Hornets Get Tough Schedule At Worst Possible Time
Charlotte, NC – The Charlotte Hornets came out of the NBA’s All-Star break as one of the teams with a legitimate chance to snag one of the final playoff spots in the Eastern Conference. And while they still have a genuine chance to get into the playoffs in the East, their presence in the postseason is far from a guarantee thanks to one of the more difficult schedules in the NBA in the second half of the season.
Sitting at 28-32 after their first 60 games, the Hornets were the eighth ranked team in the Eastern Conference at that point in the season. But the team has the second most difficult schedule over the remainder of the season, thanks to some games against some of the best teams in the league. Of course, in the NBA, that means a lot of action against Western Conference opponents.
In consecutive games, the Hornets were tasked with facing the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets, as a part of a brutal stretch that not many Western Conference teams have to endure. The Hornets lost to the Warriors, in which there is no shame. But having to play the Warriors as a part of a five-game stretch that also includes the surprisingly good Nets twice, the Rockets, and the Portland Trail Blazers makes for a season-defining test.
And given the Hornets’ performance during that season-defining test, there isn’t a ton of confidence in the team according to their odds to win the NBA Finals. Looking at the NBA betting on bet365, the Hornets sit at +9000 to win the title, putting them behind close to half of the league as the team just hopes to make the playoffs before worrying about a title run.
On top of their recent stretch featuring games against the Nets, Warriors, and Trail Blazers, the Hornets also face a season-defining West coast swing near the end of the regular season. They have to take on the Los Angeles Lakers, the Warriors, and the Utah Jazz in three straight road games, in a run of games that would make even the most battle-tested team’s collective brow perspire.
Road games have been an issue for the Hornets in general this season, with the team losing 21 of their first 29 games away from home on the season. The ability to win on the road in the NBA is what separates the good teams from the great teams, and the Hornets will need to pick up a few road wins the rest of the way to enter themselves into that conversation.
Fortunately for the Hornets, they are right in the conversation for one of the last playoffs spots in the East. And with a top-15 scorer in the NBA in Kemba Walker leading them, there is no reason that they can’t hold onto one of those playoff berths. In fact, if Walker can get hot down the stretch, there is no reason the team can’t move up to a more favorable seed once the playoffs roll around.
