At last, the Charlotte Hornets found a way for the first time this season when they subdued the Chicago Bulls the other night. They will look to build on that win, as they fly to Dallas later tonight to face Dirk Nowitzki and company on the road. The Dallas Mavericks, meanwhile, are coming off a loss to the Toronto Raptors and are looking for a pick-me-up win at home.
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Charlotte Hornets vs. Dallas Mavericks Betting Preview
[sc:NBA240banner ]After three tries, the Hornets finally picked up their first win of the season, stinging Chicago on Tuesday at home for a decisive 130-105 victory. That’s a huge confidence booster for Charlotte, which is about to embark on a three-game road trip, beginning with a stop in Dallas later tonight.
Jeremy Lamb, whose talent was wasted sitting on the bench for Oklahoma City in his first three seasons in the league, shined in the Bulls game. The former Husky scored 20 points on 9-for-10 shooting coming off the bench. Together with Jeremy Lin, chipped in 15 points, Lamb led Charlotte’s potent bench that scored 71 points. Bench scoring has been a big asset for Charlotte this season, as the Hornets’ relievers are putting up 43.8 points per game.
Charlotte’s also killing it from the three-point area. The 14 triples the Hornets buried against the Bulls were simply warning shots for Dallas’ defense that allows opponents make 7.3 treys a game. Thus far this season, the Hornets are tops in the league with 11.3 three-pointers per game. With the exception of Al Jefferson, Charlotte’s starters can all stroke it from the outside.
Speaking of Jefferson, the big man scored just 14 points and grabbed three rebounds on Tuesday, but those numbers were understandable considering the quality of Chicago’s frontcourt. He could have better numbers later tonight when he tries to bully the likes of Zaza Pachulia and Dirk Nowitzki inside the paint. Jefferson is averaging 12.8 points and 7.3 rebounds per game on the season. Kemba Walker leads the team in scoring with 15.5 PPG.
Charlotte is 4-1-1 ATS in its last six road games dating back to the previous season.
Dallas is still searching for its first back-to-back wins this season following a 102-91 defeat at the hands of the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday. Against the Hornets later tonight, the Mavericks are hoping to avoid tasting their first consecutive setbacks this 2015-2016 campaign. Hopefully for the Mavs, their domination of Charlotte at American Airlines Center continues, as they are 8-2 SU and 6-4 ATS in the Hornets’ last 10 visits to Dallas.
To beat Charlotte anew, though, Dallas will have to defend better. Dallas did a bad job of containing Toronto’s top guns in the previous game, allowing Kyle Lowry to pour in 27 points and DeMar DeRozan to add 20 more. The Mavs also let Toronto to dismantle their interior defense for 44 points in the paint. They can’t afford to look lost on defense against Charlotte’s explosive offense that is currently 11th in the league with 102.5 PPG. Perhaps slowing down the game would work for Dallas, as Charlotte’s scoring average per 100 possessions is better at 105.1.
On offense, Dirk Nowitzki needs his teammates to step up. While Nowitzki, who is averaging 17.5 PPG, still has enough gas left on the tank, he can’t no longer be the focal point of Dallas’ scoring attack every play. Deron Williams, meanwhile, is second behind Nowitzki with 12.0 PPG. Other than those two players, no Mavs starter is averaging in double figures scoring. That said, Dallas is getting substantial support from its bench that is racking up 43.5 PPG, fifth in the league. The group is led by J.J. Barea, who adds 10.0 PPG. Dwight Powell, on the other hand, has been a pleasant surprise for the team, as the former Stanford Cardinal, is contributing 9.8 PPG and 8.0 PPG off the bench.
