The Charlotte Hornets will try to avenge their worst loss of the season when they host the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday. The Hornets had won two straight entering the opener of a three-game homestand on Nov. 29 but had their fortunes reversed with a 112-89 defeat at the hands of the Pistons, who outscored them in the second half by 20 points.

Fresh off an impressive road trip that may have altered the outlook for the rest of their season, the Orlando Magic return home Wednesday to take on the Boston Celtics. Despite 52 points from Washington guard John Wall, the Magic got past the Wizards 124-116 on Tuesday to cap a 4-1 trek.

The Denver Nuggets are two games into a six-game road trip and will not face an opponent with a winning record the rest of the way. The Nuggets showed what they could do against a sub-.500 team with a 106-98 triumph in Philadelphia on Monday and will try to pull off the same effort when they visit the stumbling Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday.

The Atlanta Hawks are spiraling in the wrong direction and aim to halt a seven-game losing streak when they host the Miami Heat on Wednesday. Atlanta got off to a sizzling 9-2 start but 10 defeats in the past 11 games have dropped the squad two games below .500 as they face a Heat team that is ravaged by injuries.

The Portland Trail Blazers are starting to roll while discovering some balance on the offensive end and will go for their fourth straight win when they visit the Milwaukee Bucks in the second of a five-game road trip on Wednesday. The Trail Blazers leaned heavily on the scoring prowess of point guard Damian Lillard early and started to fall off when defenses adjusted, and more scoring options of late is putting them back in the win column.

James Harden routinely produces high-scoring outings for the Houston Rockets but the star guard might find competition for high-scoring honors in Wednesday's contest against the Los Angeles Lakers. Harden recorded nine 30-point performances this season but Los Angeles reserve guard Lou Williams may be even hotter after averaging 39 points over the past two games.

The New York Knicks possess a four-game winning streak but their sudden run of success is being overshadowed by Phil Jackson's recent comments as the Cleveland Cavaliers arrive in town for Wednesday's contest. The New York president referred to LeBron James and his business associates as a "posse" last month and James still is upset about the reference and Jackson's comments.

The Dallas Mavericks are suffering through a porous, injury-filled season and the latest player to go down is starting center Andrew Bogut. The defensive-minded big man hyperextended his right knee during Monday's 109-101 loss to the Charlotte Hornets and joins power forward Dirk Nowitzki (Achilles) and guard J.J. Barea (calf) on the sidelines for Wednesday's home contest against the Sacramento Kings.

The Indiana Pacers look to start putting an end to their road woes with improved defense when they visit the struggling Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night. The Pacers, who entered Tuesday ranked 25th in the league in scoring defense, have lost seven of nine games away from home after giving up 60 points to Klay Thompson in a 142-106 loss at Golden State on Monday.

The Los Angeles Clippers told people they were contenders to the Golden State Warriors in the Pacific Division and the Western Conference the previous two seasons, they just failed to prove it on the court. The Clippers will take their first shot of 2016-17 at the two-time defending West champs when they host Wednesday's game against the Warriors, who just found Klay Thompson's shooting stroke.