Adam Williams presents his prediction for the NBA match.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have already wrapped up the top seed in the Western Conference, giving them freedom to manage minutes and experiment with their lineup. The Charlotte Hornets, meanwhile, are long out of playoff contention and are simply playing out the season in search of lottery luck.
Oklahoma City Thunder
The Thunder secured first place in the West with weeks to spare and used their depth to great effect in a 133:100 demolition of the Philadelphia 76ers. Even without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Isaiah Hartenstein and others, the Thunder dominated. Bench players Jailyn Williams posted a triple-double, while Branden Carlson, Dillon Jones and Kenrich Williams combined for 40 points. Even with six rotation players questionable again, the Thunder have one of the deepest squads in the NBA and can outmatch average teams even with a second unit.
Charlotte Hornets
The Hornets pulled off a surprise win over the New York Knicks, but that result was an outlier. They’ve conceded 122+ points in four of their last five games, including blowout losses to the Los Angeles Clippers (88:123) and the Atlanta Hawks (102:134). LaMelo Ball is back and putting up flashy numbers, but his return hasn’t fixed structural issues on either end. The Hornets are 28th in scoring (105.8 PPG) and 15th in defence (113.5 PPG allowed) — and they’ll be on the second night of a back-to-back, which only adds to the challenge.
Oklahoma City Thunder vs Charlotte Hornets Prediction
The talent gap is massive, and the Oklahoma City Thunder have shown they don’t need their stars to dominate. Against one of the league’s worst road teams — and with the Charlotte Hornets on a back-to-back — this looks like another comfortable win for the Thunder.
