Lakers vs Hornets Prediction 2/19/25 NBA Picks Today

The Charlotte Hornets and the Los Angeles Lakers duke it out at the crypto.com Arena on Wednesday night.

Here’s a Lakers vs Hornets Prediction. This article will include a Lakers vs Hornets Pick.

The Charlotte Hornets have been in a terrible slump as they’ve lost 11 of their last 13 games overall and they will be hoping to put an end to a three-game skid after getting thrashed by the struggling Magic in a 102-86 road defeat on Wednesday. Miles Bridges led the team with 19 points, eight rebounds and four assists on six of 23 shooting, Josh Green and Damion Baugh each scored 16 points while Taj Gibson chipped in with 10 points and 12 rebounds. As a team, the Hornets shot 39 percent from the field and eight of 26 from the 3-point line as they played great defense in the first half to take a narrow lead into halftime, only to go cold and score just 40 points in the second half to get blown out by a struggling Magic squad. Elfrid Payton had a quiet game of just four points with seven assists in 32 minutes of action while Jusuf Nurkic scored just nine points but played just 16 minutes.

Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers have been in red-hot form as they’ve won 12 of their last 15 games overall, but they will be hoping to bounce back in this one after having their six-game win streak halted by the Jazz in a 131-119 road defeat on Wednesday. Rui Hachimura led the team with 19 points on eight of 15 shooting, LeBron James added 18 points with seven assists, Luka Doncic added 16 points while Austin Reaves chipped in with 15 points and 11 assists. As a team, the Lakers shot 44 percent from the field and 20 of 50 from the 3-point line as they got off to a decent start on offense, but they allowed the Jazz to get off to a flyer and were never in with a chance after leaking 40 points in the third quarter to trail by as many as 25 points. Dalton Knecht was the only bench player to finish in double figures in scoring and Reaves had an off shooting night as he made just one of 10 from the 3-point line.

Why the Los Angeles Lakers will win

• The Hornets have lost each of their last 17 night games against teams that held a winning record.
• The Lakers have won each of their last 10 games as home favorites on the first leg of a back-to-back.
• The Lakers have covered the spread in each of their last six home games against Eastern Conference opponents following a loss.
• The Hornets have failed to cover the spread in seven of their last eight games at Crypto.com Arena following a road loss.

Why the Charlotte Hornets will win

• The underdogs have won four of the Lakers’ last six games.
• The Lakers have lost six of their last nine games as home favorites after losing as favorites.
• The Hornets have covered the spread in each of their last four games against Western Conference opponents following a loss.
• The Lakers have failed to cover the spread in each of their last three games against opponents who are on the first leg of a back-to-back.

Matchup/League Facts

• The Lakers rank 29th in the league for field goal attempts per game this season (85.5).
• The Lakers rank 28th in the league for offensive rebounds per game this season (9.2).
• The Hornets rank 30th in the league for field goal percentage this season (43.0%).
• The Hornets have missed the playoffs in eight consecutive seasons – longest active streak in the NBA

The Hornets will likely come in with the same squad, especially with so little to play for at this stage of the season, while the Lakers will be shorthanded again with Gabe Vincent, Cam Reddish and Jaxson Hayes all on the injury report. The Lakers were really on a tear before they got stopped in their tracks by the Jazz in a tough loss in their last outing, so they open as heavy favorites over this slumping Hornets team with little to play for. The Lakers only scraped past the Hornets by 112-107 back on Jan 27, but they know that they should’ve made it a blowout after shooting out to a 23-point lead in the first quarter. This is the point of the season where the contenders start to make their playoff run and I think the Lakers do just that with a comfortable win and cover at home in this spot.

Peter Tran's Free Pick: LA Lakers -13.5

Need More? Get Premium Picks