Charlotte Hornets vs. Toronto Raptors preview, live stream, odds

The Charlotte Hornets will have to try for their second road win of the season without their star, Kemba Walker, against the Toronto Raptors.

Kemba Walker is unquestionably the Charlotte Hornets most important offensive player. Walker leads the Hornets with 22.3 points and 6.2 assists per game. The 6-foot-1 point guard left the Hornets’ last game with an injured left shoulder, and he will miss Wednesday night’s game against the Raptors. Can the Hornets (8-11) keep up with Toronto (12-7) without Walker?

Michael Carter-Williams will start in Walker’s place. Carter-Williams has had his own injury issues this season. He has been dealing with sore knees and missed the first 10 games of the season. Carter-Williams is getting his first start and is averaging 4.4 points in 15.4 minutes per game.

First-round draft pick Malik Monk will hopefully get more playing time with Walker out. Monk was a dynamic scorer at Kentucky, but that skill has not yet translated to the NBA level. He was always a streaky shooter, but it’s been mostly a bad streak thus far. Monk is shooting less than 35 percent from the field and averaging 7.5 points in 17.5 minutes per game.

Dwight Howard may be relied on more to score. He is averaging his usual double-double with 15.2 points and a team-high 12. 8 rebounds.

The Raptors are led once again by their two-headed monster in the backcourt of Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan. DeRozan is averaging 22.9 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 4.6 assists per game. Lowry is averaging 15.7 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 7.0 assists.

Here’s how you can watch Wednesday’s Charlotte Hornets vs. Toronto Raptors game:

Date: Wednesday, Nov. 29
Time: 7:30 p.m. ET
Location: Toronto, ON
Venue: Air Canada Centre
TV: Fox Sports Southeast
Live Stream: FoxSportsGo

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The Raptors are favored by seven points. The Hornets have been bad on the road (1-8) with Kemba Walker. That certainly doesn’t engender any confidence they can win without him. In addition, Toronto has one of the best backcourts in the country. Carter-Williams will provide better defense and is a better matchup due to his size, but it won’t be enough to outweigh the loss of offensive production Walker brings.

Prediction: Toronto 110, Charlotte 95