The Charlotte Hornets will host the Orlando Magic at Spectrum Center on Friday.

The Hornets (18-58) have nothing to play for in the final days of the 2023-24 regular season. The team’s goal is to play with an eye on the future, and that will be even more important now that the Hornets announced the departure of Steve Clifford as head coach for the 2024-25 campaign. Everyone will be starting from scratch, so the Hornets will aim to take the next step in their rebuilding process in the coming months. Charlotte is looking to avoid the last place in the standings, a battle the team is fighting on a daily basis with the Detroit Pistons and the Washington Wizards. Charlotte has been struggling in recent weeks, though. The team enters this game on a four-game losing skid while posting a 10-28 mark at home. Their most recent game finished with an 89-86 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday.

The Hornets are listing Vasilije Micic (shoulder), Miles Bridges (wrist), Nick Richards (foot) and Amari Bailey (illness) are game-time calls for Friday. Mark Williams (back) is out. Seth Curry (ankle), Cody Martin (ankle) and LaMelo Ball (ankle) are out for the season.

The Magic (45-31) have already clinched a playoff berth, and given they sit 14 games over the .500 mark, it would take a massive disaster for them to lose their Top 6 seeding. The Magic depend only on themselves to secure a spot in the first round of the playoffs and avoid the Play-In Tournament, and based on their recent results, they’re trending in the right direction. The Magic enters this game on a three-game winning run following their 117-108 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday. Plus, Orlando has proven to be a serviceable team on the road thanks to its 18-19 record away from home. The Magic will also aim to complete the season sweep of the Hornets after winning the previous three head-to-head meetings.

The Magic are listing Caleb Houstan (ankle) as a game-time decision for Friday. The rest of the team is available.