The Hornets relied on their newcomers to defeat the Pacers for their second straight win.
The Charlotte Hornets are a perfect 2-0 since acquiring five new players at the NBA trade deadline. They’ve all been productive for the Hornets since they’ve landed. Given that four of the five guys have played in crucial playoff moments or big minutes at some point, the offense has opened up and gave Steve Clifford more fluidity on that end of the floor.
“The thing about these guys coming in here, four of them are veteran guys,” Clifford said. “They just want to know what are the coverages, what are the plays, and they want to play. I think that’s good for all our guys. We have a lot of skill out their right now and a lot of IQ. We can get a lot better obviously. There’s a lot of good and a lot to build on.”
Seth Curry‘s homecoming party was vs. Pacers
In Curry’s second game as a Hornet, he dropped 18 points on an efficient 7-11 shooting. He looked more comfortable on Monday with his decision making and his shot was falling. In the third quarter, Curry went 4-5 from the field and scored 10 points in five minutes of action.
That spark helped Charlotte maintain their lead throughout the quarter. The Hornets used that momentum to come away with a 111-102 victory.
“It felt good,” Curry said about this third quarter. “I’ve got to give coach some credit, he put me in good situations, switched up the sets we ran for me early in the game and got me in a little bit more of a rhythm tonight touching the ball, being aggressive, moving the ball.”
“I think everybody just played a good, offensively fast-paced game, and even in the half-court we were moving the ball, driving, kicking and everybody was involved,” Curry continued. “We found some open lanes and some open shots.”
Williams chipped in with 21 points of his own and is averaging 18 points in his first two games with Charlotte. He’s playing a lot of small ball five and stretching defenses out. His versatility has provided more spacing for everyone else to operate around the floor.
“You have so much more room on the floor,” Clifford said about Williams playing center.
This is only Charlotte’s second two game-winning streak of the season. Their first one came in November against the Boston Celtics and the Washington Wizards. With some new juice in the building, the Hornets are looking to get three wins in a row for the first time this season in their next matchup against the Atlanta Hawks.
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