Guard Tre Mann dribbles past half-court during the Nov. 15 matchup.
Emmanuel Perkins/Niner Times
On most nights this season, almost a month in, the Charlotte Hornets have looked like a well-coached, hard-competing group playing genuinely good basketball, but their margin for error is almost nonexistent.
Charlotte went 1–3 through a tough stretch on the early schedule in Week 4 that featured three of the top four players in the National Basketball Association, and in each of those games, the Hornets were either missing key starters or managing star guard LaMelo Ball on a tight minutes plan.
The result felt familiar: sustained stretches of strong play followed by a bad quarter or costly run that ultimately closed the door, especially without a full deck of offensive talent to make a comeback in these games.
This is where Charlotte is right now. The organization is prioritizing Ball’s long-term health over short-term wins, and the team’s only victories have come against the Brooklyn Nets, Washington Wizards, Utah Jazz and a Milwaukee Bucks team playing without superstar forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. But there is clearly a real young core in place, and watching that group continue to grow despite the losses should give fans plenty of reason to be excited.
Turnovers steal the show
Forward Miles Bridges opened Charlotte’s Nov. 10 matchup with an outstanding first quarter, pouring in 16 points on perfect shooting and helping the Hornets trade blows early with the Los Angeles Lakers. Charlotte moved the ball well, pushed the pace and controlled much of the opening period.
The game flipped near halftime. A run from Los Angeles spanning the end of the second quarter into the third broke the night open, and Charlotte never fully recovered. Superstar forward Luka Dončić repeatedly created advantages, guard Austin Reaves found his rhythm and the Lakers steadily built a double-digit cushion. The two combined for 62 points, overwhelming Charlotte’s guards throughout.
Charlotte turned the ball over 23 times, gifting the Lakers 31 points and 19 additional shot attempts. Even though the Hornets outshot Los Angeles from the field, from three and at the line, the margin created by those mistakes decided the game.
Bridges finished with 34 points on 11-of-19 shooting and tied his career high with seven made threes. Rookie guard Kon Knueppel added 19 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, and guard Tre Mann provided solid minutes off the bench. Charlotte fell 121–111.
Split with Milwaukee
In a matchup where both teams were missing star players, the Hornets grabbed control early and managed the rest of the night comfortably. A late first-quarter push created separation, and Charlotte never surrendered the lead again.
Rookie center Ryan Kalkbrenner set the tone with nine early points and finished with a season-high 17 on perfect shooting, adding nine rebounds and three blocks. Bridges scored 20, while guards Collin Sexton and Knueppel added 16 apiece.
Rookie guard Kon Knueppel claps after a basket during the Nov. 12 matchup.
Emmanuel Perkins/Niner Times
Against his old team, guard Pat Connaughton gave Charlotte meaningful minutes, and forward Moussa Diabaté controlled the glass for 13 rebounds, eight of them offensive, helping create a 19–5 second-chance advantage.
Milwaukee made a brief push late in the third quarter, but Charlotte responded with a 9–2 burst to open the fourth and stretch the margin to 18, too much for this version of the Bucks to overcome.
Without Antetokounmpo, the Bucks struggled to generate easy looks or apply pressure at the rim, and the Hornets closed out the first meeting with a full 48-minute effort in a 111–100 win.
Rookie guard Sion James lays the ball up during the Nov. 12 matchup.
Emmanuel Perkins/Niner Times
Charlotte’s second NBA Cup game came on Nov. 14 in Milwaukee, with both teams closer to whole, and it produced a fast, competitive battle from start to finish. Ball returned on a planned minutes restriction, and Knueppel, a native of the area, delivered a memorable homecoming in front of thousands of friends and family.
Charlotte played one of its best quarters of the season in the second, moving the ball well and forcing turnovers to fuel a 26–11 run and a 69–61 halftime lead.
But the week-long pattern resurfaced. Milwaukee controlled the third behind Antetokounmpo’s passing and transition pressure, and the Hornets spent the fourth trading baskets to stay within reach.
Knueppel tied the game by nailing a three in the final seconds, sending it to overtime, where Ball did not play due to his minutes limit. Charlotte turned to Mann to create offense in the extra period, a questionable approach, and while he had a good game overall, he struggled in the closing minutes of regulation and in overtime.
The Hornets clearly had heavy legs, ran out of gas in the extra period and were hit with an early 11–2 run that decided it.
Knueppel finished with a career-high 32 points, Bridges matched him with 32 and Diabaté added 15 points and 11 rebounds. Ball played a smart, pass-heavy game in his return, while rookie guard Sion James screened well, operated effectively in the short roll and connected the offense and defense throughout the night.
Thunder strikes after halftime
Charlotte returned home on Nov. 15 for a back-to-back against the defending NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder. The Hornets were without Ball, who is currently sitting out back-to-backs as part of his injury management plan, which left them short-handed against a 12–1 Thunder group with a top-five offense and the league’s best defense.
Charlotte hung in early behind its usual strong first quarter and even held the lead for much of the second, but the same poor third-quarter pattern showed up again. Oklahoma City ripped off a 16–1 run out of halftime, the shots stopped falling, the Thunder’s defense tightened up, and the Hornets simply did not have the offensive creation to overcome it.
Rookie guard Kon Knueppel looks down after a basket during the Nov. 15 matchup.
Emmanuel Perkins/Niner Times
Superstar guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander managed the game beautifully with 33 points in three quarters, and center Chet Holmgren added 25. Charlotte’s offense never found success inside the arc, and the Thunder’s ball pressure wore them down as the game went on.
Diabaté posted another double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds, and Miles Bridges led Charlotte with 15, as the Hornets dropped another one, 109–96, to close the week.
The good
Charlotte is winning the glass: One thing keeping the Hornets in games right now is how committed they are on the boards. Their collective effort and the buy-in to getting a body on a body is helping make up for the talent gap, and rebounding at its core comes down to effort and want-to.
They sit No. 1 in the NBA in defensive rebounding percentage, No. 5 in offensive rebounding percentage and No. 2 overall. It has been the most consistently great thing that travels game to game for Charlotte.
Knueppel’s ascension: The rookie looks like he’s getting better every game. He didn’t have his legs against Oklahoma City and the shot wasn’t falling, but he still remained an additive player because he impacts your basketball team in almost every facet.
He’s a connector, a spacer, a creator and a legitimately good individual and team defender. He’s doing everything for this team, and as the first month of the NBA season wraps up, he’s the clear leader in the Rookie of the Year race.
Charlotte scores 6.3 more points per 100 possessions with Knueppel on the floor compared with when he sits. He is a real solution, and if there has been any silver lining to Charlotte’s injuries, it has been seeing Knueppel get legitimate usage and making the most of it.
The not so good
The turnover tax: The Hornets are giving the ball away far too often, averaging nearly 17 turnovers a game. They aren’t making up for it on the other end, either, ranking in the bottom four in the NBA in steals. That combination is killing their ability to control the flow of games.
Charlotte is at its best in transition and playing with real tempo. To capitalize on those numbers advantages, they simply have to stop giving possessions away.
LaMelo limbo: While it is perfectly understandable that the organization and coaching staff want to be careful with Ball in his return to action, the team’s chances of winning are directly and noticeably affected every time he doesn’t play, is held out or has his minutes restricted.
There is still no timetable for forward Brandon Miller’s return, and the way Ball is being managedsignals that the organization isn’t concerned with doing everything it can to win games this season. That approach will inherently frustrate fans, and deservedly so.
Up next
The Hornets will head north of the border to begin a two-game road trip against the Toronto Raptors on Nov. 17. The game will air on NBA League Pass and FanDuel Sports Network.