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Justin Russo: The last time the Charlotte Hornets won a playoff game, Courtney Lee hit the game-winner and Marvin Williams led them in scoring. LaMelo Ball and Moussa Diabaté were 14 years old, Brandon Miller was 13, and Kon Knueppel was 10.
Charlotte Hornets star Brandon Miller was in awe as a rookie when he saw NHRA drag race star Antron Brown push to more than 300 mph on a quarter-mile track in a race lasting just seconds. Pushing the pace and winning will also be necessary if Miller and his Hornets hope to take the next step toward making the NBA playoffs. Miller and the Eastern Conference’s ninth-seeded Hornets host the 10th-seed Miami Heat in a play-in tournament game in Charlotte tonight. The winner will go on the road Friday to play the loser of Wednesday’s 7-8 game between the Philadelphia 76ers and Orlando Magic. The reward is a first-round playoff matchup against the East No. 1 seed Detroit Pistons. “We know it’s going to be a tight physical game,” Miller said about tonight against Miami. “So, we’re just going in there with the mindset of doing what we do best — playing in transition, our pace. Push the pace. Get our defensive habits back up.”
Ball and Knueppel have formed a Hornets 3-point shooting duo of the future that has a new-age Splash Brothers feel to it. Charlotte has been perhaps the best story of the NBA season and authored the most surprising turnaround with a potent starting five that includes the emerging Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabate. The Hornets won 44 games after totaling just 19 wins a season ago. Only the Spurs have had a bigger turnaround this season. "Nobody's thinking that playing Charlotte is going to be an easy walkover game," Knueppel told ESPN. "Which it has been the last couple years."
Sam Perley: Hornets beat New York, 110-96, in their season finale. Coby White/LaMelo Ball/Brandon Miller all with 19 PTS, Kon Knueppel 14 PTS, likely finishing as the NBA leader in 3PM (273) - first rookie to do so. From 16-28 to finishing 28-10, Charlotte is the 9 seed and will host Miami in the Play-In.
Rod Boone: Final: #Hornets 114, Knicks 103 Kon Knueppel 26 pts, 10 rebs, 8 asts Brandon Miller 21 pts, 8 rebs, 3 asts LaMelo 20 pts, 6 asts, 5 rebs Miles Bridges 17 pts, 5 rebs, 3 asts Coby White 17 pts, 3 rebs, 2 asts That's 5 straight wins Up next: vs. Philadelphia on Saturday
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“Him on the defensive side, nobody really talks about it,” Brandon Miller said. “I think everybody always looks at the one-legged threes, the flashy moves, the flashy lobs. The one thing that separates him this season is the defensive effort and the competitor that he is. Just stepping up in tough games and guarding the best players and trying not to foul. It’s him just trying new things. “So him being open-minded is great for us.”
Rod Boone: Final: #Hornets 136, Heat 106 LaMelo 30 pts, 13 asts, 6 rebs Kon Knueppel 22 pts, 2 rebs, 2 asts Coby White 22 pts, 3 rebs, 2 asts Brandon Miller 16 pts, 2 rebs, 2 asts Up next: vs. Orlando on Thursday (Dell Curry jersey retirement)
Brandon Miller: “He saved me. (Jerami Grant) got by me, winning play by Kon. That’s all we ask for is just everybody make all the winning plays, and Kon was in the position to make a play. So just having that mindset of being a winner in Kon, I think that’s kinda what separates him from all the other rookies.”
Mike Curtis: Final: #Hornets 117, #Mavs 90. Dallas drops its fourth straight and first of a season-long six-game road trip. Not enough 3-point shooting. Mavs made 3 of 22. Charlotte made 20 of 51. Brandon Williams led with 18 points. Brandon Miller led Charlotte with 17 points.
NBA Communications: Other nominees… West: Saddiq Bey (NOP), Luka Dončić (LAL), Kevin Durant (HOU) and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (OKC) East: Jalen Brunson (NYK), Cade Cunningham (DET), Jonathan Kuminga (ATL), Tyrese Maxey (PHI) and Brandon Miller (CHA)
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Scott Agness: After a good first quarter for the Pacers, it was all Hornets after that: 133-109. 16-3 run to start the 2nd, a period they outscored Pacers 36-12. Brandon Miller scored 33, Kon Knueppel had 28. CHA was 22/46 from 3. Obi Toppin started, played 8mins in 1H Next: Sun. v MEM
Rookie Kon Knueppel became the fastest player to reach 200 three-pointers in NBA history as the Charlotte Hornets defeated the Chicago Bulls 131-99. The 20-year-old American scored 21 points, including three three-pointers, while Brandon Miller added 23 as the visiting Hornets condemned the Bulls to a 10th consecutive defeat for the first time since the 2018-19 season. Knueppel needed only 58 games to tally up his 200th three-pointer - 11 less than previous record holder Duncan Robinson - and is also just the second rookie to reach the milestone. With a league-leading 201 three-pointers, Knueppel only needs six more to break Keegan Murray's record of 206 in 2022-23 for the Sacramento Kings for the most threes made by a rookie in their first season. Having played college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils, Knueppel was drafted as a fourth overall pick by the Hornets in the 2025 draft. "It is exciting and refreshing [to coach Knueppel]," said head coach Charles Lee after the Hornets' eighth straight win on the road.
Sam Perley: Brandon Miller has set a @hornets' franchise record with 54 consecutive made free throws, breaking Kemba Walker's mark of 53 (March 2018). Miller missed the next FTA, so the streak is over.