Filip Tomic

Dillon Brooks’ return from injury didn’t pan out the way Suns fans expected in his first game back, as Phoenix fell 115-111 on the road in Orlando. Brooks had just 9 points on 4-for-13 shooting, and I was actually surprised the team turned to him in the clutch after such a long layoff from injury. Thursday is a new opportunity for Brooks to find his footing, as the Suns take on the Hornets. Phoenix cannot move up or down in the West standings, which could be a good thing — as it gives them an opportunity to shuffle their lineup a bit and give their better players some rest before the play-in tournament. For what it’s worth, they beat the Hornets in the first meeting 111-99 less than a month ago.

March didn’t end exactly how the Hornets planned it would with back-to-back losses to Boston and Philadelphia, but they recovered successfully with a big win over the tanking Nets. It was their 6th win in 8 games and also the 6th time they covered the spread during that stretch. The good news for the Hornets is no one other than PJ Hall is on the injury report, which is quite remarkable for any team at this point of the season. Playing at home should make them feel comfortable here, as they’ve beaten 12 of their last 15 opponents from the West coast. Last season we saw them win this matchup at Spectrum Center by 11 points, ending a streak of five Suns wins in this building.

I’d seriously consider the Suns here if Brooks was back in his pre-injury form, but the fact that he still has to shake off the rust is a massive turn off for me. In order to beat these Hornets, you have to be atop of your game offensively, and I just don’t think the Suns are right now. Booker will likely get his, but the Hornets will be too much to handle here. Take Charlotte.

Suns vs Hornets prediction: Charlotte Hornets -5.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.