The Charlotte Hornets have won four straight games, creating some separation between themselves and the Detroit Pistons in the basement of the Eastern Conference.
Charlotte’s last win came at home over the Miami Heat, a huge upset, but now the team is a 6.5-point favorite against the Pistons.
This season has been a waste for Detroit with Cade Cunningham going down for the season with a shin injury, but the Pistons have fought tough recently, losing three of their last four games by four points or less.
Detroit won’t have Jaden Ivey or Jalen Duren in this game, and it could be without Bojan Bogdanovic, which would swing this line in a big way. Still, there could be value on the Pistons against another one of the league’s worst teams.
Pistons vs. Hornets odds, spread and total
Pistons vs. Hornets prediction and pick
This season, Charlotte is just 3-5 against the spread when favored at home, and I have a hard time willingly laying the points with this team given how much it has struggled this season.
Both of these teams are in the bottom five in the NBA in offensive rating and net rating, and Charlotte is 25th in the league in defensive rating, just outside of the bottom five teams.
Injuries could doom the Pistons in this game, but the team fought tough against a playoff-caliber Toronto Raptors team in its last game.
The Pistons are also over .500 against the spread as road dogs this season.
With Charlotte still ranking 29th in the league in offense, I’d rather take the points in what could be a slugfest on Monday.
—
Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.