Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Charlotte Hornets March 14 Betting Preview

On Sunday, the Cavaliers defeated the Hornets by a score of 114-108. We’ll see if Charlotte can avoid losing to Cleveland again or if they’ll avenge their loss on Sunday.

These two teams are headed in opposite directions. The Hornets are currently sitting in 14th place in the Eastern Conference and would need a miracle to make the playoffs. 

Cleveland is sitting in 4th place in the East and is looking to make a long playoff run. Cleveland has won four of its last five, while Charlotte has lost five of its last seven. We’ll now preview each of the teams and give you our betting prediction for this Tuesday night Eastern Conference battle.

Cleveland Cavaliers

At 43-27, the Cavaliers are getting ready for the playoffs. With just 12 games remaining in the regular season, Cleveland hopes to stay injury-free. Cleveland committed to making a run at the NBA title when they made a huge trade for Donovan Mitchell prior to the season. Mitchell has been great for the Cavs, and his pairing with Darius Garland makes the Cleveland backcourt one of the best in the league.

Even with this high-scoring duo, Cleveland’s offense is ranked near the bottom of the league. That said, the Cavs haven’t needed to score many points this season, as their defense has been the best in the league. The Cavaliers are giving up just over 106 points per game, which tops the league for points allowed.

One thing to watch out for in this one is the status of Jarrett Allen. Allen sat out Sunday’s game with the Hornets with an eye injury. He is listed as doubtful for this one, so make sure to check his status prior to game time.

Charlotte Hornets

After making the playoff last season, the Hornets looked like a team ready to be a playoff mainstay for years to come. Unfortunately, the season was derailed by injuries and some bad luck, and the Hornets are now going to be a lottery team. With LaMelo Ball out for the season, the Hornets are just playing out their string of games.

Terry Rozier has taken over as the team’s leading scorer. Averaging just over 21 points per game, Rozier has played well as of late. Kelly Oubre, who missed Sunday’s game, should be ready to play on Tuesday, and he’ll bring a boost to the Hornets, as before Ball’s injury, he was the team’s third-leading scorer. 

Betting Prediction

The Cavaliers are 5.5-point favorites in this one. The Cavs play at one of the slowest paces in the league, and they can be offensively challenged at times. Without Allen in the lineup to patrol the paint, we think Charlotte will be able to keep up with the Cavs. 

The Hornets have covered the spread in eight of their last 12, and even though we think Cleveland wins the game outright, we see the Hornets covering the spread in nine of their last 13 after this one.