Charlotte (13 - 7)

Expert Pick
0% ><···················· 100%

Detroit (9 - 11)

Run it Back


The Charlotte Hornets and Detroit Pistons have already seen each other in Gameweek 2. The NSL landscape is however an ever-changing behemoth. One minute you have it figured out, the next you are scrounging for relevance. The matchup saw Charlotte take an L, with the scores ending 121-107. Detroit found the extra edge on their opponent, in large part due to the efforts of Pistons alpha Jalen Brunson. He dropped 44 points and was unstoppable. DeRozan and KAT put up 26 and 35 respectively on the other side of this duel. It will be interesting to see how this pans out with the hometowns switching. Key Stats Jalen Brunson is 13th for Points Per Game, and has hit the 19th most threes Ivica Zubac is 8th for Rebounds Per Game, 4th for Steals Per Game, and 5th for Blocks Per Game DeMar DeRozan is 15th for Points Per Game, and 14th for Assists Per Game Ja Morant returns… The Matchups Point Guards - Jalen Brunson v Ja Morant Brunson and Morant have both stated their claims for supremacy in their respective outfits, and they lead the charge. Morant is the dominant of the two and his skillset is 2k gold in many regards. While I expect both players to have superb nights, the proof will be in the take-over capacity and Morant is my upswing here. Expect Brunson to drop 30 and Morant to hit back with 40 of his own. Both will grab boards and assist the rest. Detroit 0 - 1 Charlotte Shooting Guards - Tre Mann v Kris Dunn Mann and Dunn will be expected to hold their own to allow the guards to do their thing on the holding and carrying. Both players are staples for each team - Dunn primarily in the backup capacity (with DeRozan out, I expect him to get the start). Mann has been able to hold and get wins for the Pistons - Sheed will be very pleased with his ability to hold up the guard play. Mann has been able to hold with a plus/minus of 2.6. Mann gets the W here. Detroit 1 - 1 Charlotte Small Forwards - Brandon Miller v OG Anunoby Miller and Anunoby is the battle of most interest to me. Miller has the youthful exuberance and scoring ability. OG is a defensive juggernaut; seemingly yet to be unlocked and 2K/NBA reflective. They both will be in a position that they need to hold up their end in the middle - allowing for the guard play and the big boys to do their thing. It is purely through defensive arsenal that OG takes the W here. Detroit 1 - 2 Charlotte Power Forwards - Dwight Powell v Oscar Tshiebwe Both of these players have built a role player identity in their respective teams. Dwight for 10 years. Tshiebwe for 1. The years aren't necessarily the kicker here as they both have similar skillsets at the Power Forward slot. I see this as a balanced outcome - both will hold up their end. Detroit 2 - 3 Charlotte Centers - Ivica Zubac v Karl-Anthony Towns Zubac v KAT - Zubac has been elite thus far as previously detailed in his stats for the season thus far. Can KAT fight back!? Another player that Craig will be wanting the best from! But it might be a matchup that is left in a draw - with both players having near similar stat-lines to begin the season. What will the outcome be!? Has Craig found the key to KAT? Is Ja the catalyst for change!? Our crystal-ball says "DRAW" Detroit 3 - 4 Charlotte

The Charlotte Hornets and Detroit Pistons have already seen each other in Gameweek 2. The NSL landscape is however an ever-changing behemoth. One minute you have it figured out, the next you are scrounging for relevance. The matchup saw Charlotte take an L, with the scores ending 121-107. Detroit found the extra edge on their opponent, in large part due to the efforts of Pistons alpha Jalen Brunson. He dropped 44 points and was unstoppable. DeRozan and KAT put up 26 and 35 respectively on the other side of this duel. It will be interesting to see how this pans out with the hometowns switching.

Key Stats

Jalen Brunson is 13th for Points Per Game, and has hit the 19th most threes
Ivica Zubac is 8th for Rebounds Per Game, 4th for Steals Per Game, and 5th for Blocks Per Game
DeMar DeRozan is 15th for Points Per Game, and 14th for Assists Per Game
Ja Morant returns…

The Matchups Point Guards - Jalen Brunson v Ja Morant Brunson and Morant have both stated their claims for supremacy in their respective outfits, and they lead the charge. Morant is the dominant of the two and his skillset is 2k gold in many regards. While I expect both players to have superb nights, the proof will be in the take-over capacity and Morant is my upswing here. Expect Brunson to drop 30 and Morant to hit back with 40 of his own. Both will grab boards and assist the rest. Detroit 0 - 1 Charlotte Shooting Guards - Tre Mann v Kris Dunn Mann and Dunn will be expected to hold their own to allow the guards to do their thing on the holding and carrying. Both players are staples for each team - Dunn primarily in the backup capacity (with DeRozan out, I expect him to get the start). Mann has been able to hold and get wins for the Pistons - Sheed will be very pleased with his ability to hold up the guard play. Mann has been able to hold with a plus/minus of 2.6. Mann gets the W here. Detroit 1 - 1 Charlotte Small Forwards - Brandon Miller v OG Anunoby Miller and Anunoby is the battle of most interest to me. Miller has the youthful exuberance and scoring ability. OG is a defensive juggernaut; seemingly yet to be unlocked and 2K/NBA reflective. They both will be in a position that they need to hold up their end in the middle - allowing for the guard play and the big boys to do their thing. It is purely through defensive arsenal that OG takes the W here. Detroit 1 - 2 Charlotte Power Forwards - Dwight Powell v Oscar Tshiebwe Both of these players have built a role player identity in their respective teams. Dwight for 10 years. Tshiebwe for 1. The years aren't necessarily the kicker here as they both have similar skillsets at the Power Forward slot. I see this as a balanced outcome - both will hold up their end. Detroit 2 - 3 Charlotte Centers - Ivica Zubac v Karl-Anthony Towns Zubac v KAT - Zubac has been elite thus far as previously detailed in his stats for the season thus far. Can KAT fight back!? Another player that Craig will be wanting the best from! But it might be a matchup that is left in a draw - with both players having near similar stat-lines to begin the season. What will the outcome be!? Has Craig found the key to KAT? Is Ja the catalyst for change!? Our crystal-ball says "DRAW" Detroit 3 - 4 Charlotte

