Welcome to the Hornets Haveivecast presented by Charlotte I ear, nosen Throat Associates, the official I ear, nos in throatcare provider of the Charlotte Hornets. Here's your host, Sam Farber.

Welcome to the Hornets Haveivecast presented by Charlotte I ear, nosen Throat Associates, the official I ear, nos in throatcare provider of the Charlotte Hornets. Here's your host, Sam Farber.

Welcome to another edition of the Hornet Time Cast, your Hornets podcast with all the notes, quote san daily buzz around your favorite NB eighteen. I'm Sam Farber and it is a pleasure and a privilege have you with us here once again on the Hornet Time Cast, brought to you by Santa Charlotte, Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Associates, the official I ear, nos and throat care provider of the Charlotte Hornets. It's a game day edition of the AHAC, well it is depending on when you're listening to this. Hornets are going to be hosting the Chicago Bulls on Monday night. Also a silver linings edition is the Hornets Fell on Saturday to the Oklahoma City Thunder. We know it's the holidays. We know might be in er out of your normal podcast formula right now, but whenever you're tuned into us, we appreciate you joining us here on the AHC. And whether you're looking for a recap of the loss to OKC one o six to ninety four, or a preview of the game on Monday against the Chicago Bulls. We have you covered here on the Hornets Hive cast, myself, Sam Farber, and Rob Longo here with you for this episode. Rob Charlotte a hard fight against OKC, but a short handed Hornets team comes up short. There was no Lamello ball, no Brandon Miller, the top two scorers on the team unavailable. Usually is not a good recipe for winning. Neither is having fewer made field goals than the opposition had total assists in a game. Charlotte shooting percentage not where it needed to be to get the win, and yet a lot of silver linings to take away from the loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder and overall, I thought a really solid effort from a Hornets team that at seven and twenty four at the end of the night against a twenty five and five Thunder team was a heavy underdog. I thought the Hornets equiped themselves well, played well, and continue to move the ball in the right direction here for the long term for the franchise.

Welcome to another edition of the Hornet Time Cast, your Hornets podcast with all the notes, quote san daily buzz around your favorite NB eighteen. I'm Sam Farber and it is a pleasure and a privilege have you with us here once again on the Hornet Time Cast, brought to you by Santa Charlotte, Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Associates, the official I ear, nos and throat care provider of the Charlotte Hornets. It's a game day edition of the AHAC, well it is depending on when you're listening to this. Hornets are going to be hosting the Chicago Bulls on Monday night. Also a silver linings edition is the Hornets Fell on Saturday to the Oklahoma City Thunder. We know it's the holidays. We know might be in er out of your normal podcast formula right now, but whenever you're tuned into us, we appreciate you joining us here on the AHC. And whether you're looking for a recap of the loss to OKC one o six to ninety four, or a preview of the game on Monday against the Chicago Bulls. We have you covered here on the Hornets Hive cast, myself, Sam Farber, and Rob Longo here with you for this episode. Rob Charlotte a hard fight against OKC, but a short handed Hornets team comes up short. There was no Lamello ball, no Brandon Miller, the top two scorers on the team unavailable. Usually is not a good recipe for winning. Neither is having fewer made field goals than the opposition had total assists in a game. Charlotte shooting percentage not where it needed to be to get the win, and yet a lot of silver linings to take away from the loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder and overall, I thought a really solid effort from a Hornets team that at seven and twenty four at the end of the night against a twenty five and five Thunder team was a heavy underdog. I thought the Hornets equiped themselves well, played well, and continue to move the ball in the right direction here for the long term for the franchise.

Yeah, there were just some really weird numbers in this one.

Yeah, there were just some really weird numbers in this one.

If you back it up to the first quarter, the Hornets were down twenty eight twenty two going into the set and frame. They did a really good job taking care of the basketball. They only turned a ball over once, considering that they had nineteen the other night against Washington Wizards. And then Oklahoma City had three turnovers on its own in the first quarter alone, which was significant considering that in their previous game they turned the ball over a total of three times. So the Hornets were doing a pretty good job at least turning them over a little bit Oklahoma City that is, and just doing a better job taking care of the basketball. And even though it was only a six point spread after one quarter of play, it's kind of a resilient number in itself because the thunder were shooting fifty two percent from the field and the Hornets were shooting twenty seven percent from the field, and they went two for ten from three in the first quarter alone, And that was just kind of a microcosm of the game if you look at those numbers in the first quarter, because at the end of the game, the Hornets in fact ended up shooting better than OKAC from three. They shot about thirty two percent. Oklahoma City shot twenty six percent. But again the Thunder did a good job attacking the paint. They shot about forty eight percent from the field. The Hornets shot about thirty six percent from the field fifty six to twenty eight. Oklahoma City had the points in a paint battle. One ificantly, they did a good job shoting to basketball. Like you mentioned, those are just recipes for disaster a little bit. But the Hornets did a better job shooting the three. We've seen that rounding in the form now the last couple of games, and he did a really good job going to the free throw line. They went twenty five to twenty eight at the free throw line. The Thunder went twelve or fourteen at the stripe. Jay gilges Alexander five to six at the free throw line. I think in his previous game against the Pacers, he was eleven for eleven at the stripe. So they did a better job limiting Sga in a sense where he wasn't taking a ton of free throws or having a parade to the free throw line. Now, granted he was eight to fifteen from the field, but he did only go one for six for three, so they did a pretty good job making sure that other Thunder players were going to beat the Hornets because SGA, again, he's an MVP candidate, he's a great player. He's averaging over thirty points per game this season. They held him to twenty two. When you hold somebody to twenty two, you think that's crazy talk. But when you're talking about a guy in the MVP conversation, that's a pretty good night. So again, there's a lot of bad numbers in there offensively for the Hornets, but defensively holding OKC one six, they're not a great offensive team, but they're still the best team in the Western Conference for a reason.

If you back it up to the first quarter, the Hornets were down twenty eight twenty two going into the set and frame. They did a really good job taking care of the basketball. They only turned a ball over once, considering that they had nineteen the other night against Washington Wizards. And then Oklahoma City had three turnovers on its own in the first quarter alone, which was significant considering that in their previous game they turned the ball over a total of three times. So the Hornets were doing a pretty good job at least turning them over a little bit Oklahoma City that is, and just doing a better job taking care of the basketball. And even though it was only a six point spread after one quarter of play, it's kind of a resilient number in itself because the thunder were shooting fifty two percent from the field and the Hornets were shooting twenty seven percent from the field, and they went two for ten from three in the first quarter alone, And that was just kind of a microcosm of the game if you look at those numbers in the first quarter, because at the end of the game, the Hornets in fact ended up shooting better than OKAC from three. They shot about thirty two percent. Oklahoma City shot twenty six percent. But again the Thunder did a good job attacking the paint. They shot about forty eight percent from the field. The Hornets shot about thirty six percent from the field fifty six to twenty eight. Oklahoma City had the points in a paint battle. One ificantly, they did a good job shoting to basketball. Like you mentioned, those are just recipes for disaster a little bit. But the Hornets did a better job shooting the three. We've seen that rounding in the form now the last couple of games, and he did a really good job going to the free throw line. They went twenty five to twenty eight at the free throw line. The Thunder went twelve or fourteen at the stripe. Jay gilges Alexander five to six at the free throw line. I think in his previous game against the Pacers, he was eleven for eleven at the stripe. So they did a better job limiting Sga in a sense where he wasn't taking a ton of free throws or having a parade to the free throw line. Now, granted he was eight to fifteen from the field, but he did only go one for six for three, so they did a pretty good job making sure that other Thunder players were going to beat the Hornets because SGA, again, he's an MVP candidate, he's a great player. He's averaging over thirty points per game this season. They held him to twenty two. When you hold somebody to twenty two, you think that's crazy talk. But when you're talking about a guy in the MVP conversation, that's a pretty good night. So again, there's a lot of bad numbers in there offensively for the Hornets, but defensively holding OKC one six, they're not a great offensive team, but they're still the best team in the Western Conference for a reason.

