The Charlotte Hornets closed out their road trip with a loss to the defending NBA champions, the Golden State Warriors, 110-105.
With Kelly Oubre being ruled out of the game with a hand issue just hours before tipoff, that meant someone for Charlotte had to step up their point production. Oubre is in the midst of a breakout year. He is averaging a career-high 20.6 points per game. Unfortunately, it was a rough game for the Hornets who found themselves in a 16 point hole at one point in the game.
LaMelo Ball struggled. He had 21 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists, but he shot 7/25 from the field. Still, there is some benefit from the lost according to Steve Clifford.
When asked with what positives can he pull, the Hornets head coach gave a response that should fill some fans with optimism.
“We got our guys, so we're a lot better of a team. I think you can see the beginnings of what could be a good team
The reality is we've only had this group for this trip and the group understands that. We gotta make progress. We need Dennis and Cody back. Once we get them, we'll be a better team.”
Coach is eluding to the returns of some of his better players returning to the lineup. Ball has only played in 11 games and Gordon Hayward has appeared in 18 of his own. Once those two settle in and find their groove, the Hornets can add more wins to their total in the near future. They got those guys back thankfully, but are still without some key role players right now as well.
Kelly Oubre Jr., Cody Martin, Dennis Smith Jr., and Nick Richards all did not play in the game vs. the Warriors. Hopefully this team can get healthy quickly to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on December 29th. It is their first home game since returning from their Western Conference road trip.
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