Kon Knueppel details his whirlwind month, which saw him win Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month and appear on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Knueppel admits to being nervous about the late-night appearance but calls being on the show a "cool experience." He stresses the need for the team to stick to their habits and "get better as a collective unit." By DIAMOND VENCES
Days before being spotted taking pregame jumpers with older brother LiAngelo Ball seated courtside, LaMelo Ball was non-chalant as always.
It didn’t matter if the Charlotte Hornets would be taking on eldest sibling Lonzo Ball on Peacock, marking the franchise’s first appearance on national TV in more than three years.
“I played on TV when I was young,” Ball said, “I played all around the world. It’s another game.”
Perhaps, but for the first time since the opening round of the play-in tournament in 2022, plenty of eyeballs around the country were able to witness the Hornets in action during their 139-132 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers at Rocket Mortgage Arena. And subsequently, they got the chance to witness rookie Kon Knueppel etch his name into NBA lore.
Kon Knueppel of the Charlotte Hornets became the fastest player in NBA history to reach 100 career 3-pointers made. Jared C. Tilton Getty Images
Knueppel became the fastest player in NBA history to reach 100 career 3-pointers made, attaining the milestone in his 29th appearance. That’s 12 games faster than the 41 games Utah’s Lauri Markkanen needed in 2017-18. Knueppel entered the night tied with Charlotte product Steph Curry for the second-most in the league, and trails only the 105 put up by Cleveland’s Donovan Mitchell.
In accomplishing the feat, Knueppel eclipsed Brandon Miller’s franchise mark. Miller hit 100 3-point field goals in 43 games for the Hornets (9-20) during the 2023-24 campaign.
As for Ball, he was coming off a season-low eight points in a frustrating outing in Detroit on Saturday. But he began the game hot against the Cavaliers (16-14) by draining all three of his initial attempts from the floor — all beyond the 3-point arc — before finally misfiring, helping the Hornets get off to a fast start against one of the better teams in the Eastern Conference.
Ball posted 20 points along with nine assists and four rebounds, and he faces a quick turnaround when the Hornets host the Washington Wizards at Spectrum Center on Tuesday night.
“I think our minutes are in a decent spot,” coach Charles Lee said. “But I do think that as we do board the plane and head back home, we have to think about how do we take care of the ball a little bit better going home, to allow ourselves to have the best opportunity to have a chance at winning a game.
“To have 31 points against our 20 turnovers is tough with a good team, especially with the way they shot it.”
Here’s what the Hornets had to say of note in Cleveland:
On Kon Knueppel being in upper echelon of NBA’s 3-point percentage leaders:
“I think it’s, No. 1, just his natural ability to shoot the ball,” Lee said. “He’s got a phenomenal base to him. His early shot prep is good, mechanics to finish (with) the consistency of his shot. His mechanics are really good, so credit to dad and mom and (Duke) coach (Jon) Scheyer and all the people that helped build up just his overall shooting technique. During the course of the game, he does a great job of just playing off the ball.
“He understands how to find windows when people are driving. In transition, he’s a willing participant to sprint to corners or sprint through. Whatever is kind of being asked of him during the game. …. When he’s a screener he’ s so dynamic, I think that he’s shown the ability to have such versatility to pop and then also to play in the seams. And I think that also throws defenses off and allows him to get himself open.”
On the confidence players get by being on court with LaMelo Ball:
“I think that it just adds a boost of confidence to our group,” Lee said, “knowing that you have that one guy that if things break down, he’s able to create a shot. For himself and also for other people. He’s done a great job of passing, and I think it’s become contagious with our group, which is why a couple of games ago versus Atlanta, you had 39 assists on 49 made field goals. And a huge part of that is his willingness to get off the ball.
“So, as much as he can create for himself, I think he is also creating for his teammates too, and it just continues to kind of give our whole group confidence in one another.”
On the importance of having players who take risks with passes like LaMelo Ball:
“It’s great,” Lee said. “You’ve got to have somebody that is not afraid to make a big play. It might burn you every once in a while, but those guys have such good feel, such good instincts that a lot of times it works out. It also keeps the defense honest when they know that that guy is capable of making that pass, it throws you off a little bit.
“Especially when you get to end-of-game situations, you want somebody that is going to take the ball out of bounds who is not afraid to throw it to the rim or to the guy who might not be all the way open, but you are going to throw him open. So to have that quarterback skill and kind of understand the instincts of where to precisely put passes is a great talent to have.”