Yeah, Sja LaMelo Ball, these are a couple of the players who you can justifiably say held them to twenty two points. That is true because they average in the thirties most nights. You know, going into the game, it's easy to look at the records and just say, all right, the Thunder they're the best team in the West. The Hornets have lost six in a row going into that one, now seven and fourteen of their last fifteen at the time, now fifteen of the last sixteen. They are two teams at the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of record and going in an opposite direction. So this one should be pretty much arithmetic. But there's a deeper thing here that I think, you know, you have to applaud the Hornets for one, for the effort for fighting throughout the game, for overcoming some of the things that have been kind of a main part of this trend here for Charlotte and try to find answers. I think at the end, Oklahoma City won this game because what they do best they did well. They make you turn the ball over and they win. The turnover margin on a nightly basis points off turn was a plus ten for the Thunder in a game they won by twelve. The thing they do best they did well and therefore they won the game. For Charlotte, the thing that they've struggled with the most this season has been shooting percentage. They have the weakest field goal percentage in the NBA over the entirety of the season at forty two point nine percent, and then the lost to Okace they shut just thirty six percent from the floor, so especially low. And the question is is this them finding the right mix on the floor. Is this something that is a fundamental flaw of the roster, and that's why they're not shooting well, or what I think it is, it's the injuries. How many games have we talked about where LaMelo ball is out or Brandon Miller's out, or Miles Bridges is out, or all the centers are out, or you know, it goes down the line. Even looking at the bench, Grant Williams has done for the year with an ACL tear. Trey Mann has missed more games than Grant Williams has missed with a back injury, and he's hopefully going to come back at some point here. But that's a lot of firepower to be down. That's a lot of efficiency to be down. Oh, by the way, Cody Martin was out in that game against the Thunder as well. So I think there is a clearer explanation for why the hornets shooting woes have been what they have been over the course of the season, and we're continuing to see progress. We saw a full game of the preseason projected starting five. It actually happened that Hornets didn't win the game, but we saw a better mousetrap, a more efficient mouse trap, a better offensive showing from the Hornets in that game, and I'm continuing to like the signs we're seeing here from Mark Williams. Another step in the right direction. After having a season high end points in a career high and assist against Washington, he comes out with his first double double of the season twentieth of his career in the lost OKAC. They weren't amazing numbers. They're honestly, what we should probably expect is average numbers for Mark Williams on a nightly basis twelve points and ten rebounds. But he put him up there. It's the first time this year he's done it. And it's about stacking these performances on top of each other, one after the other that'll get the Hornets going where they want to go. Ultimately, it is another loss, and the frustrations are there. But something I took away as a positive here from the team is their outlook on things and how to move forward and Hornet said coach Charles Lee addressed that after.

Yeah, Sja LaMelo Ball, these are a couple of the players who you can justifiably say held them to twenty two points. That is true because they average in the thirties most nights. You know, going into the game, it's easy to look at the records and just say, all right, the Thunder they're the best team in the West. The Hornets have lost six in a row going into that one, now seven and fourteen of their last fifteen at the time, now fifteen of the last sixteen. They are two teams at the opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of record and going in an opposite direction. So this one should be pretty much arithmetic. But there's a deeper thing here that I think, you know, you have to applaud the Hornets for one, for the effort for fighting throughout the game, for overcoming some of the things that have been kind of a main part of this trend here for Charlotte and try to find answers. I think at the end, Oklahoma City won this game because what they do best they did well. They make you turn the ball over and they win. The turnover margin on a nightly basis points off turn was a plus ten for the Thunder in a game they won by twelve. The thing they do best they did well and therefore they won the game. For Charlotte, the thing that they've struggled with the most this season has been shooting percentage. They have the weakest field goal percentage in the NBA over the entirety of the season at forty two point nine percent, and then the lost to Okace they shut just thirty six percent from the floor, so especially low. And the question is is this them finding the right mix on the floor. Is this something that is a fundamental flaw of the roster, and that's why they're not shooting well, or what I think it is, it's the injuries. How many games have we talked about where LaMelo ball is out or Brandon Miller's out, or Miles Bridges is out, or all the centers are out, or you know, it goes down the line. Even looking at the bench, Grant Williams has done for the year with an ACL tear. Trey Mann has missed more games than Grant Williams has missed with a back injury, and he's hopefully going to come back at some point here. But that's a lot of firepower to be down. That's a lot of efficiency to be down. Oh, by the way, Cody Martin was out in that game against the Thunder as well. So I think there is a clearer explanation for why the hornets shooting woes have been what they have been over the course of the season, and we're continuing to see progress. We saw a full game of the preseason projected starting five. It actually happened that Hornets didn't win the game, but we saw a better mousetrap, a more efficient mouse trap, a better offensive showing from the Hornets in that game, and I'm continuing to like the signs we're seeing here from Mark Williams. Another step in the right direction. After having a season high end points in a career high and assist against Washington, he comes out with his first double double of the season twentieth of his career in the lost OKAC. They weren't amazing numbers. They're honestly, what we should probably expect is average numbers for Mark Williams on a nightly basis twelve points and ten rebounds. But he put him up there. It's the first time this year he's done it. And it's about stacking these performances on top of each other, one after the other that'll get the Hornets going where they want to go. Ultimately, it is another loss, and the frustrations are there. But something I took away as a positive here from the team is their outlook on things and how to move forward and Hornet said coach Charles Lee addressed that after.

The game, like, adversity is evident in life and in basketball, and it's gonna happen, and so we just have to be prepared to handle it the best that we possibly can. And I think that the mindset that we come to work with every day, the mindset for every game, the competitiveness, the togetherness is just important to a stand and everyone's journey is different. There's no quit in this team, and there's a ton of fight, which is what I love because that's what it's going to take. Nobody's gonna feel sorry for us. Life doesn't feel sorry for you. The world keeps spinning and so like, you got to figure out how do I just kind of reset, refocus and come with the right kind of attitude to try to make a change. And a lot of that has got to be your actions.

The game, like, adversity is evident in life and in basketball, and it's gonna happen, and so we just have to be prepared to handle it the best that we possibly can. And I think that the mindset that we come to work with every day, the mindset for every game, the competitiveness, the togetherness is just important to a stand and everyone's journey is different. There's no quit in this team, and there's a ton of fight, which is what I love because that's what it's going to take. Nobody's gonna feel sorry for us. Life doesn't feel sorry for you. The world keeps spinning and so like, you got to figure out how do I just kind of reset, refocus and come with the right kind of attitude to try to make a change. And a lot of that has got to be your actions.

Rob.

Rob.

I just love the outlook and you know what he's talking about. Their life can be hard sometimes, but life is great. We listen, this team is seven and twenty four. No one thought they would deal with this many injuries or this many losses. At this stage of the season. We get to come in night and night out watch basketball. They get to come in night at night out play basketball or find answers to tough questions and the profession that they love. It doesn't get any better than this. I'd imagine the only thing better would be doing it while winning, and hopefully that is coming, But as coach said, the adversity is what makes you stronger for the long haul, and better days are to come in terms of the record, but the good times are already here in terms of appreciating the opportunity in front of all of us that get to be associated with the Hornets.

