Why Hornets’ loss to Detroit Pistons damages quest for home postseason game
Given the magnitude of it all and everything that comes along with being in the postseason, Charles Lee knows the gravity of home playoff games.
“Oh, they’re vital,” the Charlotte Hornets coach said. “I think a lot of the teams that I’ve been on previously, when you have home court advantage, especially like the places I was previously and in Spectrum Center, you can feel the vibe in here. You can feel the juice and the atmosphere.
“When the stakes are really high, it’s good to have that support from your crowd. When you come home, you need a little bit of extra juice. So, hopefully we can afford this wonderful fan base another game in the postseason.”
In order for that to happen, the Hornets are going to have to win their regular-season finale after falling to the Detroit Pistons 118-100 at Spectrum Center on Friday night.
Charlotte (43-38) remains in ninth place in the Eastern Conference and can’t finish better than that thanks to being two games off the pace of eighth-place Orlando. The Hornets hold a one-game advantage over 10th-place Miami, but the Heat has the tiebreaker, so Charlotte must win in New York on Sunday or hope Miami loses to the Atlanta Hawks, who clinched a spot in the conference’s top six seeds.
“Can’t really worry about where we stand,” Brandon Miller said. “All we can worry about now is going into New York against a tough team and tough atmosphere.”
Either way, the Hornets’ play-in tournament date and opponent is set. They will take on Miami at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday on Amazon Prime. It just depends on whether it’s in Charlotte or South Florida.
“You control what you can control,” Grant Williams said. “You can’t look ahead. We have one more game where we can get back to playing Hornets basketball. Let’s execute. I think that this group, we’re a young group, and I went through this stuff in Boston. You have some moments where either you can consider it maturity, you can consider it mindset, whatever it is.
“But the group just stays together. And I think a night like this can really put things in perspective. And this season has really helped us get these learning moments.”
Such as a rough fourth quarter against the Pistons that doomed the Hornets. They mustered just two points through the initial six minutes, unable to solve Detroit’s defense. Miscues also hurt, particularly against the top-seeded team in the conference that gives opponents fits.
“Sometimes it was our execution, sometimes there’s some good shots out there that you just weren’t able to convert on,” Lee said. “There’s a couple possessions where we’re trying to take the ball out the basket, and we turn it over. So it’s a number of things. I wish I could tell you it was one specific thing.
“The ones that I want us to be able to get back are some of the careless turnovers or the lack of execution or lack of screening. You know, some of the other stuff, like you’re going to fumble the ball at times. It happens. You’re playing through physicality. But we can control the execution that we have on every possession.”
Here are some key takeaways from the Hornets’ loss to Detroit:
Coby White returns, immediately shows worth again
The presence of Coby White can’t be overstated.
After sitting out Tuesday’s loss in Boston with a sore left groin, marking his first absence since March 10, White returned to the lineup and was a catalyst for the Hornets’ reserves as usual, tossing in 11 points.
His calming influence and basketball IQ essentially make him an extension of the coaching staff, which can’t be discounted on a team with a youthful core lacking postseason experience. But White lamented not doing more in the final 24 minutes.
“I’ve just got to put two halves together,” White said. “Came out., was really aggressive. It’s got to be better in the second half. So, I’ve got to put two halves together. But I think for me the focus is on how can I help the group win when the adversity hits. So, I’ve got to do a better job of that.”
Splash Bros. II
Move over, Splash Brothers. There’s another set of sharpshooters making history.
Kon Knueppel and LaMelo Ball are the second pair of teammates in NBA lore to record at least 260 made 3-pointers in a season, joining Charlotte’s own Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson when the tandem did it with Golden State.
Knueppel and Ball are first and second in the NBA, respectively, in made 3-pointers and there’s a good chance they’ll finish that way. Knueppel is up to 270 and Ball is three behind him.
“I think it’s pretty cool,” Lee said. “They must have a great coach that allows them to shoot threes. But it’s great to have that type of shot making around you. It opens up the floor for everyone. And those two guys, they work so hard on their craft. The thing that I am probably most impressed with, No. 1, is our team’s unselfishness to create a lot of these good looks.
“And then the other part that’s impressive is the variety of threes in which they hit. They’re not all catch-and-shoot. Some of them are off the dribble, some of them are in transition and kind of deep. I’m always a fan at the end of the day. Sometimes I want to watch these guys shoot the ball because they are so elite.”
Brandon Miller wins annual Rick Bonnell Award
Although it’s not the most popular of tasks at times, dealing with the media is a big part of a professional athlete’s responsibility. Especially the team’s top players.
Building relationships with media members and fostering accountability is important.
That’s something Brandon Miller did during the 2025-26 season and why he was selected as the recipient of the fifth annual Rick Bonnell Award. The award — given annually to the Hornets player who represents himself and the franchise with professionalism and cooperation in his interactions with the media — is named after the longtime Charlotte Observer beat writer who passed away in June 2021.
Miller became the first two-time winner of the award, also earning it in 2023-24.
“Just being available, we create these bonds and see the majority of the same people every day,” Miller told The Observer. “It’s always good to talk a little bit about basketball, a little bit after the game, before the game. Even before the game and whenever I shoot around. So, just having bonds like that with different reporters, media guys, I feel like it’s good for us and the culture around Charlotte.
Miller knows its key for him to be a voice and communicate through the media to fans.
“Definitely,” Miller said. “I think it kind of shows fans how we feel. I know I usually do media talking about the fans, how they show up and support us every night. So just seeing things like that, it goes a long way for the fans just to acknowledge their presence. Having other fans there, I think that kind of helps us.”
This story was originally published April 10, 2026 at 11:03 PM.
