Philadelphia beat the Knicks on Friday night for a second time already this season. LeBron James and Joel Embiid both played 30+ minutes, while Jaylen Brown was out with left patellar tendinopathy (chronic knee pain). The 76ers will travel to Charlotte for a 6 PM ET tip on the second night of a back-to-back. In their only back-to-back this season, LeBron sat the first night and Embiid sat the second, with the Sixers scoring just 93 points against the Pistons. Both are listed as questionable on Saturday morning's report.
Charlotte also comes in on the second night of a back-to-back. The Hornets lost their NBA Cup opener, 95-79 in Washington. Brandon Miller shot 7 of 24 and the team scored 13 points in the third quarter. In Charlotte's three losses this season, they have lost by 47, 8 and 16, scoring 81, 89 and 79 points. The Hornets are still missing their franchise cornerstone, Kon Knueppel, as well as Coby White and Grant Williams. Head coach Charles Lee has been forced to run a nine-man rotation that featured Grayson Allen shooting 2 of 10 in 21 minutes last night. The bench is thin.
Philadelphia's six games have averaged 214 total points, and the lone game without Embiid finished at 199. Charlotte's six have averaged 203, and the two games played on this road trip totaled 186 and 174. Philadelphia is also second in the league in defensive rating. A 6 PM tip the night after a 7:30 game is the shortest turnaround on the slate.
The winning side largely depends on the afternoon injury report. If Embiid or LeBron sits, Charlotte at home as a slight dog is the side. If both are officially a go, the line will likely move in Philly's favor. The under is where I land. Both teams played last night, both scoring under 100. This will be a slugfest.
76ers vs Hornets prediction: Under 215.5 (-110) available at time of publishing.
