Hornets Week in Review: The Hornets can’t beat the West

The Charlotte Hornets bounced back from an embarrassing road loss to the Atlanta Hawks with two straight home wins. The first, a three point victory over the Milwaukee Bucks, was a signature win that looked like a potential catalyst for a big run. The Hornets led by 26 points at one point during that contest, proving how dangerous this group can be when things are clicking.

That win was followed by a revenge victory of the Hawks. The game wasn’t pretty, but the Hornets did what they should have and beat a bad Hawks team.

Then things went real bad.

The Hornets capped off their home stand with back to back games against under-performing Western Conference foes. In the first, a Utah Jazz team that hasn’t been able to score all season hit 18 3-pointers. In the second, a new Orleans Pelicans team that couldn’t stop a nosebleed held the Hornets five points below their season average. The Hornets are now 0-4 against the Western Conference, with three of those games in the friendly confines of Spectrum Center.

The Highs

Jeremy Lamb continues to act as the secondary scorer the Hornets need. His week ended with a bit of a whimper against the Pelicans as he only scored 11 points on eight shots, but prior to that, he was phenomenal. He scored over 20 points and hit over half of his field goal attempts and 3-pointers in each of the first three games of the home stand. He finished the month of November averaging 17.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.0 assists while shooting 48.1 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from the 3-point line.

Frank Kaminsky also impressed and further solidified himself in the rotation. He was a difference maker against both the Hawks and the Pelicans and did well battling Rudy Gobert and the Jazz. He doesn’t make an impact every night, but head coach James Borrego is clearly comfortable turning to Kaminsky when the front line needs a new look.

Elsewhere Miles Bridges found his 3-point stroke again, hitting five of his last ten attempts after missing his previous nine. Devonte’ Graham got some meaningful minutes and looked the part of savvy vet despite logging just 83 NBA minutes so far. Michael Kidd-Gilchrist might be the Hornets’ second best player.

The Lows

We can’t talk about Frank Kaminsky’s highs without touching on the guy whose minutes he’s cutting into. Coach Borrego clearly has El Toro on a short leash apparently due to his defensive shortcomings, and it was never more apparent than in Sunday’s game against the Pelicans. The Spaniard got the start with Cody Zeller out injured, yet only got 14 minutes of court time despite his 11 points and 8 rebounds in that time.

Nicolas Batum has vanished. He’s gone. After starting the season as one of the team’s most unheralded high impact players, he’s completely lost his juice. Now sitting dead last in the team in PIPM, the ten year pro is not making an impact in any of the areas he’s known for. In the four games last week, Batum averaged 7.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game while shooting 46 percent from the field and 14 percent from three. He’s no longer showing the aggression on either end of the floor that he had to begin the season, and he’s turned into a complete non-factor.

Adding to the trouble are the struggles of one Kemba Walker. The All-NBA hopeful averaged just 18.5 points per game for the week while connecting on just four of 24 3-point attempts. He notched just 17 assists to 10 turnovers, a brutal ratio by his standards. His play has dropped while his supporting cast’s has jumped. Kemba is an amazing talent. He’ll right the ship, but this recent stretch has been tough.

The Whole

These last two losses will leave a bitter taste in the mouths of the Hornets as they travel out west to Minnesota. They’ll look to notch their first win against a Western Conference foe before returning home to face a surging Nuggets team. Now would be a good time for the Hornets leaders to get right.

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