Two explosive offenses clash on Wednesday when the Portland Trail Blazers (7-3, 4-1 Away) travel to face the Charlotte Hornets (3-8, 1-4 Home). Portland narrowly defeated the Miami Heat 110-107 at FTX Arena on Monday. With 25 points, Anfernee Simons was the leading scorer.
Jerami Grant was another key contributor with 23 points. The Trail Blazers are trailing the Phoenix Suns by one game in the Western Conference, currently sitting in fourth. Charlotte dropped their fifth in a row on Monday at Spectrum Center, falling to the Washington Wizards 108-100.
PJ Washington had 25 points in the loss to lead the team. The Hornets are 13th in the Eastern Conference. The teams are meeting for the first time this season. Portland and Charlotte split their matchups last season, taking one game apiece.
The Trail Blazers won the last meeting 125-116 at Moda Center at the Rose Quarter in December 2021. Damian Lillard led the Trail Blazers with 43 points and eight assists. LaMelo Ball had 27 points in the losing effort.
The Blazers have been led this season by Simons, who is averaging 22.4 points per game. Meanwhile, Jusuf Nurkic is grabbing 11.2 rebounds per game, sixth-most in the NBA, and Josh Hart is dishing 5.0 assists. Kelly Oubre Jr. (17.6 ppg), Washington (16.5), and Gordon Hayward (15.4) have powered the Hornets’ offense. Oubre Jr. leads the NBA.
Mason Plumlee is pulling down 8.3 rebounds per game, most in the league, and Dennis Smith Jr. is recording 6.2 assists (1st). The Trail Blazers and the Hornets rank as two of the highest-scoring teams in the NBA, tied for third with 109.8 points per game on average.
The Hornets have had success in the Trail Blazers’ last 10 visits to Spectrum Center, winning six. Charlotte is looking to avoid a fourth successive home loss this season. Portland is 7-3 in the last 10 games with an average margin of +0.9 (109.8-108.9). Charlotte has a 2-8 record over the last 10, allowing 115.0 points per game on average while scoring only 107.1 (-7.9 margin).
TRAIL BLAZERS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Anfernee Simons: 37.7 | 28.8 | +8.9
Points per game:
Anfernee Simons: 28.7 | 22.4 | +6.3
Damian Lillard: 19.0 | 29.0 | -10.0
HORNETS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Gordon Hayward: 11.3 | 22.9 | -11.6
Points per game:
Gordon Hayward: 6.3 | 15.4 | -9.1
Assists per game:
Terry Rozier: 4.0 | 6.3 | -2.2
SportsTips’ NBA Pick:
Portland Trail Blazers (-190)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
