The Charlotte Hornets' sensational rookie hit yet another mark in the league with an incredible shooting night.
The future is bright for the Charlotte Hornets, and that’s largely thanks to star rookie Kon Knueppel, who is racing towards strengthening his case for NBA Rookie of the Year, ironically against his former Duke Blue Devils teammate and roommate, Cooper Flagg. Knueppel has already made his mark in the league since the Hornets selected him No. 4 overall. On Thursday night, Knueppel hit another milestone in NBA rookie history, breaking the rookie record for 3-poitners set by Keegan Murray when he made his 207th bucket in Charlotte’s 113-109 win over the Indiana Pacers. He made five in the first half and broke the record in the third with an assist from another former college teammate, Sion James.
Knueppel finished the night with 28 points, and 8-of-12 on three-pointers. That makes his total a league-leading 209 3s, while his eight 3s – which tied his career-high – were one shy of tying yet another NBA rookie record. Not only did he break Murray’s record, but he did so in 20 less games. It took Murray 80 games in his 2022-2023 campaign to set the record that Knueppel bested in 59 games this year.
Here is the full story from Hornets Roundtable writer Ashish Mathur on the monumental achievement for the rookie and why the future is bright in Charlotte.
Knueppel has already established himself as one of the better shooters in the league, and he was so in rhythm that he didn’t even realize he’d hit the record mid-game, thinking he needed seven instead of six to top Murray. His 44.2 percent shooting beyond the arc has firmly put him in contention for the NBA Rookie of the Year award as he helps brings the Hornets to hopefully their first playoff berth since the 2015-16 season.