The New York Knicks and the Charlotte Hornets intensify preparations for the 2024-25 NBA campaign when they go head to head at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday.
This will be the second meeting between the two sides in pre-season, with Miles McBride dropping 22 points to inspire the Knicks to a 111-109 victory when they squared off in the first exhibition game on October 6.
Match preview
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The New York Knicks made it three pre-season wins on the trot in their penultimate home game before kicking off the 2024-25 NBA regular season as they edged out the Minnesota Timberwolves 115-110 at Madison Square Garden on Sunday.
This was the first meeting between the two teams since the mega trade that saw the Timberwolves receive Donte DiVincenzo, Julius Randle and Keita Bates-Diop in exchange for Karl-Anthony Towns, who spent nine seasons at the Target Center.
Antony Edwards notched a game-high 31 points in 27 minutes of action, including 8-13 shooting from 3-point range, to keep the Timberwolves in the contest, but Jalen Brunson's 24 and OG Anunoby's 19 helped the New York Knicks to a third-quarter comeback, from which they held on to seal a five-point victory.
Seven players finished with double figures for the Knicks, including offseason acquisitions Landry Shamet (13) and Cameron Payne (12) while Towns dropped a 16-point, 16-rebound double-double to go with three steals in a solid 29-minute shift against his former employers.
Since suffering back-to-back defeats against Charlotte and the Brooklyn Nets in their opening two games of the 2024-25 NBA Summer League, Tom Thibodeau's men have now won six games on the bounce, including a 111-109 victory over the Hornets in their first pre-season outing on October 6, four days before claiming a 117-94 win over the Washington Wizards.
Following the close of action on Wednesday, the Knicks will visit the Capital One Arena for their final warm-up game against the Wizards on Saturday, before taking on champions Boston Celtics in a highly-anticipated 2024-25 NBA regular season curtain-raiser on October 23.
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The Charlotte Hornets, on the other hand, shot 50% from the field on Saturday to secure a 119-94 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies when the two sides locked horns at the FedExForum.
It was back and forth in the first quarter, with Memphis trailing by just three points, but the Grizzlies let go of the rope in the second quarter, where they fell 13 points behind, before ultimately losing the tie by 25 points.
In the absence of floor general LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller tallied 22 points, including 16 inside the first quarter, to go with four rebounds and two assists while Tre Mann shot 8-13 from the field to finish with 19 points.
This was a second consecutive exhibition victory for Charles Lee's men, who saw off the challenge of the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday after overcoming a poor first-half display to secure a 111-108 win at the Spectrum Center.
Having kicked off proceedings with a narrow defeat against the Knicks a fortnight ago, the Hornets now hold a 2-1 record in pre-season and will look to keep the ball rolling as they ramp up preparations for the regular season.
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Team News
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Jacob Toppin missed the game against the Timberwolves due to a sprained ankle and is a major doubt for Wednesday's clash while Pacome Dadiet is considered day-to-day after picking up a finger injury.
An ankle injury has ruled center Mitchell Robinson out of the start of the regular season while Kevin McCullar Jr. continues his journey to full fitness after undergoing knee surgery in the spring.
Brunson has dropped 20+ points in each of the last two games and the 28-year-old, who played 24 minutes on Saturday, could be handed limited minutes by Thibodeau once again.
As for the Hornets, LaMelo Ball was rested against the Grizzlies on Thursday as Lee continues to manage his offensive leader's minutes having recently returned to action following a severe ankle problem in January.
The 23-year-old should feature on Wednesday, alongside Josh Green, who was also a notable absentee against Memphis, while Miller will look to build on his impressive shooting display against from Saturday.
New York Knicks possible starting 5:
Brunson, Anunoby, Towns, Bridges, Hart
Charlotte Hornets possible starting 5:
Ball, Bridges, Miller, Richards, Green
We say: The New York Knicks to win by 5+ points
With Ball set to return to action here, we expect an improved Charlotte Hornets side to pose a sterner challenge than they did when they suffered defeat against the Knicks a fortnight ago.
However, Thibodeau's men have already hit their stride, notching three wins from three to start pre-season, and we fancy them to edge out the Hornets at the Madison Square Garden.
