Hornets vs. Magic odds

Orlando opened as a 4.5-point favorite over Charlotte for Friday’s winner-take-all play-in game, with the East’s No. 8 seed on the line. (dknetwork.draftkings.com) The game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Eastern on April 17, and the winner advances to face No. 1 Detroit in the first round on April 19. All 2026 play-in games are airing on Prime Video, according to the National Basketball Association schedule. (nba.com) Orlando got here by losing 109-97 at Philadelphia on Wednesday, when Tyrese Maxey scored 31 points and the 76ers claimed the East’s No. 7 seed. (apnews.com) Charlotte reached the final play-in game by beating Miami 127-126 in overtime on Tuesday, with LaMelo Ball scoring 30 points and Miles Bridges blocking Davion Mitchell at the buzzer. (apnews.com) The matchup pairs the East’s No. 7 and No. 9 finishers from the regular season. Orlando went 44-36, while Charlotte finished 43-37. (basketball-reference.com) The records were close, but the profile behind them was different. Charlotte posted a plus-4.47 simple rating system mark and allowed 111.3 points per game, while Orlando’s simple rating system was plus-0.57 and it allowed 115.3 points per game. (basketball-reference.com) Under the National Basketball Association play-in format, the loser of the 7-versus-8 game gets one more chance, and the winner of the 9-versus-10 game has to win twice to reach the playoffs. That is why Orlando can lose on Wednesday and still be favored on Friday, while Charlotte had to survive an elimination game just to get here. (nba.com) The betting line is an early read on that setup: Orlando still has home-court position in the bracket and entered the week from the higher seed, but Charlotte arrives after the play-in’s wildest finish so far. Friday’s result will decide who gets Detroit next. (dknetwork.draftkings.com)