How Did The Charlotte Hornets Become The Hottest Team In The NBA?

On Saturday, the Charlotte Hornets knocked off the San Antonio Spurs 111-106. It’s one thing to defeat Western Conference playoff contender led by Victor Wembanyama and the vaunted San Antonio backcourt trio. It’s another thing to extend a winning streak and lay claim to the title of “hottest team in the NBA.”

With the victory over the Spurs at Spectrum Center (a victory, it should be mentioned, that took place even as severe weather conditions hounded the state of North Carolina), the Hornets pushed their active streak to six games. At that time, this allowed Charlotte to stay one step ahead of the New York Knicks, who had their own five-game winning streak going.

A number of pundits had predicted that the Knicks would continue to make serious noise in the Eastern Conference this season, but virtually no one expected the Hornets to get as streaky as they currently are. Here’s a closer look at how Charlotte was able to pull this off.

Since the Hornets began their winning streak on January 22, they’ve been the best offense in the NBA, topping all other teams with an offensive rating of 123.1. Over the past six games, Brandon Miller has been at the forefront of the Hornets’ scoring production, putting up 24.3 points per game on 52.8% shooting from the field.

Indeed, it could be argued that Miller has taken over the role of franchise player from LaMelo Ball, Charlotte’s star acquisition back in the 2020 NBA Draft. During the Hornets’ streak, Ball has thrived as a playmaker (7.8 assists per game) while also contributing on the scoring end (16.8 ppg). Kon Knueppel (16.3 ppg, 42.5% from deep) and Miles Bridges (15.2 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 3.7 apg) have also been vital cogs in the Hornets’ offense.

In past seasons, the Hornets could be dismissed as a one-trick pony that only comes alive when Ball gets going on the open court. As the Hornets have shown in their six-game winning streak, they can lock down on the defensive end as well.

Charlotte, as a matter of fact, has been the sixth-best defense in the league during this span. They held the Orlando Magic and the Memphis Grizzlies to 97 points apiece; and, when they blew out the Philadelphia 76ers on January 26, they held Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe to a combined 15 on 5-for-23 shooting from the field.

Beyond the stat sheet, the Hornets have also displayed toughness on a psychological level. On the one hand, they were able to secure victories in games that were deemed “winnable” (such as the matchups that they had with the lowly Washington Wizards and the disoriented-at-times Memphis Grizzlies). On the other hand, they proved their mettle against playoff contenders like the Spurs and the Sixers.

Small wonder, then, that Hornets head coach Charles Lee has taken to performing cartwheels in his team’s locker room. After all, the Hornets have a number of reasons to feel good about themselves at this point in the season. Six reasons, to be exact.