The New York Knicks hope not to be stung by holiday travel.

The Knicks can be grateful for a Thanksgiving gift in the form of a matchup against the reeling Charlotte Hornets, who host the Knicks at the Spectrum Center on Wednesday night. It’s the penultimate portion of NBA Cup group play for each side before the festivities wrap on Black Friday.

New York found a formula to win on the road earlier this week: a return “home” and a sterling shooting performance from Karl-Anthony Towns generated a 113-100 win over the Brooklyn Nets at Barclays Center, giving the Knicks just their second win away from Madison Square Garden this season. Jalen Brunson scored 27 points while Josh Hart tied Towns with 12 rebounds in his first start of the season, necessitated by the absences of OG Anunoby, Mitchell Robinson, and Landry Shamet.

The Hornets come in having dropped each of their last six and nine of their last 10. The latest addition to that dreary stretch was a 113-110 defeat to the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday evening. Rookie Kon Knueppel led the way with 28 points in defeat, while holding the NBA record for the most three-pointers made through a player’s first 17 games (63). 

This will be the first of four meetings between the Knicks and Hornets this season, with a rematch scheduled for next Wednesday at Madison Square Garden. The Knicks had two of three such meetings last season, the most recent being a 115-98 defeat in Charlotte, last March, granted Jalen Brunson was sidelined.

What: New York Knicks (10-6, 1-1 NBA Cup) at Charlotte Hornets (4-13, 0-2 NBA Cup)
Where: Spectrum Center, Charlotte, NC
When: Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET, MSG
Who’s Favored: NYK -6.5

Look out for Mikal Bridges

For all its flaws, Charlotte knows how to shoot the deep-ball: entering Wednesday night action, the Hornets rank eighth in the Association with 14.1 threes per game thanks in part to the early breakout of former Duke star Knueppel. The Knicks are capable of running in a shootout under Brown’s watch (15.5 successful threes per game, tied for second with Cleveland), but will likely seek a convincing, complete win over the Hornets.

Triples are perhaps the Hornets’ clearest path to an upset, especially with the Knicks still missing top perimeter defenders Anunoby and Shamet. After Hart and Towns proved capable of handling the Knicks’ Robinson-less interior against the Nets, it’ll be up to Bridges. Charlotte has acquiesced in that department, standing as one of 11 teams to let up at least 15 turnovers a game. That gives Bridges a sterling opportunity to help restore his defensive reputation, which will be key as the Knicks further familiarize themselves with Mike Brown’s fluid, movement-happy offense.

Hornet to watch: Moussa Diabate

The Knicks’ physical play against the Nets was a welcome sight after they were essentially bullied by an Orlando Magic group missing Paolo Banchero last weekend. The best man in Charlotte’s arsenal to combat that would be Diabate, who is best-known in Knicks lore as the player Shamet encountered in the incident that injured his shoulder during the 2024 preseason.

Though franchise face LaMelo Ball denied a desire to leave the organization, Charlotte is already in analysis mode, and Diabate is expected to be a strong part of its future. A similarly structured interior man to Robinson, in that they’re two of the more conventional big men left in the league, Diabate has crowded the paint to the tune of 9.3 rebounds per game (including 4.8 of the offensive variety) since November tipped off. With a sharpshooter like Knueppel prowling, the Knicks can ill afford to grant the Hornets second chances on Wednesday.

They Said It

“On-ball we’ve got to be better. But also there [has also been] no secondary help, no second effort. That’s the biggest thing. There are going to be blow-bys. There’s going to be stuff that happens, miscommunications. But we weren’t connected, we weren’t on our toes and ready to make a play. I think we were on our heels a little bit, and reacting late, which I think is unacceptable.”—Bridges on the Knicks’ defense after the Orlando loss (h/t Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News)

“Offensively, he’s grown (from) being more than just an offensive rebounder. I think that his screening has gotten a lot better, understanding coverage solutions versus switching, versus center field. I also think that his adjustment off penetration, like working the dunker area, has gotten really good. He’s got good hands down there, so guys feel comfortable with some dump offs. “And then in the seams. Whenever they are in pick-and-rolls and they kind of hit him as he’s half-rolling, he’s doing a good job either with his floater and he’s got some really good Euro-step finishes. And so I think that we are seeing the evolution of Moussa offensively.”—Hornets head coach Charles Lee on Diabate (h/t Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer)

Prediction

The schedulemaker took apparent pity on the road-weary Knicks, granting them two winnable games before Thanksgiving. If the Knicks can’t find a way to beat the buzz-less Hornets, even in their own shorthanded state, they’ve got much larger, much more uncomfortable questions to ask themselves. For now, they should be able to feast in a game that could boost both their holiday morale and their bid to return to the NBA Cup’s knockout stage.

Knicks 124, Hornets 101