I just love the outlook and you know what he's talking about. Their life can be hard sometimes, but life is great. We listen, this team is seven and twenty four. No one thought they would deal with this many injuries or this many losses. At this stage of the season. We get to come in night and night out watch basketball. They get to come in night at night out play basketball or find answers to tough questions and the profession that they love. It doesn't get any better than this. I'd imagine the only thing better would be doing it while winning, and hopefully that is coming, But as coach said, the adversity is what makes you stronger for the long haul, and better days are to come in terms of the record, but the good times are already here in terms of appreciating the opportunity in front of all of us that get to be associated with the Hornets.

Yeah, I mean, it's a good life lesson. I don't know if I can say it any better than that. And that's just kind of the internal optimist to Charles Lee is. I mean, he exhused that, and even though when times look tough like they are right now at seven and twenty four, he's still finding the positives. He's still finding those silver linings, if you will, even though we do it on a now unfortunately almost nightly basis here on a Hornet iove cast. But I mean he's got the motivation, he's got the mindset of this being the right way. It's just trying to turn things out a little bit too. And of course, you know, you don't want to miss guys and have guys go out with injuries and be a little banged up going up against the best team in the Western Conference like they did against Oklahoma City on Saturday. But now hopefully you have an extra couple of days to kind of reset a little bit, and then you get a Chicago team coming in on Monday that, yeah, they're banged up also, and the last time that these two teams played, neither team played very well. And keep in mind too, Chicago does have the ability to play well. I know I'm getting ahead of us here with a little bit of a mini game preview, but again, if you look a little bit further down the line, the Hornet's got Chicago on Monday, they get a couple of days off for the new year, and then they're on the road in Detroit and then I'm not saying it gets easier, but it's definitely not playing the best team in the West night in and night out. They do have a really tough stretch in front of them in January when you got to go on the West Coast and you have a majority of your schedule out there on a lengthy road trip, and then you finally come home and have a really nice home stand at the end of the month. But again, there's just things that you got to kind of chip away ad and chip away ad and take it one day at a time, and Hornet to have an opportunity to do that here a little bit later on against Chicago.

Yeah, I mean, it's a good life lesson. I don't know if I can say it any better than that. And that's just kind of the internal optimist to Charles Lee is. I mean, he exhused that, and even though when times look tough like they are right now at seven and twenty four, he's still finding the positives. He's still finding those silver linings, if you will, even though we do it on a now unfortunately almost nightly basis here on a Hornet iove cast. But I mean he's got the motivation, he's got the mindset of this being the right way. It's just trying to turn things out a little bit too. And of course, you know, you don't want to miss guys and have guys go out with injuries and be a little banged up going up against the best team in the Western Conference like they did against Oklahoma City on Saturday. But now hopefully you have an extra couple of days to kind of reset a little bit, and then you get a Chicago team coming in on Monday that, yeah, they're banged up also, and the last time that these two teams played, neither team played very well. And keep in mind too, Chicago does have the ability to play well. I know I'm getting ahead of us here with a little bit of a mini game preview, but again, if you look a little bit further down the line, the Hornet's got Chicago on Monday, they get a couple of days off for the new year, and then they're on the road in Detroit and then I'm not saying it gets easier, but it's definitely not playing the best team in the West night in and night out. They do have a really tough stretch in front of them in January when you got to go on the West Coast and you have a majority of your schedule out there on a lengthy road trip, and then you finally come home and have a really nice home stand at the end of the month. But again, there's just things that you got to kind of chip away ad and chip away ad and take it one day at a time, and Hornet to have an opportunity to do that here a little bit later on against Chicago.

Yeah, I think you know, overall, it is just about continuing to find the way to play that is going to yield the consistent results, regardless of location, regardless of opponent. Oklahoma City doesn't seem to care who they're playing, where they're playing. They're just going out and playing their way and believing that if they do what they're supposed to do, they hit the right number of shots, the right number of defensive stops, that they're going to get w's more often than not. And I think that kind of team resides in Charlotte. It is about getting it on the floor healthy and finding that format that will yield victory more often than not. We'll see if the Hornets can start that journey on Monday against the Chicago Bulls. But first up, we got to do silver Linings. That's next here on the Hornets Podcasts. Sam farbar Roblongo here with you on the HC the Hornets pode Cast, brought to you by scent A. Hornets fell to the thunder one oh six to ninety four. To start the weekend, we are doing kind of a combo episode. It is the holidays, it is a weekend. I will take the Sunday off from a recording. Hopefully you will stick with us and be back if you're looking for the game preview for Monday's game against Chicago that is coming up next segment, But right now, time for silver linings. From one oh six to ninety four loss. Hornet had to play without LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, and Cody Morton on top of the extended absences of Grant Williams and Trey Man, and came up with a spirited effort. Yes, they fall by twelve, but they were in it throughout the game and really, you know, played well overall. I thought all five players in the starting line up finishing in double figures plus one off the bench. Planning to choose from for silver linings, Rob Longo, where would you like to go for me?

Yeah, I think you know, overall, it is just about continuing to find the way to play that is going to yield the consistent results, regardless of location, regardless of opponent. Oklahoma City doesn't seem to care who they're playing, where they're playing. They're just going out and playing their way and believing that if they do what they're supposed to do, they hit the right number of shots, the right number of defensive stops, that they're going to get w's more often than not. And I think that kind of team resides in Charlotte. It is about getting it on the floor healthy and finding that format that will yield victory more often than not. We'll see if the Hornets can start that journey on Monday against the Chicago Bulls. But first up, we got to do silver Linings. That's next here on the Hornets Podcasts. Sam farbar Roblongo here with you on the HC the Hornets pode Cast, brought to you by scent A. Hornets fell to the thunder one oh six to ninety four. To start the weekend, we are doing kind of a combo episode. It is the holidays, it is a weekend. I will take the Sunday off from a recording. Hopefully you will stick with us and be back if you're looking for the game preview for Monday's game against Chicago that is coming up next segment, But right now, time for silver linings. From one oh six to ninety four loss. Hornet had to play without LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, and Cody Morton on top of the extended absences of Grant Williams and Trey Man, and came up with a spirited effort. Yes, they fall by twelve, but they were in it throughout the game and really, you know, played well overall. I thought all five players in the starting line up finishing in double figures plus one off the bench. Planning to choose from for silver linings, Rob Longo, where would you like to go for me?

I'm gonna go off the beaten path a little bit. I'm gonna take Seth.

I'm gonna go off the beaten path a little bit. I'm gonna take Seth.

Curry kickout bridges four to three, short rebound, Curry puts it up and cut it in a foul. Seth Curry flying amongst the trees, puts a foul on Hartenstein.

Curry kickout bridges four to three, short rebound, Curry puts it up and cut it in a foul. Seth Curry flying amongst the trees, puts a foul on Hartenstein.

You encapsulated that perfectly there on the call where he's fighting among the trees and going in there against some of the bigger bodies, a very unconventional Seth Curry play. I would say, you used to having him out on a wing or in the corner hitting a deep three. But in this instance he had and I thought he did a pretty good job and a little bit of a spot start. His first start since December nineteenth on the road at Washington. He's kind of been in and out of the rotation here a little bit in just terms of not playing a whole lot of minutes. But I thought Seth did a pretty good job yesterday in a starting role. Four of eight from the field, one for two from three in all three of his free throws. He is a Curry, after all, He's going to hit his free throws, you would imagine, and you would hope a couple of rebounds in there, even had a block, played a little bit of defense. I know that the plus minus wasn't particularly kind to Seth Curry, but overall, I thought the offense was fairly solid for the most part of all things considered, because well, there wasn't a whole lot of offense to go round for the Hornets in that game yesterday. He had five points in that first quarter, finished with nine in the first half alone, and ends up finishing the game with twelve. So not a whole lot going there in that second half, But I think he kind of gave way a little bit to some of the guys that rounded into form, like a Miles Bridges who had a majority of his points there in the second half. Josh Green was able to light it up a little bit, and a couple of other guys as well. But I thought Seth Curry did a pretty admirable job stepping in in a difficult spot here today. So that's why he's my silver linings pick.

