Charlotte Hornets

Hornets Gameday: at Detroit Pistons

Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond was ejected from a game in November for elbowing Charlotte Hornets center Roy Hibbert in the head.
Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond was ejected from a game in November for elbowing Charlotte Hornets center Roy Hibbert in the head. AP

7:30 p.m., Palace of Auburn Hills

TV: Fox Sports Southeast Radio: WFNZ-AM 610.

Projected Starters

Hornets

Pistons

Pos, Player

PPG

RPG

Pos, Player

PPG

RPG

G K. Walker

23

4.2

G R. Jackson

15.6

2.4

G N. Batum

14.9

7.6

G K. Caldwell-Pope

14.6

3.5

F M Kidd-Gilchrist

9

6.8

F M Morris

13.1

3.8

F M. Williams

10.2

5.1

F J. Leuer

11.3

6.2

C R. Hibbert

5.1

3.6

C A. Drummond

14.5

13.6

Matchup to Watch

Andre Drummond vs. Roy Hibbert: These two don’t particularly like each other. Drummond was ejected in November for throwing an elbow to the back of Hibbert’s head in Charlotte. In addition to the ejection, the NBA fined Drummond $15,000.

Observations

▪  The Pistons have been in a tail-spin lately, losing eight of their last 10 games. Their victories in that span were against the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat.

▪  The Hornets and Pistons rank first and second in the NBA this season in fewest turnovers committed per game.

Tap-ins

▪  Pistons forward Tobias Harris has averaged 19 points in the two games against the Hornets this season.

▪  Hornets guard Kemba Walker averages 24 points this season against the Pistons.

Did you know?

Hornets coach Steve Clifford was an assistant to Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy for five seasons with the Orlando Magic. They remain close friends.

Rick Bonnell

This story was originally published January 4, 2017 at 4:32 PM with the headline "Hornets Gameday: at Detroit Pistons."

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