Fearless predictions: Hornets need to get their act together now, or else. Can they?

Five fearless predictions for Friday’s Charlotte Hornets game against the Miami Heat:

1. No Whiteside homecoming

Gastonia’s Hassan Whiteside has been out for a while with a bone bruise on his left knee. Sounds like he hasn’t practiced enough to return to a game yet.

2. Another big game for Howard

If Whiteside is out, rookie Bam Adebayo will again get big minutes. Adebayo has played well, but he’s no match for Howard, who had another 20-10 game Wednesday in Houston.

3. The bench will be better (and how could it be worse?)

The game against the Rockets disintegrated when the bench came in the last three minutes of the first quarter. Frank Kaminsky was a minus-38 in the plus/minus stat, and Jeremy Lamb was minus-32.

4. The 3-point shooting will improve (again, how could it be worse?)

The Hornets missed 15 consecutive 3-point attempts in Houston. It’s valid they need to take more 3s, but not like that!

5. The prediction

Six of the next seven are at home. If the Hornets don’t take advantage of that, the playoff chase could be all but over. Hornets 108, Heat 100.

This story was originally published December 14, 2017 at 1:12 PM with the headline "Fearless predictions: Hornets need to get their act together now, or else. Can they?."