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The struggling Charlotte Hornets will kick off the first of a six-game road trip against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday in a cross-conference matchup at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. Denver and Charlotte are facing off for the first time this season. With a total of 237.5 points, the Nuggets are the opening 8-point favorites.
Following their 125-106 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, Charlotte (7-22) is currently on a seven-game losing streak. For the sixth straight game, they allowed their opponents score more than 120 points, as the Hawks shot 54.7% from the field and 15 for 29 from beyond the arc.
Charlotte, the NBA's worst offensive team, is scoring just 108.3 points for every 100 possessions. They share the second-worst three-point percentage with Toronto (32.4%) and rank dead last in the league in terms of field goal percentage. Charlotte is ranked 24th and 17th in the league with its 115.4 points allowed per 100 possessions on 48.0% field goal shooting and 35.7% from beyond the arc.
Last Friday, Denver (17-11) snapped their three-game winning streak. They lost to the Los Angeles Lakers by a score of 126 to 108, while they were just modest road favorites by 1.5 points. Midway through the third period, Denver led by 10 points but only managed to score 43 points in the second half.
Denver is second in the league in terms of points scored per 100 possessions on the offensive side of the ball (116.8). They have the best field-goal percentage (50.7%) and three-point shooting percentage (39.0%), respectively.
Charlotte Hornets vs Denver Nuggets Match Details
Fixture: Charlotte Hornets at Denver
Date and Time: Sunday, December 18 at 8:00 PM ET
Venue: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado
Charlotte Hornets vs Denver Nuggets Injury Report
Charlotte Hornets vs Denver Nuggets Betting Odds
Charlotte Hornets vs Denver Nuggets Starting 5s
Denver
PG - Jamal Murray | SG - Kentavious Caldwell-Pope | SF - Bruce Brown | PF - Aaron Gordon | C - Nikola Jokic
Charlotte
PG - LaMelo Ball | SG - Terry Rozier | SF - Kelly Oubre Jr. | PF - P.J. Washington | C - Mason Plumlee
Charlotte Hornets vs Denver Nuggets Betting Prediction
It will be difficult for Charlotte to remain at the Ball Arena. Denver may be scoring at will in this game because of their defense's recent struggles.
Denver will assist Nikola Jokic in the paint, and Charlotte has one of the weakest inside defenses in the league. Denver should win this one and cover the spread tonight because Charlotte cannot stop the two-time defending MVP.
Pick: Denver -8 (-110)
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