You encapsulated that perfectly there on the call where he's fighting among the trees and going in there against some of the bigger bodies, a very unconventional Seth Curry play. I would say, you used to having him out on a wing or in the corner hitting a deep three. But in this instance he had and I thought he did a pretty good job and a little bit of a spot start. His first start since December nineteenth on the road at Washington. He's kind of been in and out of the rotation here a little bit in just terms of not playing a whole lot of minutes. But I thought Seth did a pretty good job yesterday in a starting role. Four of eight from the field, one for two from three in all three of his free throws. He is a Curry, after all, He's going to hit his free throws, you would imagine, and you would hope a couple of rebounds in there, even had a block, played a little bit of defense. I know that the plus minus wasn't particularly kind to Seth Curry, but overall, I thought the offense was fairly solid for the most part of all things considered, because well, there wasn't a whole lot of offense to go round for the Hornets in that game yesterday. He had five points in that first quarter, finished with nine in the first half alone, and ends up finishing the game with twelve. So not a whole lot going there in that second half, But I think he kind of gave way a little bit to some of the guys that rounded into form, like a Miles Bridges who had a majority of his points there in the second half. Josh Green was able to light it up a little bit, and a couple of other guys as well. But I thought Seth Curry did a pretty admirable job stepping in in a difficult spot here today. So that's why he's my silver linings pick.

I like it Seth Curry. You know, he has not had the consistency of minutes, and as a veteran, he knows how to do his work to be ready for these spots starts where they come. I think at some point, you know, there was probably going to be more days for him in the rotation than not, and some of these decisions will get made in his favor because he's a Curry. He shoots better than forty percent from three. He had that dreadful opening night free throw shooting which is just submarined. It's got to be driving him nuts because you know, normally he shoots like ninety something percent from the foul line, and he has been in the eighties and low eighties, and now he's kind of like nosed it up to eighty five percent with a good day at the stripe the other day against Oklahoma City. But yeah, I mean, he's such a solid, rock solid player and loves his hometown and is competing well for it. So I like him getting some love here. A couple options. First off, tips of the cap. Speaking of free throws, Isaiah wan career high six made free throws in the loss the other day to Oklahoma City. He's one of the guys competing quite frankly with Seth Curry for more minutes, and he's making strong arguments for himself by posting you double figure outputs in a game the Hornets lost by twelve. He was a positive in the plus minus. Sometimes that's coincidence, sometimes not, but Isaiah Wong scoring the basketball, getting to the foul line, making some things happen. I liked the result for him, and always fun to see him or anyone get a career high. So hats off there Mark Williams, as I mentioned earlier, first double double of the season, twentieth of his career, finishing with twelve points and ten rebounds. My pick, though, for silver linings, I gotta go with a guy who really had to grind to get his numbers, but did so and had some Hornet's history in the process. That would be Miles Bridges. Isaiah Wong full drive puts up the off balance runner and the rebound it tip slam from Miles Bridges let out some frustration, big fella, doctor pepper Dung. Miles had been struggling with his shot in the first half. In the second half he kind of shied away from the three ball and just attacked the rim, attack the paint and started to find more success. He needed eighteen points going into the day to ascend up the Hornets record list or the Hornets leader board I should say franchise leader board for career scoring. He got exactly what he needed. He needed eighteen to tie nineteen to move past Glenn Rice. He scores nineteen and so Miles Bridges is now the sixth all time leading score in Hornet's franchise history. Has a good opportunity to move into the top five. He's about three hundred points away, so he is likely to climb another rung and catch up too. I think it would be Terry Rogier if I'm not mistaken for a spot in the top five in Hornet's franchise history. It is Terry Rozier that is next up on the list. Furthermore, a couple other stats for you matched LaMelo ball for fifth in Hornet's franchise history and career made threes. Lamello had the injury holding him out for the night, and so Miles Bridges takes advantage only made one three. It was not a great shooting night, but one is enough. He now has six hundred and twenty five threes, tied with LaMelo for fifth. They're both within striking range of Marvin Williams to move into a top four spot. And oh, by the way, just because he was looking at the leaderboard, Brandon Miller is currently already in the top twenty in Hornet's franchise history, and like a season and a quarter speaks to how good of a three point shooter he is. He's one hundred and sixty threes away from making it into the top ten. Now that would be a two hundred and fifty made three season for a second year guy, which is astronomical. It'd be one of the forty best three point shooting seasons in NBA history. But if someone's got the talent to do it, it's Brandon Miller. So a thing to keep our eye on down the stretch. Obviously, Brandon's got to get healthy and continue to knock down threes with the kind of frequency that he has most of the year. But if he remains healthy and plays, you know, the back fifty games of the season, I think he's got a chance to do it. Making three plus threes per night and making his way onto the top ten list in the Hornets franchise is history in his first two seasons.

I like it Seth Curry. You know, he has not had the consistency of minutes, and as a veteran, he knows how to do his work to be ready for these spots starts where they come. I think at some point, you know, there was probably going to be more days for him in the rotation than not, and some of these decisions will get made in his favor because he's a Curry. He shoots better than forty percent from three. He had that dreadful opening night free throw shooting which is just submarined. It's got to be driving him nuts because you know, normally he shoots like ninety something percent from the foul line, and he has been in the eighties and low eighties, and now he's kind of like nosed it up to eighty five percent with a good day at the stripe the other day against Oklahoma City. But yeah, I mean, he's such a solid, rock solid player and loves his hometown and is competing well for it. So I like him getting some love here. A couple options. First off, tips of the cap. Speaking of free throws, Isaiah wan career high six made free throws in the loss the other day to Oklahoma City. He's one of the guys competing quite frankly with Seth Curry for more minutes, and he's making strong arguments for himself by posting you double figure outputs in a game the Hornets lost by twelve. He was a positive in the plus minus. Sometimes that's coincidence, sometimes not, but Isaiah Wong scoring the basketball, getting to the foul line, making some things happen. I liked the result for him, and always fun to see him or anyone get a career high. So hats off there Mark Williams, as I mentioned earlier, first double double of the season, twentieth of his career, finishing with twelve points and ten rebounds. My pick, though, for silver linings, I gotta go with a guy who really had to grind to get his numbers, but did so and had some Hornet's history in the process. That would be Miles Bridges. Isaiah Wong full drive puts up the off balance runner and the rebound it tip slam from Miles Bridges let out some frustration, big fella, doctor pepper Dung. Miles had been struggling with his shot in the first half. In the second half he kind of shied away from the three ball and just attacked the rim, attack the paint and started to find more success. He needed eighteen points going into the day to ascend up the Hornets record list or the Hornets leader board I should say franchise leader board for career scoring. He got exactly what he needed. He needed eighteen to tie nineteen to move past Glenn Rice. He scores nineteen and so Miles Bridges is now the sixth all time leading score in Hornet's franchise history. Has a good opportunity to move into the top five. He's about three hundred points away, so he is likely to climb another rung and catch up too. I think it would be Terry Rogier if I'm not mistaken for a spot in the top five in Hornet's franchise history. It is Terry Rozier that is next up on the list. Furthermore, a couple other stats for you matched LaMelo ball for fifth in Hornet's franchise history and career made threes. Lamello had the injury holding him out for the night, and so Miles Bridges takes advantage only made one three. It was not a great shooting night, but one is enough. He now has six hundred and twenty five threes, tied with LaMelo for fifth. They're both within striking range of Marvin Williams to move into a top four spot. And oh, by the way, just because he was looking at the leaderboard, Brandon Miller is currently already in the top twenty in Hornet's franchise history, and like a season and a quarter speaks to how good of a three point shooter he is. He's one hundred and sixty threes away from making it into the top ten. Now that would be a two hundred and fifty made three season for a second year guy, which is astronomical. It'd be one of the forty best three point shooting seasons in NBA history. But if someone's got the talent to do it, it's Brandon Miller. So a thing to keep our eye on down the stretch. Obviously, Brandon's got to get healthy and continue to knock down threes with the kind of frequency that he has most of the year. But if he remains healthy and plays, you know, the back fifty games of the season, I think he's got a chance to do it. Making three plus threes per night and making his way onto the top ten list in the Hornets franchise is history in his first two seasons.

