STAMPEDE!!

Hornets apply belt to ass in the 2nd half vs. Chicago.

The Charlotte Hornets put up 40 points in the third quarter for the second straight game. Unsurprisingly, the game was blown wide open for the second straight time. The cool part though — how both 40-point quarters came to pass were completely different.

On Sunday vs. the Wizards, the Hornets scorched the nets with 3’s. And LaMelo’s stellar play. Tuesday night vs. the Bulls was about turnovers. Officially, the Hornets forced 10 turnovers, most of them being the live-ball variety.

What made this third quarter feel different is that they did it with defense, hands in the passing lanes, and then turning up the tempo on the offensive end. If you ever doubted Charles Lee’s impact and messaging of defense turning into offense, tonight’s Bulls game was a reminder that his message is heard.

But, the more important storyline tonight? Coby White’s debut for the Hornets. A meager ten points, four assists, and three rebounds. But the biggest addition to the backup unit might be his ability to trust and play within the offense, and believe that a shooter will be open. His first two assists were a BUTT NAKED ASS OPEN Grant Williams (This might be unfair, but if Collin Sexton were still here, he’s not making those passes). There is a feel to his game that’s been missing all damn season from the bench unit. As he gets healthier and more comfortable with the team, there might be some interesting synergy down the stretch, and it’s kinda comforting to know that the Hornets bench is largely buoyed by adults. A welcome change from the beginning of the season.

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• Not sure you needed confirmation but the starting lineup is legit: 16-2, offensive rating off the charts, and they were the catalyst for that 3rd quarter run. Miles and Moussa as tone setters was sorely missed and makes you wonder if they have at least one of them, do they win at least one of Cleveland or Houston.

• Kon is ridiculous, full stop: 24 points on 7 of 12 shooting, 50% from 3, second highest plus-minus on the team at 24. Oh and he’s at 201 made 3’s on the season, he’ll likely break Keegan Murray’s record for made 3’s by a rookie at some point this week. He’s been everything you could ask from for a rookie and more.
  
  I want to believe in his chances to win Rookie Of The Year, but I’m just at the stage of Kon could break the regular season three pointers made record, the rookie record, cure cancer in between all of that and STILL lose the award to Cooper Flagg. Team record should be factored into these races but it usually doesn’t (see: Carmelo Anthony vs. LeBron James). However, one thing bothering me with Kon…

• Let’s not lose the plot here, LaMelo’s still the best player on the team: Earlier on Tuesday, the Ringer updated their top 100 NBA player rankings. The Ringer had placed Kon Knueppel five spots above LaMelo Ball. Now, you’re likely reading this and saying “it’s the Ringer and Bill Simmons has an active man-crush on Kon, who gives a shit?”. And some of that has merit.
  
  Again, Kon has been AWESOME for the Charlotte Hornets. In any other year except one this decade, he’s likely the rookie of the year. Where my problem lies is when we try to assign things to him that make him look like Michelle Pffifer in Dangerous Minds. Making Kon the catalyst for all of the change in Charlotte ignores a lot of things that happen in the periphery.
  
  Primarily, it ignores the impact LaMelo’s having on the roster to start. As Owen Watterson pointed out last week, 93 percent of Kon’s 3 point buckets are assisted and close to 58 percent of Kon’s two’s are assisted. Moreover, over the near 1600 assists the Charlotte Hornets have made as a team, LaMelo is the clear leader with over 350. Kon is second with close to 200.
  
  And I wouldn’t be so aggravated if I wasn’t concerned that the national narrative wasn’t going to be “Kon saved this team, build it around him.” And I hate that because it’s disrespectful to a training staff that has figured out how to keep a lot of folks upright when that wasn’t the case for years. It’s disrespectful for all the groundwork that Charles Lee has done in less than two seasons to get the message through to guys who had clearly become used to losing. It’s disrespectful to coaches like Josh Longstaff and Lamar Skeeter who are trying to make their own names in the coaching game. And most of all it’s disrespectful to LaMelo Ball, who despite being doubted (including by yours truly), despite being called unserious and “not a winning player” has not only taken to developing his body, but also edited his game on the fly this season to continue to make winning plays and sacrificed his own numbers for the good of the team.
  
  Folks, LaMelo Ball on the court is everything we want of our star players. He’s bought in to the program, he’s sacrificed and he’s even contributing on the defensive end. And he’s doing that while still being the most impactful player on the team from a net rating standpoint. The least we all can do (at least locally) is recognize that effort and acknowledge him.

FIN.