The Charlotte Hornets will take on the Chicago Bulls at 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday at the Spectrum Center. It's the season-opener for both squads, both of whom are looking to improve drastically after last year's disappointing season. The Hornets finished in 10th-place in the Eastern Conference a season ago, and it looks like they may have missed their window to contend with Kemba Walker departing in free agency. The Bulls, meanwhile, ended last year with the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference and are hoping that this is the turning point in their rebuild. Chicago is favored by 3.5-points in the latest Bulls vs. Hornets odds, while the over-under is set at 218.5. Before you make any Bulls vs. Hornets picks and predictions, you'll want to see what the SportsLine Projection Model is saying.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times, and anyone who followed it last season saw massive returns. In fact, the model finished 300-252 on all its top-rated NBA picks. On top-rated against the spread and money line picks alone, the model returned a whopping $4,280.

Now, it has simulated Hornets vs. Bulls 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you that the model is leaning under, and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in over 50 percent of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.

Returning after a rocky 22-60 year, the Bulls are aiming to prove that the past does not define them. The Bulls ranked fourth-worst in scoring last season, averaging just 104.9 points per game. However, they return a solid group of young players and made some additions that should accentuate the abilities of Zach LaVine, Lauri Markkanen, Otto Porter Jr. and Wendell Carter Jr. Tomas Satoransky is a jumbo, pass-first point guard who can knock down the open 3-pointer and Thaddeus Young is a veteran power forward who defends and scores in a variety of ways.

With LaVine and Markkanen as a potentially dynamic one-two punch, rookie Coby White providing some excitement in the open floor, Porter knocking down shots on the wing, and Carter providing some interior scoring and rim protection, the Bulls are hoping to make a huge jump in a depleted Eastern Conference.

But just because the Bulls feature an impressive young core doesn't guarantee Chicago will cover the Bulls vs. Hornets spread on Wednesday.

Charlotte won the last meeting between these two teams 125-118 on Feb. 2. The Hornets experienced some offensive struggles of their own as they could only manage to knock down 44.8 percent of their shots last season, making them fifth-worst in the league in field-goal percentage. However, despite having lost Walker to the Celtics in free agency, Charlotte likes the mix of youth and experience it has. 

Nicolas Batum is an 11-year veteran who should provide scoring from the wing and Marvin Williams is comfortable in his role at power forward in his 14th season. Meanwhile, Miles Bridges is hoping to take a big step forward in his second season and P.J. Washington, a first year player out of Kentucky, should see a lot of minutes in his rookie season. Perhaps most important to Charlotte's success will be former Celtics point guard Terry Rozier. The fifth-year player was signed to assume the starting point guard role and the Hornets bet big on his continued development offensively.

So who wins Hornets vs. Bulls? And which side of the spread can you bank on in over 50 percent of simulations? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the Hornets vs. Bulls spread to jump on Wednesday, all from the advanced model that is up more than $4,200 on its NBA picks last season, and find out.