Outpaced in Indiana. What Hornets said about rough loss to Pacers.

Roderick Boone, The Charlotte Observer on Nov 19, 2025

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Apparently, the Charlotte Hornets’ alarm clocks didn’t quite make it through U.S. Customs.

Whatever the reason for their slumber in the Midwest on Wednesday night, one thing is certain: The season is rapidly spiraling in the wrong direction and is about to get away from the Hornets really quickly if they can’t reverse the disturbing trend.

In making the Indiana Pacers look like title contenders during Wednesday’s brutal 127-118 defeat at Gainbridge Fieldhouse, the Hornets showed they have several areas to correct.

Although they aren’t whole because of the absences of Brandon Miller and Tre Mann — along with the likes of Grant Williams and Josh Green — losing to one of the worst teams in the NBA and trailing by as many as 24 points qualifies as the low point of their early season.

So, what happened?

“Have to play (more) physical, especially with a team like the Pacers,” Miles Bridges said. “They’ve been to the playoffs multiple years, they know how to play. So, with those kinds of teams you’ve got to be physical from the jump.”

Kon Knueppel led the Hornets (4-11) with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, and Miles Bridges added 25 points and five rebounds. LaMelo Ball had 18 points, nine assists and seven rebounds and Ryan Kalkbrenner chipped in 10 points and nine rebounds.

Charlotte never truly threatened Indiana (2-13) until late.

“I thought they did a good job of playing with pace, executing their offense and getting some good looks,” Hornets coach Charles Lee said. “But I would say on the other end of the court, we got some really good looks in that first half and weren’t able to convert. Obviously, didn’t shoot a great percentage from the field or three. I thought that just affected how we guarded defensively.

“Coverage was not always tight, attention to detail not always great. But I loved the fact that we didn’t give in to having a frustrating shooting night. The squad kept competing . I thought the togetherness was better. But it’s tough when you dig yourself that kind of hole and you give up 30 points the first three quarters.”

Here’s what else of note the Hornets had to say:

On how to turn it around

“We’ve just got to play our game, get back to winning,” Bridges said. “The first two games against Brooklyn and against Philly, we were getting out with pace offensively after misses, after makes. So, we are not doing that anymore. We’ve got to get back to that and taking pride on defense.”

On Kon Knueppel

“He’s great,” Bridges said. “I don’t even know his player comparison, but he’s been great for us all year, and he’s going to continue to be great because he’s coachable, he knows the game well, he shoots the ball very well, he can drive. So, he’s an all-around player.”

Lee said, “It’s great for a young player to have that type of success early on. He is humble enough to understand that obviously a lot of it is him and a lot of it is his teammates, too. And so the combination of those two things is putting him in a good spot. And I think he is just converting and showing us what kind of player he can be.”

On Ryan Kalkbrenner’s season

“I think Ryan’s done a great job coming in,” Lee said, “and like Miles said, being coachable, asking what his role is specifically. You sit there, and you do your player development meetings and you kind of lay out these are the areas we want you to improve in. And as training camp goes on, we had a sidebar, and he said, ‘Coach, what else can I be doing? Is there anything else I can be doing?’

“The things we talked to him about, it’s really about trying to dominate the paint. His presence around the basket, his communication defensively, I think he really covers up some mistakes as we may make defensively or whenever we aren’t solid with what we are doing. He has his teammates’ back and I think it’s a luxury for those guys to know that they can pressure the ball, they can close the gap, they can do things knowing they have him back there to help support.

“He’s just the perfect big and the perfect teammate as well. So, it’s been a joy to watch him. And a lot of that is Ryan and a lot of that is the coaching that he had before he got here and the foundation that he came in with.”

Up next

The Hornets get a brief chance to play in front of their own fans after their two-game road trip. They host the LA Clippers at 1 p.m. Saturday at Spectrum Center before hitting the friendly skies again for a date with the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena on Sunday night.