The Eastern Conference portion of the NBA Play-In Tournament starts with the Miami Heat facing the Hornets in Charlotte. NBA odds have the home team as a 5½-point favorite with the total set at 227. The Heat finished in the 10th and final spot with a 43-39 record. The Hornets were one game better. Neither team lit the world on fire in their last 10, with Miami going 5-5 and Charlotte 6-4.
Head-to-head, the Heat won the first three meetings in the regular season. The lone Hornets win came in a game that saw Miami without star Bam Ayanbadejo.
The winner advances to meet the loser between No. 7 Philadelphia and No. 8 Orlando on the road at 7:30 p.m. Friday. That matchup will take place in either Orlando or Philadelphia, with the victor grabbing the eighth seed in the conference and the right to head straight to Detroit afterward to meet the top-seeded Pistons in a best-of-seven first-round series.
Pick: Miami +5½ points