Green-light Hornets splash 26 triples against Kings

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The buzz around the rejuvenated Charlotte Hornets is real.

Charlotte, who feature Aussie wing Josh Green, have won four in a row to sit just two wins behind Dyson Daniels' Atlanta Hawks in sixth spot in the Eastern Conference standings - a remarkable comeback from the start of the season where they languished towards the bottom of the ladder.

Despite a small inconsistent patch after their red-hot period pre and post NBA All-Star break, the Hornets have found their groove once again, highlighted by a 44-point demolition of the Sacramento Kings at the Spectrum Center, which included 26 makes from beyond the arc.

Charles Lee's young and upstart team shot the three at 47% with former NBL Next Star LaMelo Ball and former Chicago Bull Coby White leading the way with six triples each and Green also hitting 2-from-4 in his 17 minutes off the bench as he continues to provide the Hornets with valuable contributions as a reserve.

Charlotte's rapid rise up the Eastern Conference has come as a surprise to many experts but not The Athletic's senior NBA writer, Sam Vecenie, who said he saw this coming on a recent edition of basketball.com.au podcast Cut to the Jase.

"Charlotte, I think, is an amazing case of these five guys, their starters - LaMelo Ball, Knueppel, Brandon Miller, Miles Bridges, and Moussa Diabate - these five guys together have such incredible synergy on the court that they elevate each other through their own games, through their own styles of play, through how Charles Lee weaponises them on the court within their own styles," Vecenie said.

"I think the world of what Charles Lee has done. I even said last year that I thought he was doing a really good job with them, and people would yell at me like, 'What are you talking about, his rotations are really bad'.

"But it's like no, his scheme is really strong, he's bringing a lot of the concepts that the Celtics bring, picking up low-hanging fruit and everything to what Charlotte is doing. I think we're seeing the fruits of that right now.

"I loved what they did in the draft this past year. They just focused on getting in four guys in Knueppel, Sion James, Ryan Kalbrenner, and Liam McNeeley, who are just grown-ass adults.

"I know that a lot of them are 19, 20-year-old - Sion and Kalkbrenner are 23 years old, but like those guys, like all really give a shit, they care, and they are professionals, and they are like really driven to be the best that they can be on a basketball court.

"I think that bringing those guys in, in addition to some of the other moves they made, really helped them continue to go down that road.

"I think Jeff Peterson's done an outstanding job as the general manager. I think that again like it's just such a it's such an example of how synergy between players on the court can elevate everybody on the court in a real way."

Vecenie also praised Charlotte's trade for Green from the Dallas Mavericks in 2024.

"I loved that trade for (Charlotte) when Dallas did it. That was like a Nico Harrison special. I have no idea why that deal happened," Vecenie said.

"I do think they wanted to get off some money, but I think Josh Green's a valuable rotation player in the NBA, and they gave him away, it felt like to me.

"(The Hornets) needed somebody to provide energy, athleticism, all the things he's just intensely capable of providing, so it's a perfect fit (at Charlotte)."

NBA BOX SCORE: Charlotte Hornets vs Sacramento Kings

Josh Green had six points, one assist and one steal in 17 minutes off the bench as the Charlotte Hornets won their fourth straight game with a 132-90 victory over the Sacramento Kings at home.

Former NBL Next Star with the Illawarra Hawks, LaMelo Ball, had 20 points as well as eight assists and six rebounds for the Hornets.