Hornets are struggling in a historical way, but Charles Lee sees hope after loss to Dallas
Chalk it up as … progress?
After entering Thursday night on the wrong side of NBA history thanks to losing the previous three games by a total of 131 points, at least the Charlotte Hornets could say one thing about the finale of their marathon nine-game road trip.
They didn’t get blown out in embarrassing fashion.
“I thought just as a group, we competed at a much better level,” coach Charles Lee said following the Hornets’ 103-96 defeat to the Dallas Mavericks at American Airlines Center. “To judge a man to see how he gets knocked down and to see how he responds, the group definitely responded today.
“And I think it’s a testament to who they are as players and people.”
Considering the way the Hornets (14-44) fared in the three outings leading into their date with the Mavericks, Lee was probably downright ecstatic.
They looked that bad during their matchups with the Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors, completely obliterating the previous record of worst combined margin of defeat during a three-game stretch set by the 2021-22 Trail Blazers, who were beaten by a combined 117 points.
That disappointing play led to a message from Lee.
“Part of that is control what you can control in the moment,” Lee said. “So, the things that we always talk about and were recurring in the emphasis the last couple of games, is where is our level of competitiveness, the level of physicality we needed for the game that I saw in Portland?
“It wasn’t there to start, but it got better as the game went on. But you can’t dig yourself that kind of hole and allow people to find a comfort zone and a rhythm. I thought in the Sacramento game, it was better and then in the Golden State game it was a little better.
“So, everything we’ve done a little better. But the next part of the competitiveness is some of the shot making. And I think right now we’ve been able to create some pretty good shots. And it’s human nature to have it hurt your spirit when you get that pass, and you have the open look and you miss it. And we have to continue to worry about trusting the pass over and over again. That is going to help our shot quality stay high and eventually we are going to knock down those shots.”
Too much individual play at times has doomed the Hornets during this rough patch. Lee wants them to share the ball at a better rate than they are currently, insisting it’ll lead to fewer droughts offensively.
“By continuing to trust the pass, you show even more confidence in your teammates,” Lee said, “knowing that I still believe in you, I still think you are going to knock down that shot. So, it’s just not getting too high or low with makes or misses. Just focusing on what is the process of, ‘How are we creating really good shots?’
“And are we just going to be competitive throughout the whole 48 minutes or however long the game lasts.”
That certainly wasn’t the case against Portland and Sacramento. Those games were seemingly over seconds after the opening tipoff.
“I actually feel like the two games were a little bit different,” Lee said. “That Portland game, I felt like we didn’t come out with the appropriate mindset or physicality. We weren’t prepared to actually just compete at that level I think right from the jump, and it allowed them to get a little comfortable. And from that kind of comfort level, I think they saw a couple shots go in, they got a couple free throw rebounds, they gave them second chance points, and they kind of fed off of that.
“(In Sacramento), I felt like we actually came out with the appropriate amount of respect, and intentionality, and purpose, and physicality and competitiveness. Our process was great on a lot of possessions. I thought we got some really good looks, we were hitting the seam pass, we get a corner three, and you miss it. I felt we had a couple really good defensive efforts.
“And there’s just some of those moments in the game, it can hurt your spirit a little bit.”
Which is where maturation and experience should kick in.
“I just think that we have to do a better job of just battling through some of that adversity during the game, where we do get a great stop,” Lee said. “And I think that sometimes just fighting human nature in that moment to understand the process was good, unfortunate result, and stick with it. Keep battling through some of the difficult segments of the game.”
Translation: he wants to see more of what the Hornets did against the Mavs — compete.
“They were obviously down about the results, but they were just trying to figure out how can we get through it and not so much how can we give into it or give up during it,” Lee said. “And so I think that showed. We finished the road trip off with a strong competitive performance.
“I thought offensively the process was a lot better, trusting the seam pass, the guy in the seam pass making passes out, the shot quality was a lot better. So, it feels a lot different when you walk out of here on a night like that.”
This story was originally published February 28, 2025 at 5:15 AM.
