- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 1,244,522
- Reaction score
- 59
Charlotte Hornets sharpshooter Kon Knueppel made Raphielle Johnson's list of summer stock risers for NBC Sports on Tuesday morning.
Charlotte re-signed Coby White and traded LaMelo Ball anyway. That should put the ball in Knueppel's hands more often, Johnson wrote.
Johnson wrote that the added playmaking raises his ceiling.
Knueppel averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 3.4 3-pointers a game last season. He started 80 of the 81 games he played.
He finished the season with 273 made 3-pointers. That led the NBA. No rookie had ever led the league, and no rookie had ever made that many.
Ball finished second with 272.
Knueppel broke the rookie record on Feb. 26 in Indianapolis. His 207th 3-pointer came off a pass from Sion James, his teammate at Duke the previous season. He scored 28 points that night and went 8-of-12 from 3-point range. Charlotte won 133-109. Keegan Murray had set the old mark of 206 across 80 games in 2022-23. Knueppel passed it in 59.
The Charlotte Hornets drafted him fourth overall in 2025.
Knueppel was named Summer League Championship MVP that July after scoring 21 points in an 83-78 win over Sacramento. He debuted on Oct. 22 with 11 points and 5 rebounds in a 136-117 win over Brooklyn.
Cooper Flagg beat him for Rookie of the Year. The 26-point gap was the second-smallest since the current voting format began in 2002-03. Knueppel made the All-Rookie First Team with Flagg, Dylan Harper, VJ Edgecombe, and Cedric Coward.
Charlotte traded Ball and Josh Green to Minnesota on June 25. Back came Naz Reid, an unprotected 2033 first-round pick, first-round pick swaps in 2028, 2029, and 2030, and second-round picks in 2029, 2032, and 2033. ESPN's Shams Charania first reported the agreement.
Hornets president of basketball operations and general manager Jeff Peterson has pointed to the development of Knueppel and Brandon Miller as a factor in the decision. Speaking on the Milwaukee Uncut podcast, Knueppel called the trade a shock.
White re-signed for three years and $74 million. Days after the Ball trade, Charlotte sent Miles Bridges, a 2029 first-round pick, and a 2027 second-round pick to Phoenix for Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale, and an unprotected 2033 first-round pick. The Hornets also acquired Dorian Finney-Smith and three second-round picks from Houston. They drafted Hannes Steinbach 14th overall and Christian Anderson Jr. 18th overall.
Charlotte won 44 games last season after winning 19 the year before. That was the largest year-over-year improvement in franchise history. The Hornets missed the playoffs by one game and have not reached the postseason since 2016.
Hornets coach Charles Lee is expected to start White, Knueppel, Miller, Reid, and Moussa Diabaté.
Continue reading...
Charlotte re-signed Coby White and traded LaMelo Ball anyway. That should put the ball in Knueppel's hands more often, Johnson wrote.
Johnson wrote that the added playmaking raises his ceiling.
Knueppel averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists, and 3.4 3-pointers a game last season. He started 80 of the 81 games he played.
He finished the season with 273 made 3-pointers. That led the NBA. No rookie had ever led the league, and no rookie had ever made that many.
Ball finished second with 272.
Knueppel broke the rookie record on Feb. 26 in Indianapolis. His 207th 3-pointer came off a pass from Sion James, his teammate at Duke the previous season. He scored 28 points that night and went 8-of-12 from 3-point range. Charlotte won 133-109. Keegan Murray had set the old mark of 206 across 80 games in 2022-23. Knueppel passed it in 59.
The Charlotte Hornets drafted him fourth overall in 2025.
Knueppel was named Summer League Championship MVP that July after scoring 21 points in an 83-78 win over Sacramento. He debuted on Oct. 22 with 11 points and 5 rebounds in a 136-117 win over Brooklyn.
Cooper Flagg beat him for Rookie of the Year. The 26-point gap was the second-smallest since the current voting format began in 2002-03. Knueppel made the All-Rookie First Team with Flagg, Dylan Harper, VJ Edgecombe, and Cedric Coward.
Charlotte traded Ball and Josh Green to Minnesota on June 25. Back came Naz Reid, an unprotected 2033 first-round pick, first-round pick swaps in 2028, 2029, and 2030, and second-round picks in 2029, 2032, and 2033. ESPN's Shams Charania first reported the agreement.
Hornets president of basketball operations and general manager Jeff Peterson has pointed to the development of Knueppel and Brandon Miller as a factor in the decision. Speaking on the Milwaukee Uncut podcast, Knueppel called the trade a shock.
White re-signed for three years and $74 million. Days after the Ball trade, Charlotte sent Miles Bridges, a 2029 first-round pick, and a 2027 second-round pick to Phoenix for Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale, and an unprotected 2033 first-round pick. The Hornets also acquired Dorian Finney-Smith and three second-round picks from Houston. They drafted Hannes Steinbach 14th overall and Christian Anderson Jr. 18th overall.
Charlotte won 44 games last season after winning 19 the year before. That was the largest year-over-year improvement in franchise history. The Hornets missed the playoffs by one game and have not reached the postseason since 2016.
Hornets coach Charles Lee is expected to start White, Knueppel, Miller, Reid, and Moussa Diabaté.
Continue reading...
