The Washington Wizards continue to stumble along in their wayward season Tuesday night as they host the Charlotte Hornets in NBA betting action.
Charlotte has remained afloat since losing LaMelo Ball to a wrist injury, currently one of just five Eastern Conference teams above .500.
Will the visit to Washington yield an easy W? Let's find out with our Hornets vs. Wizards free picks and predictions for Tuesday, March 30.
Charlotte Hornets at Washington Wizards betting preview
Injuries
Hornets: LaMelo Ball PG (Out), Malik Monk SG (Probable).
Wizards: Davis Bertans SF (Out), Bradley Beal SG (Questionable).
Find our latest NBA injury reports.
Betting trend to know
Hornets are 4-0 ATS in their last four games overall. Find more NBA betting trends for Hornets vs. Wizards.
NBA sharp money and line movement report
By Patrick EversonCharlotte hit the DraftKings odds board as a 2-point favorite late Monday night, peaked at -3.5 this morning and is -3 as of 5 p.m. ET. It's two-way point-spread action with a lean toward the Hornets, who are landing 56 percent of bets and 54 percent of money. The total dipped from 231.5 to 228, with 57 percent of bets on the Over/51 percent of money on the Under.
Check out the full line movement for this gameAgainst the spread (ATS) pick
For all their malaise this season, the Wizards are still (somehow) just two games out of a play-in spot in the grossly underachieving East. Thus, a team that very clearly should've been thinking about trading Bradley Beal and sprinting down the standings for draft equity continues bumbling along in its own blissful ignorance.
The Hornets have been a stark contrast to the Wiz this season: a team that was supposed to be terrible and instead has Michael Jordan, for once, looking like a front-office genius.
The Hornets have a deep stable of rotation players and several young studs. Obviously, they'll be without would-be-ROY LaMelo Ball, but Gordon Hayward, Terry Rozier and Devonte' Graham still form a dangerous perimeter scoring trio, and can at least provide passable playmaking in aggregate while Ball heals up.
Overall, the Hornets have been one of the NBA's better teams at besting Vegas this season, going 25-19-1 ATS (seventh in the league), including 4-0 since Ball's injury was announced. This is clearly a team that doesn't want to roll over.
Meanwhile, Washington seems to be halfway to rolling over most nights. The only thing more consistent than its waning effort is its terrible defense—currently rated 26th and a permanent tenant in the NBA's basement.
Washington beat an equally depressing Pacers squad last night, but needed the NBA's first-ever 35-point, 20-assist triple-double from Russell Westbrook to do so. Let's be prepared to put the Wizards back on the losing side of a thin spread against a better-rested, more competent, and consistent team.
PREDICTION: Charlotte -2.5 (-110)
Over/Under pick
This total sits kind of high at 231.5, bloated by the mere presence of Washington, who owns one of the league's crappiest defenses (as mentioned) while also playing at its fastest pace.
It may be tempting to side with the Under given Beal's potential absence, but keep in mind that Washington racked up 256 total points against Indiana last night, and by mere virtue of pace will always put the Over in play.
The Hornets' results without Ball are somewhat misleading, since they've played a murderer's row of Under candidates the past four games, all of whom are in the league's Bottom 10 against the Over.
Regardless of the evidence, this total just feels like a bit of a trap. The Wizards will be hard-pressed to replicate that offensive performance if Beal sits again, and being on a back-to-back where Westbrook just went Super Saiyan (against a Pacers squad that's 14-5 O/U in its past 19 to boot) doesn't bode entirely well for continuity.
It's close here, but we're siding slightly with the Under.
PREDICTION: Under 231.5 (-110)
First quarter prop pick
The Wizards remain a terrible first-quarter ATS bet. While not as automatic a fade as a few weeks ago when they were regularly down by full-game spreads after one frame, they're the league's sixth-worst 1Q ATS team.
Conversely, the Hornets are the league's third-best team against first-quarter spreads, and hold a rest advantage over a Wizards squad that played a draining game last night, and might have to again rely on the high-variance Westbrook to prop up their entire offense.
We'll gladly take a one-point spread here.
PREDICTION: Hornets 1Q -1.0 (-105)
Hornets vs Wizards betting card
- Charlotte -2.5 (-110)
- Under 231.5 (-110)
- Hornets 1Q -1.0 (-105)
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