It’s good to be back on Trade Street Post! I know a lot of you may not remember me but, I slogged through the blogging trenches in the formative years of this blog. A lot of good times were had and many more are to come! On to the game. The new broadcast crew is a bit, odd. I don’t really understand why we need three people to handle the job of two. Stephanie Ready and Dell Curry are clearly able to handle this by themselves but, I digress. The new-look Hornets got down to business early and often in this one, blowing out the Chicago Bulls on the way to their first victory of the season 130-105. Jeremy Lamb had a coming out party with 20 points on 9/10(!!) shooting. Nicolas Batum dropped 18 and Big Al finished with 14. Derrick Rose was held to a pedestrian 4 points while Jimmy Butler and Doug McDermott had 26 and 17 respectively. http://gty.im/142156425
The first quarter was one of back and forth scoring. Rebounding and ball movement were the early keys to the Hornets success. Finding the open man and driving the lane early and often. Nic Batum compiled 7 early points on free throws alone. PJ Hairston came out shooting strong off the news that his team option was not picked up by the team today. My speculation is that the Hornets know they have a talented player in Hairston but, have yet to figure out how to motivate him. He knows that he has no guarantee for next season and the heat is on. Step up or get stepped on. All of the players that checked into the game in the 1st quarter scored as ball movement was ABOUND. The Bulls were shooting well early but, the Hornets defensive rotation tightened up and began suffocating the shot selection. The second unit turned up the heat and went on a run to end the quarter. As chemistry comes into play, the team has progressed nicely. Jeremy Lamb looks more confident than ever and his aggressiveness on the offensive end was apparent. Score was 37-20 at the end of the first.
Cody Zeller and Joakim Noah opened up the second with a bang but, not the good kind like you want. Noah’s elbow came down on the bridge of Zeller’s nose, crushing it on the way down. There was quite a bit of blood but Zeller did return after the half. The 2nd unit continued it’s dominance of the Bulls on both ends of the floor. Shooting a staggering 78% beyond the arc for the game at this point. Steve Clifford’s defensive rotation and close-out defense was far too much for the Bulls to handle. Chicago could not hang on to the ball and defensive created plenty of offensive opportunities for the Hornets. Frank Kaminsky’s ability to close out to the three point line on defense, was key to keeping the Bulls from getting clean looks. Absolutely staggering half for the Hornets, who closed the half up 69-47. Certainly not the Charlotte Hornets team we’ve seen so far but, this has been a blast so far.
Kemba Walker talked with Stephanie Ready about keeping up the intensity and they did not disappoint in the 3rd quarter. Coming out hot and SUFFOCATING the Bulls. By mid-3rd the Bulls had only scored 5 points. Jimmy Butler leading the way with 18. This is clearly what Rich Cho and Steve Clifford had intended when they began making moves this off season. Bringing in the right players for the right price and getting a system in place. Ball movement and spacing making all the difference. The passing improvement compared to last season is astounding. It’s similar to what we saw two years ago with the playoff Bobcats but, it’s much much better. Jimmy Butler and Doug McDermott were on fire in the 3rd and were able to begin carving the lead down. It was Jeremy Lamb, Jeremy Lin and Nic Batum that answered the call, bringing the Hornets to a 100-77 lead going INTO THE FOURTH. Yea, you read that correctly. 100 points at the end of 3 quarters in a Charlotte Hornets game.
On to the fourth quarter. I’ll give you a recap in a recap. What happened in the fourth you say?
MORE SCORING FOR THE HORNETS!
And Psycho T bumbling around like a large happy dog.
For once, everything went right for the Charlotte Hornets, it’s a glimpse of what this organization has been working towards. It’s a look at the potential of this team. Hopefully, they can put more games like this together. If so, this is going to be quite a fun season to watch.
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