Kon Knueppel scored 33 points, but LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller struggled as the Charlotte Hornets lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers, 118-113.
Brandon Miller splashed two triples. You would’ve hoped that what a harbinger of what was to come, but more on that as we go. The teams traded baskets throughout a competitive first quarter, but some sloppy play by the second unit allowed the Cavaliers to go on a run to take a modest lead. The Hornets didn’t score a point for the last 3:21 of the opening frame, and that put them in a 10 point hole.
Kon Knueppel scored a couple buckets to get the Hornets back within striking distance, but they simply could not get the Cavaliers to miss a shot. A timeout cooled them off, and the rookie class was able to pull the Hornets back within striking distance six by halftime.
Knueppel stayed hot to start the second half and briefly helped the Hornets to a lead. While that was happening, Miller picked up his fourth foul and had to return to the bench. The Hornets bench was able to maintain a lead for a bit, but a couple of consecutive brutal Tre Mann possessions literally handed the lead back to Cleveland. The visitors led by one heading into the fourth.
The second unit was able to hold their own as the Hornets bided time until Miller returned to the floor. After checking in, he fired up a lot of threes without a lot of success. The Hornets as a team joined in on the missed three party. The Cavs got a three on the other end from Dean Wade and several tough buckets from Donovan Mitchell to create enough separation to close out the win.
We saw a little bit of alpha Kon last night. He initiated the offense a lot, especially in the second half, and he was the Hornets go to guy for a bucket. He had a gritty tip in in the first half and created several 2-point buckets for himself as the game went on. And on top of all that, he regularly drew Mitchell or James Harden as his primary assignment defensively. This game showed what he could look like as a lead option, and I think we see it more and more as he progresses into his career.
Ryan Kalkbrenner went toe to toe with Jarrett Allen. Allen had the better stat line, but I thought Kalkbrenner did a good job being strong on the boards and being a deterrent at the rim.
I thoroughly enjoy Josh Green’s minutes. He plays with the dial on 10 every time he’s on the floor. He had a nifty assist to a corner three that I don’t remember who the shooter was. Might have been Tidjane. His energy off the bench is infectious and his activity level picked the Hornets up a few times when they were bogging down.
Brandon Miller and LaMelo Ball have to be better. They’ve been awful in the two games since the all star break. In this game, they combined to shoot 10-of-36 from the field and 6-of-22 from three. The volume of threes isn’t necessarily a problem, but they aren’t putting nearly enough pressure of the rim when they’re handling the ball. There’s a striking difference with how often Knueppel is catching on the move and making a quick decision relative to LaMelo and Miller, who are catching and dribbling the air out of the ball. Part of the bad shooting percentages are a product of them simply playing bad basketball and not getting good shots.
Tre Mann…
The Cavs gave Tidjane Salaün a lot of room to shoot, and he was 1-of-6 on his pretty much wide open 3-point attempts. That’s tough.
Not an ideal start to the post-all star break schedule. It lets up for a bit going forward, and the Hornets only have to survive one more game without Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabate. They start that as they embark on a road trip against some Eastern Conference takers, starting with the Wizards on Sunday.
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