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What: Charlotte Hornets (19-36) vs. Brooklyn Nets (25-29)
When: Saturday, February 22nd, 7:00 pm EST
Where: Spectrum Center; Charlotte, NC
How to watch: Fox Sports Southeast, NBA TV
The Charlotte Hornets are preparing to face off against the Brooklyn Nets for the fourth and final time this season with the aim of evening the season series 2-2. Charlotte lost the first two games in the series before finding a way to win 113-108 back on December 11th.
In the last Hornets-Nets contest Devonte’ Graham torched Brooklyn for 40 points, the most points by a Charlotte player in a single game this season. Graham shot a blistering 7-for-12 from the three-point line in that game, showing why he was selected to participate in the three-point contest over All-Star Weekend.
But Graham won’t be the only three-point sniper on the floor when the Hornets face the Nets. He’ll be joined by fellow three-point contestant Joe Harris, Brooklyn’s flame thrower from deep who’s hitting nearly 41 percent of his three-pointers this season and led the league last year at 47.4 percent.
Brooklyn will be without Kyrie Irving in this one. The former Duke Blue Devil is out indefinitely after reaggravating an injury to his right shoulder, which is the same injury that cost him 26 games earlier this season. But the Nets have depth in the back court to compensate for Irving’s absence with Spencer Dinwiddie (21.0 PPG, 6.6 APG) and Caris LeVert (15.3 PPG, 3.6 APG).
The Hornets, meanwhile, will see if they can keep Miles Bridges on his hot streak. Charlotte’s second-year forward was on a roll in his last eight games before the All-Star break by averaging 19.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. He then went to the All-Star festivities in Chicago and won MVP of the Rising Stars game. Let’s see if Miles can build on his promising sophomore season.
Charlotte will also need to see if they can boost PJ Washington over the rookie wall. Over PJ’s last seven pre-All-Star outings he averaged just 6.6 points on 34 percent shooting and had missed his last 17 three point attempts. He’s not the first rookie to struggle through the grind of an 82-game season. Let’s hope the recent time off will help him get his stroke back.
This should be a fun game to watch with plenty of subplots to follow. You can get tickets to go see Devonte’ Graham and Joe Harris light it up from downtown for as little as $23. Use this link to tell them At the Hive sent you. And it’s a Classic Night. Who doesn’t love a good throwback on a Saturday evening?