Hornets Lose Their Tenth Game in a Row
Recently it’s been a rough stretch for the Charlotte Hornets, who lost their tenth game in a row last night. Overall, they’ve won one game in December going 1-12 this past month. It’s clear that without point guard LaMelo Ball, who’s been dealing with a serious right ankle sprain since late November, Charlotte can’t find the answers to win without their star. Now at 7-23, the Hornets sit in thirteenth place within the Eastern Conference, they’re a game and a half ahead of the Washington Wizards, and five and a half games above the Detroit Pistons.
Through the season’s first 15 games, LaMelo Ball led the Hornets in scoring, averaging close to 25 points a game, along with averaging about six rebounds, eight assists, and a steal a night. Since Ball’s injury, shooting guard Terry Rozier has stepped up as the team’s leading scorer averaging about 23 points a game this year. Last night in a 133-119 loss against the Phoenix Suns, and in 39 minutes of action, Rozier dropped 42 points along with four rebounds, eight assists, a steal, and a block. Charlotte has a rough stretch of games ahead of them, they’ll play the Denver Nuggets on New Year’s Day, the Sacramento Kings twice and the Chicago Bulls twice. Their biggest chance to actually win a game is on Friday, January 12th against the 5-26 San Antonio Spurs. With many teams playing terribly this season, like the Hornets, Spurs, Wizards, Pistons, and Portland Trail Blazers, it’s plain to see these teams are already looking to be the holders of the first overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft.
Although they have been struggling, Charlotte certainly has had some bright spots in their season. Brandon Miller, the second pick of the 2023 NBA Draft has been playing great basketball. Last night in the loss against the Suns, Miller scored 20 points going six for 17 from the field, along with a rebound, three assists, a steal, and a block. Miller’s best game this season was on November 18th in a 122-108 loss against the New York Knicks. Brandon ended up dropping 29 points with three rebounds and two assists. As a unit, Charlotte has to pick up the intensity on both ends of the floor. They rank 26th in points, and rebounds, 24th in assists, 23rd in steals, and 27th in three-pointers made. They rank 14th in free throw percentage which is their best statistical category this season. Once LaMelo Ball comes back, can the Hornets go on a big winning streak?
