive as it may seem because it came against the Mavericks, Grizzlies, 76ers without Joel Embiid, Wizards, and Magic. San Antonio is Charlotte's toughest opponent in more than three weeks. The Spurs are 32-15. The Hornets are seven games below .500 and are returning home after consecutive road games played this past Wednesday and Thursday. The Hornets are playing for the third time in four days, and this is an early start. The Spurs have been idle since Wednesday. The Hornets turn the ball over 15.7 times per game, third most in the NBA. San Antonio can exploit that with its excellent guard trio of Stephon Castle, De’Aaron Fox, and Dylan Harper. The Hornets are going to struggle in the paint, too, against the Spurs, who have 7-foot-4 center Victor Wembanyama patrolling the middle. Take the Spurs.

Charlotte actually has won seven of the past eight meetings, including 117-116 as a 9.5-point underdog on Feb. 7. The Hornets have covered three of their past four games, including outright wins against Brooklyn and Miami. San Antonio has lost eight of 11 (3-8 ATS) and nine of 12 against Southeast Division opponents. The Hornets are 33-30-2 ATS this season compared to 28-36-0 ATS for the Spurs, who did beat Dallas 126-116 on Wednesday, but they haven't won two in a row since Jan. 3 when Victor Wembanyama was still playing. The Spurs are playing their fourth game in six days. Take the Hornets.

San Antonio's offense is 15th in scoring, 10th in field goal shooting, and 13th from the free-throw line. The Spurs are on a 9-2 run OVER the total with a defense that is 19th in points given up and 17th at defending beyond the arc. They come off a 126-125 win at Atlanta. Charlotte's defense ranks 15th in shooting allowed (46.6%). When these teams last met, a 124-120 final sailed OVER, also played on this court. Take San Antonio/Charlotte OVER the total.