Hornets Gameday: vs. Portland Trail Blazers
7 p.m., Spectrum Center
TV: Fox Sports Southeast Radio: WFNZ-AM 610.
Projected Starters
Hornets | Blazers | |||||
Pos, Player | PPG | RPG | Pos, Player | PPG | RPG | |
G K. Walker | 22.9 | 4.2 | G D. Lillard | 26.3 | 4.8 | |
G N. Batum | 15.2 | 7.3 | G C. McCollum | 23.8 | 3.6 | |
F M. Kidd-Gilchrist | 9 | 7.3 | F A. Aminu | 7 | 7.1 | |
F M. Williams | 10.6 | 5.3 | F M. Harkless | 11.8 | 5.1 | |
C C. Zeller | 10.8 | 6.4 | C M. Plumlee | 11 | 7.5 | |
Matchup to Watch
Damian Lillard vs. Kemba Walker: Two nights after matching up with Boston’s Isaiah Thomas, Walker’s in another game versus an elite point guard.
Observations
▪ This is the first of five consecutive home games in eight days -- the longest home stand of this season.
▪ The Trail Blazers are among the NBA’s best at forcing turnovers. They forced 15 or more in five of their previous eight games.
Tap-ins
▪ Ex-Hornets lottery pick Noah Vonleh went to Portland in the trade to acquire Nic Batum. He has slipped to the fringes of the Blazers’ rotation.
▪ Blazers reserve Allen Crabbe averaged 18.5 points on 58 percent shooting in two games against the Hornets last season.
Did you know?
Lillard has never failed to score at least 20 points in his eight games against the Bobcats/Hornets.
Rick Bonnell
This story was originally published January 17, 2017 at 3:12 PM with the headline "Hornets Gameday: vs. Portland Trail Blazers."