Buzz Thrill: Hornets Now Popular Pick to Make Playoffs After Slow Start

The Charlotte Hornets are suddenly the darlings of the NBA.

Rookie Kon Knueppel has helped the buzzing Hornets sting opponents as the team looks to nest in a playoff spot, but he’s not the only reason Charlotte is on course for success.

The team has the fifth-best record in the league since the new year, winning 22 of its last 31 games (as of Saturday). The Hornets are in ninth place in the Eastern Conference—not quite in playoff position, but in the play-in. A 118–89 beatdown of the Celtics in Boston also boosted the team’s profile by leaps and bounds.

The Miami Heat halted Charlotte’s most recent winning streak at six with a 128–120 decision on Friday, but the Hornets have also put together a nine-game winning streak this season.

The club hasn’t seen postseason play since a first-round loss in the 2015–2016 season, but it has a strong chance to break that drought in an Eastern Conference that has 10 teams with records of .500 or better.

Charlotte is 32–32, but that has it about on pace to surpass the win total of its most recent successful season—43 victories in 2021–2022.

“I think, again, it’s just a testament to the hard work that these guys are putting in every day. We’re seeing the fruits of our labor,” Hornets coach Charles Lee told reporters after last week’s victory over the Dallas Mavericks.

“I think that we’re getting better and better in a lot of different areas today to execute some of our offensive sets—to execute an end of quarter, 2 for 1 a little bit better—so, I’m really proud with the growth that we’re making.

“I think we’re getting a lot of contributions from a lot of different guys at different moments of the game, and it’s helping us a ton.”

Lee is garnering respect for the way he is orchestrating a young roster toward a spot in the postseason.

Guard LaMelo Ball had been the biggest name in recent seasons. He was the third overall pick in the 2020 draft. Forward Brandon Miller was a high-profile selection as the No. 2 overall pick in the 2023 draft, and forward Miles Bridges was a first-round pick in 2018, but the Hornets have a collection of players on their roster who might not be considered that much of a buzz thrill.

Forward Moussa Diabate, guard Sion James and center Ryan Kalkbrenner have been second-round finds who have made major contributions this season.

Miller is averaging about 20 points a night, is rebounding at a higher clip than his first two seasons, and has improved his 3-point percentage.

“We definitely want Brandon, No. 1 to be aggressive. No. 2, he is such an elite, dynamic scorer, you’ve got to find a couple [of] ways to get a couple of easy buckets, get yourself to the free throw line. If guys are going to be so aggressive and so physical, you use their aggression against them, you use their physicality against them.

“And when he’s decisive and gets to his spots, and plays through contact, and doesn’t expect calls, and has great footwork after the dribble and pump fakes, he’s elite.”

Knueppel, who has gone from relatively quiet draft-day selection at No. 4 overall last year to dead even with the Dallas Mavericks’ Cooper Flagg in the running for the top rookie honor, is rewriting the record books for a first-year player. The shooting guard in February set the mark for 3-pointers by a rookie, and leads the league in 3s with 222.

Ball is maturing into a player who knows how to manage games instead of a risk-taking passer, with his turnovers down to the 2.8 average he posted as a rookie in the 2020–2021 season. He and Knueppel are averaging almost 20 points a night, he’s top 10 in assists per game, and is a big reason ESPN has the squad 10th in its Basketball Power Index.

Charlotte is also 10th in point differential at plus-3.6 and has a couple of other signs pointing upward. An under-control Ball at point guard has meant better shot-making opportunities for a top-10 offensive rating, and the team is at 16 in the NBA in overall defensive rating. In fact, its turnover differential leads the NBA at plus-2.5.

However, bench scoring is 18th in the league at 36.0 per game, and the Hornets haven’t shown much in the muscle department when games turn physical.

So as Charlotte makes a strong midseason push, the team does have its flaws, and some analytics don’t bode well—the middling defense and middle-of-the-pack bench scoring, to name two. Those aspects could cost the team as the games grow in importance, but the Hornets have enough in coaching, talent, and effort to be a tough out in the postseason.