Kon Knueppel talks three-point success as he nears all-time record originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Although the Charlotte Hornets have lost two straight games following the All-Star break, their performance has been encouraging.
With two of their starters serving suspensions (Miles Bridges and Moussa Diabate), the Hornets have been competitive against some of the strongest teams in each conference, losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets by a combined nine points.
The performance of Kon Knueppel is a large reason why, as the rookie continues to dominate. In Charlotte's last game against the Cavaliers, Knueppel led all scorers with 33 points on 11-for-20 shooting to go along with six rebounds, two assists, one steal and no turnovers.
Knueppel knocked down seven three-pointers, passing Donovan Mitchell for the second most three-pointers made in a rookie season. Now, he's only 14 three-point makes behind Keegan Murray for the all-time rookie record with 25 games left to play.
Not only that, but Knueppel also leads the entire league in three-pointers made this season.
Following the game, Knueppel spoke about his success from long-range, crediting his teammates and coaches.
"Credit to my teammates and coaches for giving me a lot of good opportunities to get good shots. Just sticking with it, sticking with my mechanics and confidence in my shot. Just seems like a lot of them are going in right now."
With their two-straight losses, the Hornets have slipped back into 10th place in the Eastern Conference standings. The Milwaukee Bucks aren't far behind in 11th, trailing by half a game.
Led by Knueppel, the Hornets will hope to get back in the win column Sunday against the Wizards.
More NBA news:
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- VJ Edgecombe vows to be better after six-turnover performance in loss to Hawks
- Kon Knueppel reveals Larry Bird-like mindset
- Lonzo Ball calls himself the 'scapegoat' following trade from Cavaliers
- Spurs' Mason Plumlee deal foreshadows another move to come
- Giannis Antetokounmpo praises Kon Knueppel: 'One of the smartest rookies I’ve ever seen'