Preview: San Antonio Spurs at Charlotte Hornets – Game #41
Blake Wesley and the Spurs will try to win without Victor Wembanyama (Photo via Twitter)
The San Antonio Spurs have reached the midway point of the 2023-24 NBA season. Tonight, they will travel to take on the Charlotte Hornets on the road. The Spurs have a record of 7-33, while the Hornets have a record of 8-30.
These two teams played a week ago in San Antonio and the Spurs were the big winners. With Victor Wembanyama leading the way, the Silver and Black smacked the Hornets by a final score of 135-99. Wembanyama had 26 points and 11 rebounds in only 20 minutes of playing time. LaMelo Ball paced Charlotte with 28 points, five assists and five steals in 27 minutes.
Victor Wembanyama Sitting Out
The doctors haven’t cleared Victor Wembanyama to play in back-to-back games. Due to that fact, the Spurs have decided to sit their star rookie tonight in Charlotte. That will allow him to play in tomorrow’s game against the Washington Wizards.
Why did the Spurs opt to sit Wembanyama on the front end of the back-to-back? It’s possible that the decision was made to allow him to play against his long-time friend Bilal Coulibaly. The fellow rookie out of France is averaging 8.2 points and 4.3 rebounds per game for the Wizards.
San Antonio Spurs Injury Update
With Victor Wembanyama on the sidelines, the Spurs will be happy to welcome back Zach Collins. The team’s backup center had been out for a few weeks due to a sprained ankle.
Joining Wembanyama on the bench for this game will be Sidy Cissoko. The rookie is dealing with a sprained ankle.
San Antonio Spurs Starting Lineup
Expect head coach Gregg Popovich to insert Zach Collins into the starting lineup at center. Joining Collins in the starting five will likely be Tre Jones at point guard, Devin Vassell at shooting guard, Julian Champagnie at small forward and Jeremy Sochan at power forward.
Backing up Collins at center will likely be Dominick Barlow. Other key players off the bench will be Keldon Johnson, Cedi Osman and Doug McDermott
Betting Guide: Spurs at Hornets
Even though the Spurs smashed the Hornets in San Antonio last week, the Hornets are favored tonight by 4.5 points. The over/under is 235.5 points. With the Spurs being without Victor Wembanyama, the smart money is on the Hornets — despite what recent history might tell you. Wembanyama is vital to everything these Spurs do, even as a rookie. Without him, the Spurs haven’t won a game. Don’t expect that to change tonight. Yes, the Hornets are a beatable team, but San Antonio being without Wembanyama is too big of a void to overlook.