Do you have a life outside of work?

Do you have a life outside of work?

Sam?

Sam?

Not much of thee I was gonna say, like, who's looking this stuff up? Like you are absolutely absurd? That's all I got.

Not much of thee I was gonna say, like, who's looking this stuff up? Like you are absolutely absurd? That's all I got.

That's all I can add to this conversation, because I can't say, oh, well, if you go back and you look at this one, and if you do some some algebra and you pull the X down here, then based off of this projection and he can go this way because of the pace.

That's all I can add to this conversation, because I can't say, oh, well, if you go back and you look at this one, and if you do some some algebra and you pull the X down here, then based off of this projection and he can go this way because of the pace.

That he's on. You lost me.

That he's on. You lost me.

Listen.

Listen.

I know you're only a math minor, but you lost it.

I know you're only a math minor, but you lost it.

It's only one of the top forty seasons in the history of the NBA. I think I think he can do it.

It's only one of the top forty seasons in the history of the NBA. I think I think he can do it.

Now.

Now.

Most of that list is Steph Curry and he has the all time record at four hundred threes in a season, So that that's not gonna happen this year for Brandon Miller, although maybe I'll speak it into existence then he'll be even higher on the total pole. We'll see if he gets there. If he's able to play Monday against Chicago would be a good start. Speaking of which, we got a game preview to bring you. That's next here on the Hornets. Iive Cast Farber and Rob Loongo here with you on the AHHC. If you were looking for your game preview of Hornets versus Bulls, the finale of the twenty twenty four portion of the twenty twenty four to twenty five season for your Charlotte Hornets, You're unlucky you found it. Hornet's taking on the Bulls tonight, the final home game of the calendar, and you know it's been a tough year. Rob Longo to say the least for Charlotte, a lot of injuries, a lot of change, but a lot of good stuff that has been happening, and hopefully the Hornets can wrap up the calendar year with a win. Now, as of the recording of this podcast, we don't have a firm update on the status of LaMelo Ball, Cody Martin or Brandon Miller, all of who missed the last game against OKC. Here is what Hornets head coach Charles Lee had to say after that game about the injury status of those three players.

Most of that list is Steph Curry and he has the all time record at four hundred threes in a season, So that that's not gonna happen this year for Brandon Miller, although maybe I'll speak it into existence then he'll be even higher on the total pole. We'll see if he gets there. If he's able to play Monday against Chicago would be a good start. Speaking of which, we got a game preview to bring you. That's next here on the Hornets. Iive Cast Farber and Rob Loongo here with you on the AHHC. If you were looking for your game preview of Hornets versus Bulls, the finale of the twenty twenty four portion of the twenty twenty four to twenty five season for your Charlotte Hornets, You're unlucky you found it. Hornet's taking on the Bulls tonight, the final home game of the calendar, and you know it's been a tough year. Rob Longo to say the least for Charlotte, a lot of injuries, a lot of change, but a lot of good stuff that has been happening, and hopefully the Hornets can wrap up the calendar year with a win. Now, as of the recording of this podcast, we don't have a firm update on the status of LaMelo Ball, Cody Martin or Brandon Miller, all of who missed the last game against OKC. Here is what Hornets head coach Charles Lee had to say after that game about the injury status of those three players.

Yeah, I think that just some of their Nixon bruises from that Washington game that weren't as comfortable as we were hoping that they were going to be, and those knicks and bruises were just I thinking a little bit of a I don't want to say worse, but just not in a good place for them to be able to go out and play tonight. And so after the game, we will continue to work with them and treat them and then figure out what the game plan is going forward.

Yeah, I think that just some of their Nixon bruises from that Washington game that weren't as comfortable as we were hoping that they were going to be, and those knicks and bruises were just I thinking a little bit of a I don't want to say worse, but just not in a good place for them to be able to go out and play tonight. And so after the game, we will continue to work with them and treat them and then figure out what the game plan is going forward.

Rob My perspective on this season has changed. I think it had to, given how many losses the Hornets have accumulated. Now fifteen in their last sixteen games. It's not fair to look at it and say, all right, if you win this one game will spark a turnaround and then we're talking playoffs. You can't look at the standings that way anymore. We have to look at it from an evaluation standpoint. Everyone is always being evaluated every day in the NBA. You're always fighting for your spot either in the four to fifty overall they get to play in this league, or your spot in the pecking order on your individual team where you rank among all stars, This, that, and the other. For the Hornets, this season has to become about can we get a long enough stretch with healthy bodies and Mark williams, LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges, and Brandon Miller to figure out what's here, to figure out how good the group is, what it needs around it, if it has the right complement of players, if this season would have gone differently as we thought it might have had they all been healthy night one. So missing a game in December is not a big deal if we get that longer stretch. Unfortunately, we're now thirty one games into the season and the Horns still haven't had back to back games where the preseason projected starting five all goes hopefully that starts against Chicago.

Rob My perspective on this season has changed. I think it had to, given how many losses the Hornets have accumulated. Now fifteen in their last sixteen games. It's not fair to look at it and say, all right, if you win this one game will spark a turnaround and then we're talking playoffs. You can't look at the standings that way anymore. We have to look at it from an evaluation standpoint. Everyone is always being evaluated every day in the NBA. You're always fighting for your spot either in the four to fifty overall they get to play in this league, or your spot in the pecking order on your individual team where you rank among all stars, This, that, and the other. For the Hornets, this season has to become about can we get a long enough stretch with healthy bodies and Mark williams, LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges, and Brandon Miller to figure out what's here, to figure out how good the group is, what it needs around it, if it has the right complement of players, if this season would have gone differently as we thought it might have had they all been healthy night one. So missing a game in December is not a big deal if we get that longer stretch. Unfortunately, we're now thirty one games into the season and the Horns still haven't had back to back games where the preseason projected starting five all goes hopefully that starts against Chicago.

Yeah, And I mean it's easy to look at that and say, Okay, well, these guys were being extra overcautious because they're playing Oklahoma City and they don't even have a chance to win this game to begin with.

Yeah, And I mean it's easy to look at that and say, Okay, well, these guys were being extra overcautious because they're playing Oklahoma City and they don't even have a chance to win this game to begin with.

So we're gonna sit those guys.

So we're gonna sit those guys.

If the schedule was flipped for whatever reason, if the Hornts playing in Chicago on Saturday or anybody else and then you played Oklahoma City coming into Monday and had a game we're previewing that game instead, it wouldn't have mattered. I mean, it's just the way that it worked out. The guys had some bumps and bruises after the game on Thursday. You don't really have a lot of time you come back. I know, Washington's not a very long flight or anything like that, but you still came back and you had to go with a lighter practice on Friday for a little bit of an earlier tip time on Saturday, where again a lot of these evaluations happened in shoot around before the game starts, whenever you're going over game plans because it was an earlier tip time, you didn't have shoot around before the game on Saturday to have that evaluation process. So all of those things culminate to just say, hey, let's yer on the side of caution. We're not going to risk anything again. The way that the season has gone. Again, it's not March. It's not the beginning of April. You're not fighting for one or two games to switch seeding or get a spot in a play in tournament or make sure you can get to the postseason or anything like that. It's December. We're still around what a third of the season gone. We're maybe a little bit past that point. Now I'm not a math guy. You are thirty seven and a half percent, So thirty seven okay, so you know we're a little bit over a third of the way through.

