The Charlotte Hornets earned their 10th win of the season Tuesday, defeating the Washington Wizards by 17 points. After a brief Christmas break, the Hornets will return to action Friday night in Orlando.
In their last matchup, Hornets' guard Collin Sexton returned to action after missing nearly three weeks with a quad injury.
However, Charlotte did play without two of their three centers, missing both Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kalkbrenner due to injury.
On Friday, Kalkbrenner and Plumlee will remain out. Plumlee will miss his second straight game with a groin injury, while Kalkbrenner will be sidelined for his third consecutive contest due to a left elbow sprain.
Considering Kalkbrenner was questionable for Tuesday's matchup, it should be somewhat concerning that he hasn't progressed after two days of rest.
That said, Moussa Diabate has been dominant in Kalkbrenner's absence, making the case to be given a much bigger role, even when Charlotte's frontcourt depth returns.
In the last two games without Kalkbrenner, Diabate is averaging 8.5 points per game, 16 rebounds and three steals.
Luckily for Charlotte, the Magic are also dealing with injury concerns of their own. Brothers Moritz and Franz Wagner have been ruled out, while guard Jalen Suggs has been downgraded to doubtful.
Center Goga Bitadze is listed as questionable with a knee injury and Tristan Da Silva has been upgraded to probable.
After facing Orlando, Charlotte will return home for back-to-back games against the Milwaukee Bucks and Golden State Warriors.
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