Pacers vs Hornets Picks, Prediction Today | Sunday, Feb. 4

Here's everything you need to know about Pacers vs. Hornets on Sunday, Feb. 4 — our expert prediction and betting picks for today.

The Pacers continue to search for form after a slew of injuries derailed their push towards the top of the top of the Eastern Conference, and they'll surely see a meeting with the Hornets in Charlotte as an opportunity to pick up just their fourth win in 14 games.

Will the Pacers find a rare road win here, or might the Hornets surprise the visitors and keep this affair close? Let's get to our Pacers vs. Hornets prediction and pick.

The Pacers probably wouldn't even be playing Tyrese Haliburton right now if not for the perilous situation they're in. He's played four times since suffering a painful-looking hamstring injury back at the beginning of January, and in all but one of those contests he's been on a minutes restriction. He's currently listed as questionable for Sunday's game with back spasms, giving him issues on top of his hamstring, and even if he does play we probably can't expect him to impact this game at all.

That's a tough prognosis considering the status of Myles Turner, Jalen Smith and Bennedict Mathurin is also uncertain. This team has watched its stellar production from 3-point range drop off a bit since the Haliburton injury, shooting just 37.7% in that time according to Cleaning the Glass, and a team which has been solid within four feet this season has seen its field goal percentage in that time fall by roughly four points.

Put bluntly, this Pacers team — which has relied heavily upon its offense to win games — packs less of a punch on that end. If Turner and/or Smith are missing here, that becomes even more of an issue. Not only should this team find it harder to score, but their rim defense — which has been the lone bright spot for this offense — will suffer as well against a team which has favored shots close to the rim this season.

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The Hornets are dealing with injuries of their own. We know LaMelo Ball and Gordon Hayward have been out for a while due to injuries, and now this team has shipped away Terry Rozier and hasn't had the player they got back — Kyle Lowry — with the team as trade discussions continue surrounding the veteran guard. On top of that, Frank Ntilikina, who finally made his season debut a couple of weeks ago, is questionable with a hip injury.

As a result, an offense which has had a brutal time trying to score this season has remained flat — and their defense has shown little signs of improving. The lone area of the floor the Hornets have done even an acceptable job this season has been in the mid-range, though their rim defense has actually been its best feature since the start of January, allowing 69% of shots to fall within four feet.

The tough part here is that the Hornets haven't even gotten any sort of offensive boost — even in the shooting numbers — at home. They've allowed roughly two points per 100 possessions fewer in these games, and perhaps due to this fact they've covered in 42.1% of their games as the home underdog — an achievement for a team which has gone 16-31 against the spread in all games.

You'll have to hold your nose as you place your bet here, but the Hornets are the side I like in this one. Their rim defense has improved marginally over the last few weeks, and Indiana's frontcourt looks like it may be compromised here with Turner and Smith popping up on the injury report.

Without Haliburton playing meaningful minutes here, or any minutes at all, this Pacers offense is merely pedestrian, and with some worsening numbers when defending beyond the arc, Indiana could be in a bit of trouble here against a team which has opted to shoot three-pointers at a high frequency over the last month.

This one is a lot more evenly-matched than oddsmakers see it with the injuries mounting for Indiana, and as a result Charlotte should earn a cover as a home underdog — which is about the only place it has been able to beat the spread.

Pick: Hornets +10.5 (-110)

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