If the schedule was flipped for whatever reason, if the Hornts playing in Chicago on Saturday or anybody else and then you played Oklahoma City coming into Monday and had a game we're previewing that game instead, it wouldn't have mattered. I mean, it's just the way that it worked out. The guys had some bumps and bruises after the game on Thursday. You don't really have a lot of time you come back. I know, Washington's not a very long flight or anything like that, but you still came back and you had to go with a lighter practice on Friday for a little bit of an earlier tip time on Saturday, where again a lot of these evaluations happened in shoot around before the game starts, whenever you're going over game plans because it was an earlier tip time, you didn't have shoot around before the game on Saturday to have that evaluation process. So all of those things culminate to just say, hey, let's yer on the side of caution. We're not going to risk anything again. The way that the season has gone. Again, it's not March. It's not the beginning of April. You're not fighting for one or two games to switch seeding or get a spot in a play in tournament or make sure you can get to the postseason or anything like that. It's December. We're still around what a third of the season gone. We're maybe a little bit past that point. Now I'm not a math guy. You are thirty seven and a half percent, So thirty seven okay, so you know we're a little bit over a third of the way through.

But to your point, the point is we need that long stretch to happen, Yes and so.

But to your point, the point is we need that long stretch to happen, Yes and so.

And you can't have that if you're going to play these guys when they have a potential to get hurt even more.

And you can't have that if you're going to play these guys when they have a potential to get hurt even more.

Right, So, hopefully that begins here against Chicago and hopefully Charlotte can start a longer stretch. An opponent doesn't matter, venue doesn't matter. It's about getting that sample size, preferably, you know, before any kind of deals are done, so that you know exactly what you have and exactly what you think you need to continue to move this franchise. For all that said, hopefully Night one of that journey is against Chicago. It's game preview time, Rob. You know how these work when he plays to watch from both teams as well as he start to watch other than points, because that's cheating. Whoever scores the most wins the game. Where would you like to begin.

Right, So, hopefully that begins here against Chicago and hopefully Charlotte can start a longer stretch. An opponent doesn't matter, venue doesn't matter. It's about getting that sample size, preferably, you know, before any kind of deals are done, so that you know exactly what you have and exactly what you think you need to continue to move this franchise. For all that said, hopefully Night one of that journey is against Chicago. It's game preview time, Rob. You know how these work when he plays to watch from both teams as well as he start to watch other than points, because that's cheating. Whoever scores the most wins the game. Where would you like to begin.

Let's go ahead and begin with a Chicago player to watch. I'm gonna take a look Intokolovuovich. He is just a bona fide Hornet killer. At least he has been for the majority of his career. Quite frankly, if you go back all the way to his Orlando days before he got traded to Chicago, he was a thorn in the side of the Hornets back then, continues to.

Let's go ahead and begin with a Chicago player to watch. I'm gonna take a look Intokolovuovich. He is just a bona fide Hornet killer. At least he has been for the majority of his career. Quite frankly, if you go back all the way to his Orlando days before he got traded to Chicago, he was a thorn in the side of the Hornets back then, continues to.

Be that way now. Did not play in the last meeting between these two teams. Again.

Be that way now. Did not play in the last meeting between these two teams. Again.

That came back a couple of weeks ago in Chicago. The Hornets defeated Charlotte one oh nine to ninety five, so they got a little bit of a breather from the Vucevich bug. I guess you could say in that game that was one of the few games that he has not played in. In fact, it's the only game he has not played in this year due to I think it was an illness at the time. And again no Vouch no problem for Chicago in that sense. But he's very good. I mean, he's always in double figures. He's going to get his can be a thorn into side rebounding as well, both offensively and defensively. I don't think I need to go on a big, long spiel about that, just because well Vouchsvuch, I know that they have some other pieces over there as well, like Zach Lavine and guys that can really score the basket. But based off of what we saw against the Oklahoma City Thunder the other night where the Hornets got outscored a lot in the paint, this is an opportunity for a team like Chicago to capitalize in that. Since again too so Nikolovucevic. He can make you pay. He's gonna be my bull player to watch.

That came back a couple of weeks ago in Chicago. The Hornets defeated Charlotte one oh nine to ninety five, so they got a little bit of a breather from the Vucevich bug. I guess you could say in that game that was one of the few games that he has not played in. In fact, it's the only game he has not played in this year due to I think it was an illness at the time. And again no Vouch no problem for Chicago in that sense. But he's very good. I mean, he's always in double figures. He's going to get his can be a thorn into side rebounding as well, both offensively and defensively. I don't think I need to go on a big, long spiel about that, just because well Vouchsvuch, I know that they have some other pieces over there as well, like Zach Lavine and guys that can really score the basket. But based off of what we saw against the Oklahoma City Thunder the other night where the Hornets got outscored a lot in the paint, this is an opportunity for a team like Chicago to capitalize in that. Since again too so Nikolovucevic. He can make you pay. He's gonna be my bull player to watch.

I like it. One storyline I'm looking for here in this mid section of the season is all stars. I think LaMelo Ball is deserving hi an All Star NOTT. He's one of the top five scorers. You know, depends on the results of the night before, but he's up there as one of the few players in the rarefied air averaging thirty points per game. Record matters to a certain extent. I don't know how much it's going to matter. Very seldom has a player who's averaged thirty points per game not gotten an All Star NOTT. I think we found one in the last ten years, Bradley Beal when he was with the Washington Wizards. I hope that's not a fate that befalls LaMelo Ball, but one of the guys who could knock him out in theory, depending on where his team is in the standings and how his scoring continues to go, is Zach Levine. Lavine's played in the overwhelming majority of the Bulls games this year. He's their leading scorer at twenty two points per night. He's a high quality player. He's been an All Star twice before in his career. He's not scoring quite on the level that he did in those All Star seasons. He is shooting the three ball better than he ever has at any point in his NBA career, a testament to his work ethic and continuing to grow his game. Here at you know, thirty years of age. Just you know the great ones, they always do find ways to continue to improve their game. Actually not even thirty twenty nine, but he's closing in on thirty years of age.

I like it. One storyline I'm looking for here in this mid section of the season is all stars. I think LaMelo Ball is deserving hi an All Star NOTT. He's one of the top five scorers. You know, depends on the results of the night before, but he's up there as one of the few players in the rarefied air averaging thirty points per game. Record matters to a certain extent. I don't know how much it's going to matter. Very seldom has a player who's averaged thirty points per game not gotten an All Star NOTT. I think we found one in the last ten years, Bradley Beal when he was with the Washington Wizards. I hope that's not a fate that befalls LaMelo Ball, but one of the guys who could knock him out in theory, depending on where his team is in the standings and how his scoring continues to go, is Zach Levine. Lavine's played in the overwhelming majority of the Bulls games this year. He's their leading scorer at twenty two points per night. He's a high quality player. He's been an All Star twice before in his career. He's not scoring quite on the level that he did in those All Star seasons. He is shooting the three ball better than he ever has at any point in his NBA career, a testament to his work ethic and continuing to grow his game. Here at you know, thirty years of age. Just you know the great ones, they always do find ways to continue to improve their game. Actually not even thirty twenty nine, but he's closing in on thirty years of age.

You're making me feel older.

You're making me feel older.

I'm already there. In any case, Zach Levine's gonna be my player to watch. I think he is at the heart of what is going to make the Bulls a winning team on a nightly basis. And moreover, if LaMelo were to miss the All Star Game, this is one of the guys that, in theory could knock come out. So Zach Lavine's got to be a guy that'll have an eye on for Monday's game. Coming up next, we need a Hornet to watch or a stat to watch. Choose your own adventure, Rob Longo.

