It wasn't always pretty, but nobody will ever complain about a win, right?
The shorthanded Charlotte Hornets opened up their 2026-27 campaign with a 110-103 win over the Brooklyn Nets, their sixth straight victory in a season-opener. After a slow start, the Hornets' defense took over the game and ultimately proved to be the catalyst for the victory.
Below is a series of thoughts, highlights, and statistics bundled up into a neat package I like to call the four-point play.
One Highlight of the Night
Brandon Miller's monster dunk
I don't think this dunk would even make the first chapter of Brandon Miller's highlight catalog, but it deserves its flowers as tonight's highlight of the night.
Overall, the game was a struggle for the newly minted $209M man, save for a 10 minute stretch where he looked like the sort of go-to scorer that the Hornets clearly think he can be. This dunk ignited that stretch, one that needs to become the norm, not the exception, going forward for Miller.
Two Game-Defining Stats
38.5% OREB Rate
51% Three-point attempt frequency
Where else would we go on opening night?
These two statistics often define singular games in this era of Hornets basketball. Jeff Peterson and Charles Lee crafted a team that is built to bomb away from deep and create extra possessions on the offensive glass, and their vision for what a modern basketball team should look like came clear in the win over Brooklyn.
Earlier this summer I predicted that the Hornets would set the all-time record for three-point attempt frequency, and I feel really good about prediction coming true after just one game.
Three Players of the Game
Naz Reid
Reid was awesome in his Hornets debut. He stuffed the stat sheet, finishing with 20 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists, and most importantly, just one turnover. Reid's ability to both stretch the floor and put pressure on the rim was a boon for a Hornets team missing two of their three primary ball handlers, and they'll continue to rely on him for offensive production even when Coby White and Kon Knueppel return from injury.
It's worth highlighting Reid's passing specifically. That versatility, the ability to pierce the paint, read the floor, and make both the simple and flashy pass is exactly what the Hornets' coaching staff and front office have highlighted all summer.
Grayson Allen
I knew that Grayson Allen's shooting touch would be a major factor off of the Hornets' bench, but after night one of the NBA season, I think I may have been underrating his potential impact.
Allen's versatility as a jump shooter kept Charlotte's offense afloat for long stretches of this game. Pull-up threes in transition, spot up jumpers in the half court, a dagger to the Nets' heart with less than a minute to go...his five long-range makes were integral to Charlotte's success.
He was also the first guy on the floor for a number of loose balls tonight. Having a 30-something-year-old veteran be willing to dive on the hardwood is huge for a Hornets team that preaches about culture whenever given the chance.
Dennis Schroder
Emotional intelligence is an important quality that all great point guards have.
Schroder isn't necessarily a great point guard, but he was nothing short of great against Brooklyn.
Whatever the situation needed, Dennis was there to provide it. Early in the game he played faciliator and got his teammates involved before taking over as a scorer in the fourth quarter. His EQ in giving Charlotte's offense exactly what it needed, when it needed it, is why Jeff Peterson targeted him this summer to run the second unit.
His effectiveness as an NBA point guard has long varied, there's a reason the Hornets are Schroder's 12th NBA team, but if he continues to operate in this fashion, the veteran point guard will have a long runway in the Queen City.
Four Thoughts
1. You Don't Want to See Ryan Kalkbrenner When He Gets Angry
Kalkbrenner was on one tonight.
After opening his 2026-27 account with a monster dunk on Day'Ron Sharpe, Kalkbrenner got into a pair of skirmishes: one physical, one verbal; with Noah Clowney and Moritz Wagner.
His physicality on both ends was a welcome sight. Although Kalkbrenner was statistically an impactful defender in his rookie season, he did tend to get pushed around by some of the league's more imposing big men when attempting to patrol the paint.
Not tonight.
Kalkbrenner established himself on both ends early in the game and the Hornets were better off because of it.
2. Michael Porter Jr. is Inevitable
Man this dude is a special shooter.
Sion James was glued to Porter Jr.'s hip for the majority of the night (seriously, go back and fix your eyes on James' off-ball defense, it was a masterpiece) but it just straight up didn't matter. MPJ could get a shot up with two guys guarding him in a phone booth and it would have a good chance at finding the bottom of the net.
3. Diabate's Determination
An early power ranking of Eric Collins' favorite things about his job as the Hornets' play-by-play announcer:
1. Quirky free throw statistics
2. Moussa Diabate's penchant for hammer dunks
3. Grayson Allen's three-point shot
We'll update this lists as the season progresses, but Diabate's six throw downs really got Collins going on opening night.
Charlotte couldn't by a bucket late in the third quarter. The only thing keeping their offense out of the gutter was Diabate's revelatory rebounding prowess. Consider him the early favorite to be named the back-to-back Kia Hustle Player of the Year after what he did to Brooklyn's hapless big men in the second half.
4. Those Who Didn't Play
I was a bit surprised that Tidjane Salaun received a DNP-CD. I thought the Hornets could use his size and mobility in the front court against Brooklyn's bigs, but Charles Lee and his staff decided to go with Royce O'Neale as the defacto back-up power forward instead of Tidjane.
The other Hornet who didn't see the floor tonight was Hannes Steinbach, which was a tad more predictable. I'm expecting him to spend a good chunk of the season up in Greensboro with the Swarm barring another injury in Charlotte's front court.
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