Injury-riddled Hornets hang with NBA-best Cavaliers at home before falling, 116-102

Shane Connuck, The Charlotte Observer on Dec 7, 2024

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The undermanned Charlotte Hornets gave themselves a chance.

Despite missing seven players due to injury and illness, the Hornets trimmed what had been a 22-point first-quarter deficit to just four points late in their 116-102 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday afternoon at Spectrum Center.

Brandon Miller scored 25 points to lead the way for Charlotte, which outscored the NBA-best Cavaliers during the second and third quarters. DaQuan Jeffries added 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field; and Josh Green contributed 16 points.

“I’m so encouraged by so much of what I’m seeing from this group,” head coach Charles Lee said in the postgame news conference. “The strength that we are gaining, the competitiveness that continues to get to another level, there’s just a ton of resilience. And a ton of fight.”

The Hornets will return to action against the Indiana Pacers at 5 p.m. Sunday.

A crowd of 18,832 packed into the venue in uptown, roughly a mile from where Clemson and SMU were set to meet in Saturday night’s ACC football championship.

Charlotte (6-17) hung with its opponent over the course of the afternoon — but fell behind early. The Hornets were already trailing by double digits within four minutes of the game’s tipoff, and while they battled throughout, they came up short.

“They were ready to go; Evan (Mobley) was hitting his shots,” Green said of the Cavaliers’ (21-3) young center, who led all scorers with 41 points. “But I feel like we were able to — like we’ve done multiple times — match their intensity and how they play.

“They were making their shots, but we made the adjustments when we needed to.”

Which Hornets were out of Saturday’s loss to Cleveland?

Moussa Diabate wound up sidelined, missing Saturday’s game because of illness. The two-way Frenchman woke up Saturday morning with “sickness symptoms,” Lee said, and was ruled out before the game.

Nick Richards didn’t play in Saturday’s game due to a left ankle sprain after stepping on a player’s foot during the Hornets’ loss to New York. While Richards played through the injury on Thursday, he was ruled out after being evaluated Saturday morning.

Rookie Tidjane Salaün, who sprained his left ankle early in that game against the Knicks, remained out Saturday, as well.

LaMelo Ball (calf strain), Miles Bridges (knee bone bruise), Tre Mann (disc irritation) and Grant Williams (ACL tear) remain injured.

Grant Williams set for surgery this week for torn ACL

Williams said he will undergo surgery on Dec. 11 in Chicago.

The Charlottean who plays for his hometown team tore his right ACL, ending his season following the Hornets’ loss on Nov. 23 at Milwaukee. Williams had been averaging 10.4 points per game in 16 appearances this year.

While he’s known plenty of basketball players who have sustained injuries of this magnitude, Williams spoke about how difficult it is to understand the impact of a season-ending injury until one experiences it.

It immediately reminded him of his close friend Harry Giles III, who has endured multiple knee surgeries in his NBA career. Giles, the Winston-Salem native and Duke alum, texted Williams the day he realized he would be out for the season.

Williams also heard from Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, who missed 18 months with a torn ACL before leading his team to the 2023 NBA title.

“Just seeing the process (Murray) went through, because he came back the following season and won the championship,” Williams said with a smile. “So that’s the same goal for me.”

They said it

“Great transformation,” Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson said of Charlotte. “Their unit looks connected. Their scouting is really good — they know who they’ve got to play hard and who they can slough off of. I know Charles (Lee) is a big analytics guy, so he understands that, and they’re just a connected group defensively. I think the freedom he gives offensively, sometimes they can be like, ‘OK, we give you a lot of freedom offensively, but you’ve got to defend, too.’

“So I think he’s giving the freedom, but they’re giving it back to him on defense. He’s done a hell of a job so far. I enjoy watching Charlotte play — really good job.”

Up next?

The Hornets complete this weekend’s back-to-back against the Indiana Pacers in a game that tips at 5 p.m. Sunday from Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.