I'm already there. In any case, Zach Levine's gonna be my player to watch. I think he is at the heart of what is going to make the Bulls a winning team on a nightly basis. And moreover, if LaMelo were to miss the All Star Game, this is one of the guys that, in theory could knock come out. So Zach Lavine's got to be a guy that'll have an eye on for Monday's game. Coming up next, we need a Hornet to watch or a stat to watch. Choose your own adventure, Rob Longo.

Let's choose the Hornets player to watch. I'm gonna take gear silver lining from the game on Saturday. That's Miles Bridges.

Let's choose the Hornets player to watch. I'm gonna take gear silver lining from the game on Saturday. That's Miles Bridges.

I know.

I know.

He had a team high nineteen points and he did a little bit of everything to get to that double double with ten rebounds.

He had a team high nineteen points and he did a little bit of everything to get to that double double with ten rebounds.

Also had six assists, two blocks.

Also had six assists, two blocks.

Did a really good job defensively, I thought in that game where there were some spots where it was lacking from a total team aspect, But Miles just did not do a good job offensively. Yeah, he had nineteen points, but he was five to sixteen from the field, one for eight from three, did make all eight of his free throws. That's great to see, but he started the game zero for six from the field, oh for four from three in the first twelve minutes of the game. That's got to be better. I mean, that's just kind of the reality of the situation. And I understand people go through slumps, people have rough shooting goes of it, but Miles needs to start the game off a little bit better because that's the problem with what the Hornets have had to deal with here the last I don't know two three weeks. Now, I know that the injuries are a big issue and because of that that you got guys sliding into different spots. But as a team, the Horners just haven't gotten off the good starts. They find themselves down double digits after one quarter of play, and they just fall behind and they're playing catchup for the next three quarters. It just takes out a lot of energy, and the margin for error because of these injuries are is already thin. It gets thinner whenever you're down double digits going into the second quarter. When you're down eleven or twelve points at halftime, you're able to cut the lead a little bit there going into the break, and then you're able to adjust, but you got to keep it a little bit closer. So it's all of an encompassing thing. If Miles goes even just two for six or two for five or something like that, just get a couple of extra buckets on here. They keep the game a little bit close. I know that they were only down six going into the second quarter in that game the other day against Oka See, but again against a team like Oklahoma City, that is a very very very small margin for error when you have one of the best teams in the entire NBA that you're going up against. So just want to see Miles get off to a better start in this game here against Chicago, and no time like the present though. That's why he's gonna be my player to watch.

Did a really good job defensively, I thought in that game where there were some spots where it was lacking from a total team aspect, But Miles just did not do a good job offensively. Yeah, he had nineteen points, but he was five to sixteen from the field, one for eight from three, did make all eight of his free throws. That's great to see, but he started the game zero for six from the field, oh for four from three in the first twelve minutes of the game. That's got to be better. I mean, that's just kind of the reality of the situation. And I understand people go through slumps, people have rough shooting goes of it, but Miles needs to start the game off a little bit better because that's the problem with what the Hornets have had to deal with here the last I don't know two three weeks. Now, I know that the injuries are a big issue and because of that that you got guys sliding into different spots. But as a team, the Horners just haven't gotten off the good starts. They find themselves down double digits after one quarter of play, and they just fall behind and they're playing catchup for the next three quarters. It just takes out a lot of energy, and the margin for error because of these injuries are is already thin. It gets thinner whenever you're down double digits going into the second quarter. When you're down eleven or twelve points at halftime, you're able to cut the lead a little bit there going into the break, and then you're able to adjust, but you got to keep it a little bit closer. So it's all of an encompassing thing. If Miles goes even just two for six or two for five or something like that, just get a couple of extra buckets on here. They keep the game a little bit close. I know that they were only down six going into the second quarter in that game the other day against Oka See, but again against a team like Oklahoma City, that is a very very very small margin for error when you have one of the best teams in the entire NBA that you're going up against. So just want to see Miles get off to a better start in this game here against Chicago, and no time like the present though. That's why he's gonna be my player to watch.

I'm gonna go with Mark Williams as mine. And there's a couple of reasons for it. One is he continues to stack these performances where we're seeing positive movement from him. I don't think he had a particularly strong game shooting the basketball. The numbers say he didn't. He was four for nine from the floor. As a center, that's of the standard that he typically sets. But he still found a way to a double double. And that's the kind of production that we are hoping to see for Mark Williams on off nights. If you're having an off night double double, that's a good sign that your physicality or presence can have an impact on games, and especially games where you are shooting the ball well, like we know Mark Williams is certainly capable of so I like that he's continuing to trend in the right direction. Furthermore, I want to see him head to head with the guy you mentioned earlier, Nikolovucevich. He is a former All Star, is one of the better centers in the NBA. I think one of the more underrated centers in the NBA. Has always been a favorite of mine. That's a tough matchup. It's a different kind of matchup from me and Isaiah Hartenstein. The plus minus numbers would indicate that Hartenstein won that one handily. He had twelve points fifteen rebounds compared to twelve points and ten boards for Mark Williams. But Hartenstein was a plus ten. Mark Williams was a minus fifteen. They're not the only play. It's not a one on one game, so there's other players that factor into that. But Mark Williams it has the potential to be a game changer, and so I want to see him change games and the game change when he's out there. Last thing to throw in there to the mix. For this last year when he was fully healthy, the games he played when he was a positive and the plus minus plus five or better, the Hornets were unbeaten anything else and it was a loss. We're starting to get to the point now where Mark's numbers this season are mirroring what he did when he was healthy last season. So the more his minutes end up in the positive, the more likely the Hornets are to win those games. So I think he has the opportunity here to continue to take steps forward and hopefully there are more healthy bodies around him. But if the team wins Marks minutes, because especially because he's being dominant out there with double double performances than all the better for how things turn out for the Hornets. Last, but not least, a stat to watch.

I'm gonna go with Mark Williams as mine. And there's a couple of reasons for it. One is he continues to stack these performances where we're seeing positive movement from him. I don't think he had a particularly strong game shooting the basketball. The numbers say he didn't. He was four for nine from the floor. As a center, that's of the standard that he typically sets. But he still found a way to a double double. And that's the kind of production that we are hoping to see for Mark Williams on off nights. If you're having an off night double double, that's a good sign that your physicality or presence can have an impact on games, and especially games where you are shooting the ball well, like we know Mark Williams is certainly capable of so I like that he's continuing to trend in the right direction. Furthermore, I want to see him head to head with the guy you mentioned earlier, Nikolovucevich. He is a former All Star, is one of the better centers in the NBA. I think one of the more underrated centers in the NBA. Has always been a favorite of mine. That's a tough matchup. It's a different kind of matchup from me and Isaiah Hartenstein. The plus minus numbers would indicate that Hartenstein won that one handily. He had twelve points fifteen rebounds compared to twelve points and ten boards for Mark Williams. But Hartenstein was a plus ten. Mark Williams was a minus fifteen. They're not the only play. It's not a one on one game, so there's other players that factor into that. But Mark Williams it has the potential to be a game changer, and so I want to see him change games and the game change when he's out there. Last thing to throw in there to the mix. For this last year when he was fully healthy, the games he played when he was a positive and the plus minus plus five or better, the Hornets were unbeaten anything else and it was a loss. We're starting to get to the point now where Mark's numbers this season are mirroring what he did when he was healthy last season. So the more his minutes end up in the positive, the more likely the Hornets are to win those games. So I think he has the opportunity here to continue to take steps forward and hopefully there are more healthy bodies around him. But if the team wins Marks minutes, because especially because he's being dominant out there with double double performances than all the better for how things turn out for the Hornets. Last, but not least, a stat to watch.

