It truly is a game only a bettor could love. The 10-31 Charlotte Hornets head to the Motor City to take on the 4-39 Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena on Wednesday night. Luckily, it doesn’t matter what the teams’ records are because we’ll always have NBA odds to bet on.
Despite just four wins, the Pistons are a rare favorite tonight. That just tells you how things are going for Buzz City. Surprisingly, the Hornets have won two of their last three, but they also just traded Terry Rozier to Miami.
Will that mean Detroit is on its way to a rare win? I dig through the wreckage of the NBA’s version of a 10-car pile-up and bring you the best bet in my NBA picks and predictions for Hornets vs. Pistons.
Hornets vs Pistons odds
Hornets vs Pistons predictions
At first glance, it’s a little jarring to the four-win Detroit Pistons as favorites against the 10-win Charlotte Hornets. (Not that 10 wins is very good at this point). But there’s a reason for that.
The Hornets come into this game on a hot streak by their standards, winning two of their last three games, which included a win over the Western Conference-leading Timberwolves. Meanwhile, the Pistons are just 1-11 straight up since snapping their historic losing streak.
Despite this, you can make the case that the Pistons are the better team in tonight’s matchup.
Let's be straightforward about this: both teams are struggling, but according to advanced stats, the Hornets are marginally worse. For starters, Charlotte just traded away one of their best players, shipping Terry Rozier off to the Miami Heat.
The Hornets also rank dead last in defensive rating and opponent 3-point shooting percentage, and allow the seventh most made threes per game in the NBA.
That has me looking at Bojan Bogdanovic’s point total. Even if many are not aware, the Pistons' small forward is having another fantastic year. Bogdanovic is shooting 46.5% from the field, with nearly half of those attempts coming from beyond the 3-point line, where he is draining a crazy 41.1% of those shots.
As a result, Bogdanovic is averaging 19.5 points per game this season and has put up at least 19 points in five of his last eight games, with his average bumping up to 20.1 over that stretch.
Now he arguably gets his best matchup of the season against a poor Charlotte defense. I’m betting Bogdanovic knocks down a few treys tonight, propelling him past his point total.
My best bet: Bojan Bogdanovic Over 19.5 points (-110 at PROLINE+)
Hornets vs Pistons same-game parlay
Pistons -2.5
Under 230.5
Not only do I believe Bogdanovic will go Over his point total in this one, but he will also help lead the Pistons to just their fifth win of the season.
And wouldn’t you know it? One of Detroit’s previous four wins came against this same Charlotte team, defeating the Hornets 111-99 as 4.5-point road underdogs.
While I like Bogdanovic to go Over his point total, I can’t say the same for the full-game total. Outside of Bogdanovic and Cade Cunningham, this Pistons team is not good at shooting the basketball.
Meanwhile, Charlotte is averaging just 106.5 points over its last six games and now has to deal with the loss of Terry Rozier.
Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.
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Hornets vs Pistons spread and Over/Under analysis
This line opened with the Pistons as 3-point home favorites. They were initially favored by as much as -3.5, but the odds have since decreased to -2.5.
The Pistons possess slight advantages across the court. They stand as the slightly superior defensive team and are also better at rebounding, ranking 18th in rebounding rate compared to the Hornets' 26th.
Detroit is also much healthier at the moment. Mark Williams and Gordon Hayward are out, while Nick Richards and Cody Martin are both questionable for Charlotte. And with Rozier now gone, the Hornets could be working with a short bench.
The Pistons have also been playing relatively well down the stretch, covering the spread in five straight games, which included matchups against the Bucks (x2), Timberwolves, and Rockets.
When it comes to the total, that hit the board at 233.5 and the Under has been hit hard, moving the number down to 230.5.
Hornets vs Pistons betting trend to know
The Hornets have hit the game total Under in 44 of their last 72 games for +13.2 units. Find more NBA betting trends for Hornets vs. Pistons.
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Hornets vs Pistons game info
| Location: | Little Caesars Arena, Detroit, MI |
| Date: | Wednesday, January 24, 2024 |
| Tip-off: | 7:00 p.m. ET |
| TV: | Bally Sports Southeast-Charlotte, Bally Sports Detroit |
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