Kon Knueppel finished an assist shy of a triple double, but sloppy play caused the Charlotte Hornets to lose to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The summary
A track meet broke out to start the game. Both teams poured in points right out of the gate. It was the usual suspects for both teams. Miles Bridges and Kon Knueppel did the majority of the Hornets’ damage while the Lakers got most of their production from Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves. They all started hot but cooled a bit as the first half went on. The Hornets built up a modest lead during the second quarter but it lost it in the final moments of the half and went into the break down by two.
Collin Sexton dribbled into trouble and turned the ball over on the first possession of the second half, and that led to a runout for the Lakers. That proved to be a harbinger for the entire third quarter. The Hornets had 13 possessions end in a shot attempt and nine end in a turnover. All of the turnovers combined with some hot scoring from Rui Hachimura put the Hornets in a deep, deep hole just a few minutes into the second half.
The turnover problems continued into the fourth quarter and stymied any chance for a Hornets comeback. They gave it a shot in the middle part of the fourth by scoring in bunches of threes and got the game within single digits for a couple of short spells, including once in the final minute. Sion James had a chance to cut it to three with under 15 seconds to play, but his pull-up three drew front iron and caromed out of bounds. The Lakers were bale to seal the win with free throws.
The Good
Kon Knueppel finished just one assist shy of a triple double, and he had a chance to pick it up late in the fourth. Kon Knueppel was my guy in the draft once it became apparent VJ Edgecombe was going to be off the table, but I did not envision this much of an impact so quickly. He’s first among rookies in points and 3-pointers made, third in rebounds (Kalkbrenner is second), and sixth in assists. If the season ended today, he’d have to be rookie of the year. He’s not just a shooter.
Miles Bridges had a strong start and strong finish to the game. The middle was a little bit quiet, but it’s hard to complain about an efficient 34 points.
This Moussa Diabate block to Tre Mann three.
The Bad
It’s hard to beat a team when that team attempts 19 more shots than you. The Hornets actually shot the ball better than the Mavericks at every level, but that wasn’t enough to overcome the sheer volume of attempts the Lakers had over the Hornets. Turnovers have been a bugaboo for the Hornets all season, and they were almost the sole reason the Hornets lost the game last night.
The Hornets struggled to keep the Lakers off the glass. There wasn’t any one person that gave the Hornets problems. They just got outworked for a lot of balls, especially on long rebounds. That combined with all the turnovers is why the Lakers were able to get so many more shots attempts than the Hornets.
What’s Next
The Hornets get two straight games against the Bucks in a little home-and-home series. That starts in Charlotte on Wednesday.