Well since I can't take points because apparently that's cheating yep. So I'll preface this by saying that Chicago is top five in the Association in scoring. They average close to one hundred and eighteen points per game. Hornets are a twenty seventh day average about one hundred and six and a half, so we'll give them one hundred and seven just a round up. So with all those things said, Chicago does a really good job scoring to basketball.

Well since I can't take points because apparently that's cheating yep. So I'll preface this by saying that Chicago is top five in the Association in scoring. They average close to one hundred and eighteen points per game. Hornets are a twenty seventh day average about one hundred and six and a half, so we'll give them one hundred and seven just a round up. So with all those things said, Chicago does a really good job scoring to basketball.

That's easy to say.

That's easy to say.

We know that the Hornets have struggled from a field goal percentage, a three point percentage, and all of the other percentages for the most part this season, But I'm going to take a look at the assist numbers. The Hornets did not move the ball very well in that game against Oklahoma City, and they haven't really done it a whole lot this year in general either, and I think a lot of that is because LaMelo ball has missed some time. They average about twenty four assists this season, and that's still bottom five in the Association. But if you're able to at least move the basketball. Just get the defense out of sorts a little bit. Here For Chicago, I think that is kind of me be your key to find something a little bit differently because those percentages are so low this year because of the injuries. It makes the offense a little bit one dimensional because I mean, Miles Bridges did not have a good shooting night the other day against Oklahoma City and he was still getting doubled. So I mean, the options are limited. So you got to move the ball. You gotta get it from side to side. And that was something that Charles he talked about after the game. He said, when they get to their second and their third motions in the offense and they get to those stages, I know that the time is running low on a shotcock at that point if you're able to get to those kind of sets. But at the same time, he said that they're really good when they can get to those options. So again, a lot of it is getting broken up whenever the defense is blitzing you or doubling you, or you know, jumping screens and that kind of stuff. But just get the ball moving a little bit more, get it from side to side. Then try to attack a little bit more north and south and see what happens. So I think that's kind of my roundabout way to take points. But I'm gonna look at it and disguise it as assists.

We know that the Hornets have struggled from a field goal percentage, a three point percentage, and all of the other percentages for the most part this season, But I'm going to take a look at the assist numbers. The Hornets did not move the ball very well in that game against Oklahoma City, and they haven't really done it a whole lot this year in general either, and I think a lot of that is because LaMelo ball has missed some time. They average about twenty four assists this season, and that's still bottom five in the Association. But if you're able to at least move the basketball. Just get the defense out of sorts a little bit. Here For Chicago, I think that is kind of me be your key to find something a little bit differently because those percentages are so low this year because of the injuries. It makes the offense a little bit one dimensional because I mean, Miles Bridges did not have a good shooting night the other day against Oklahoma City and he was still getting doubled. So I mean, the options are limited. So you got to move the ball. You gotta get it from side to side. And that was something that Charles he talked about after the game. He said, when they get to their second and their third motions in the offense and they get to those stages, I know that the time is running low on a shotcock at that point if you're able to get to those kind of sets. But at the same time, he said that they're really good when they can get to those options. So again, a lot of it is getting broken up whenever the defense is blitzing you or doubling you, or you know, jumping screens and that kind of stuff. But just get the ball moving a little bit more, get it from side to side. Then try to attack a little bit more north and south and see what happens. So I think that's kind of my roundabout way to take points. But I'm gonna look at it and disguise it as assists.

I'll take it. It qualifies good pick.

I'll take it. It qualifies good pick.

I should have been a lawyer.

I should have been a lawyer.

Glad you're not. I need you here. The Hornets versus Chicago. These two teams take more threes than any of their team, with the exception of Boston. So how and when you try the matters what they look like. Are they step back threes from mid quarter? Are they in rhythm? Is the balls moving side to side as you mentioned? That matters? But however they go up, they're going up, So winning from deep matters. On Monday, I'm gonna go with three point shooting as my stat to watch. I'll make it short and sweet because I just think it's as simple as that these two teams take a ton of threes. Who takes the better threes does matter, but who's more efficient ultimately should determine the game. Last thing here, hopefully the Hornets have a full deck to play with, and we're looking forward to seeing that on a continuous basis. Not being the outlier, but just being the norm. Wouldn't that be nice here? But Charlotte struggled through a tough stretch here with all the injuries or an overwhelming accumulation of them. It's led to a lot of losses and there's a certain woe is Me factor that can kind of come with that. I think Mark Williams had something really positive to say after the game about knowing that a winning team is in there, they know what they need to do and it's just about having that breakthrough. Here's what he had to say about what a win would mean for Charlotte.

Glad you're not. I need you here. The Hornets versus Chicago. These two teams take more threes than any of their team, with the exception of Boston. So how and when you try the matters what they look like. Are they step back threes from mid quarter? Are they in rhythm? Is the balls moving side to side as you mentioned? That matters? But however they go up, they're going up, So winning from deep matters. On Monday, I'm gonna go with three point shooting as my stat to watch. I'll make it short and sweet because I just think it's as simple as that these two teams take a ton of threes. Who takes the better threes does matter, but who's more efficient ultimately should determine the game. Last thing here, hopefully the Hornets have a full deck to play with, and we're looking forward to seeing that on a continuous basis. Not being the outlier, but just being the norm. Wouldn't that be nice here? But Charlotte struggled through a tough stretch here with all the injuries or an overwhelming accumulation of them. It's led to a lot of losses and there's a certain woe is Me factor that can kind of come with that. I think Mark Williams had something really positive to say after the game about knowing that a winning team is in there, they know what they need to do and it's just about having that breakthrough. Here's what he had to say about what a win would mean for Charlotte.

I think for us, we just got to almost like remember the feeling of winning again and just the joy that brings the vibes. Just continuing to get that back. I think right now we're almost like we almost like forgot. You know, it's been you know, we're always just fighting or playing hard. You know, it's not like we're not playing hard. You know, we held them to sixteen points in the fourth quarter. You know there's flashes of good things we're doing. I think it's just getting over that hump for us is going to be the biggest thing, and we definitely can do it. I know we can do it.

I think for us, we just got to almost like remember the feeling of winning again and just the joy that brings the vibes. Just continuing to get that back. I think right now we're almost like we almost like forgot. You know, it's been you know, we're always just fighting or playing hard. You know, it's not like we're not playing hard. You know, we held them to sixteen points in the fourth quarter. You know there's flashes of good things we're doing. I think it's just getting over that hump for us is going to be the biggest thing, and we definitely can do it. I know we can do it.

Rob Mark Williams has been at the center of a couple shorter runs for the Hornets over the course of his short career here with team til back in his rookie season he started, you know, started about midway through the year two start games for the Hornets. They ripped off a five game win streak. Then injuries hit the team in other spots, and eventually it became too much to overcome. Last season, there was, of course, that back to back sequence where the team was finally healthy. They beat Boston and Washington at home, go to Orlando, LaMelo gets hurt, and the rest is history. This year, they have seemingly never had a full week even of healthy play. For the preseason, projected starting five or at minimum that core four of Mark Williams, LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller and Miles Bridges. Hopefully that starts on Monday. But I think Mark is spot on. You get a win, you get some momentum. I don't know that it's gonna be a Miami of ten years ago type turnaround where you go from ten to thirty one in the first half of the year to thirty one and ten in the second half and end up being a five hundred team, But I would love to see the Hornets just have the opportunity to do that. And I think Mark, the front office, the coaching staff, the players, they've got the right mindset on how to attack this, and hopefully we will roll into the new year on a winning note for the Hornets, and a twenty twenty five will be a much healthier, happier, winninger year for everyone associated with Hornets basketball.