More fear than harm for Kon Knuepel?

There was cause for concern on Charlotte’s part Knuppel couldfell on Moussa Diabate’s leg at the end of the first half Friday night in Orlando and left in step after a nice twist of the right ankle. Former Duke resident it took time to get up and they had to be accompanied by two teammates to get to the locker room.

The euphoria of the Hornets’ victory, only their fourth away win of the season, was somewhat dampened by the rookie’s exit with an injury while he waited to find out how long his unavailability would last. Charles Lee, however, wanted to be reassuring after the meeting.

“I thought it was a good team win for the whole group, especially Kon who helped us tremendously early in the match. I just left the group in the locker room, and the x-rays seem to be clear. We’ll have more information when we get back to Charlotte.”, the Charlotte coach said.

Increasingly valuable player for the Hornets

The North Carolina franchise offered no further details Saturday, suggesting the tailback should escape with a minor sprain. This would be very good news considering the avalanche of injuries that have undermined the group for several years. Despite the lull that has taken place in recent weeks, it should be remembered, for example, that Grant Williams still hasn’t played a single match this season!

Above all, Kon Knuepel’s first half (16 points on 5/7 shooting including 4/4 3-pointers, 3 rebounds and 1 assist) was a reminder of how valuable he was to Charles Lee. Arriving in the NBA with a reputation as a one-dimensional shooter, Cooper Flagg’s former teammate, became the fastest player to reach 100 three-pointers in the NBAhe showed at the start of the season that he is much more than that.

“What’s impressive about Conn is how good of a player he is in all aspects of the game. I think his 3-point skill gets a lot of hype, and rightfully so. But beyond that, what’s really impressive for us is what he brings defensively, the physicality he plays with.”Charles Lee added. “I just said to one of our assistants: “Why are so many of our defense clips about Conn?” He stops opponents and creates turnovers, he is really impressive in this area. And in attack, apart from his shots, he makes the right choices. When opponents push him from the 3-point line, he shows he has resources.”

The Hornets will return to action this Monday at home against the Bucks before hosting Golden State in their final game of 2025.

How to read statistics? MJ = matches played; Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; Off = offensive rebound; Def=defensive jump; Tot = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; Points = Points.