Hornets Star

Ja Morant
Ja Morant has been a significant absence for the team - the Charlotte Hornets made moves to focus on the enigmatic star. Morant is an instant impact player, with the omission of DeMar DeRozan, the Hornets will be banking on the skillset of Ja. Morant is a missing link in the early ambitions of the team - his ability to score and provide for others is elite. With KAT still finding his role in the team, he will be shouldering a lot of the burden.

PPG 34.8

RPG 4.4

APG 3.8

SPG 0.8

BPG 0.3

FPG 2.6

TPG 2.0

PPG 27.6

RPG 3.6

APG 4.0

SPG 0.5

BPG 0.0

FPG 1.4

TPG 1.3

Pistons Star

Jalen Brunson
Brunson is the KEY for this team, and has the keys to do as he pleases. Detroit has been cooking and it is due to the elite numbers that he has maintained and his ability to run the court. Detroit sit 5-3 after two weeks of play, and it is mainly due to the efforts of their star point guard. He has done it all, and has been the catalyst for this team to sit an impressive 4th in the East.

X-Factor
Ja's return He turns this game into a matchup. I chose this as the Game of the Week for this very reason. Charlotte are a team that GM Craig has developed, changed, flipped and reshaped to be what it currently is. Albeit, without the services of DeRozan, the Hornets are in a position to get things going. Ja v Brunson is going to be an interesting matchup, as Dunn could not keep Jalen quiet. Nor could DeMar for that matter. The numbers won't lie in this one and Brunson, alongside Mann will have their work cut out for them.

X-Factor

Ja's return

He turns this game into a matchup. I chose this as the Game of the Week for this very reason. Charlotte are a team that GM Craig has developed, changed, flipped and reshaped to be what it currently is. Albeit, without the services of DeRozan, the Hornets are in a position to get things going. Ja v Brunson is going to be an interesting matchup, as Dunn could not keep Jalen quiet. Nor could DeMar for that matter. The numbers won't lie in this one and Brunson, alongside Mann will have their work cut out for them.

Injury Report
Team is healthy this week Returning Players: Caris LeVert (returning from Knee) - 6 NBA Games missed this season Tre Jones (returning from Ankle) - 11 NBA Games missed this season	Injured Players: DeMar DeRozan (Back) - 4 NBA Games missed this season Cody Zeller () - 19 NBA Games missed this season Bronny James (Heel) - 5 NBA Games missed this season Returning Players: Ja Morant (returning from Thigh/Hip/Knee) - 10 NBA Games missed this season

Prediction
The verdict is in. Basketball wins! No, all jokes aside, the matchup will be far closer than the previous. While DeRozan is a massive out, the scores will be much closer. The matchup itself is closer; 120-107 will not be a scoreline here. I suspect it will be significantly closer, and tipped toward the Hornets. Charlotte Hornets by 3 points. I suspect the game will come down to the wire and it will be a familiar scene that has appeared in the early games this season. Tense and multiple lead changes. Both Sheed and Craig will be at the best here, both wanting wins - Sheed to continue his sparkling form, and Craig to get his season back to winning ways.

Prediction

The verdict is in. Basketball wins! No, all jokes aside, the matchup will be far closer than the previous. While DeRozan is a massive out, the scores will be much closer. The matchup itself is closer; 120-107 will not be a scoreline here. I suspect it will be significantly closer, and tipped toward the Hornets.
Charlotte Hornets by 3 points.
I suspect the game will come down to the wire and it will be a familiar scene that has appeared in the early games this season. Tense and multiple lead changes.

Both Sheed and Craig will be at the best here, both wanting wins - Sheed to continue his sparkling form, and Craig to get his season back to winning ways.

		Comments (5)
CraigB 12/04 08:38 pm	Breece, I thought t was a bit short the first time I looked at it lol. But always happy to see that there are eyes on the Hornets in any capacity. Thanks again. Stellar work!
CraigB 12/04 08:37 pm	GG Sheed See you next time.
sheed36 12/04 02:52 pm	gg
breece 12/02 11:14 pm	Incomplete. Sorry. More to come. Thanks Craig
CraigB 12/02 10:06 pm	Thanks for the write up Breece. Looking forward to the matchup!

	SAC	98
	LAC	103

	CHA	110
	PHO	113

	LAL	97
	SA	121

	IND	110
	LAL	107

	GS	101
	CLE	107