Three takeaways from the Hornets’ home opener

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Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges drives past Miami's Tyler Herro in the Heat's 114-106 win Oct. 26 at Spectrum Center. The loss dropped Charlotte to 1-2.

The shorthanded Hornets couldn’t get over the hump against Miami in a 114-106 loss.

Without star forward Brandon Miller in the lineup, Charlotte mounted a fourth quarter comeback but couldn’t find enough defensive stops to finish. There was plenty to take away from the game, so here are three of them:

1. LaMelo Ball must start and finish strong

Ball scored 27 points and seven assists with 17 in the second half with eight in the fourth quarter. He also turned the ball over five times for a 1.4 to 1 turnover ratio, which isn’t ideal for a point guard, especially one of Ball’s talent.

Coach Charles Lee said growth is needed but he was happy with how Ball helped bring Charlotte come back and his intensity.

“[I am] proud of the whole group, LaMelo included,” Lee said. “The guys didn’t make any excuses for anything and they just wanted to ball. They love competing, they love ball and they love to do it together. It’s a great group. We’ll just continue to learn and grow. We just had three great games that were close game situations that we can learn from. That’s what we’ve talked a ton about with our team. Last year, a ton of games came down to one to three possessions. This is just what you have to be able to do to win those games.”

Ball forced the initiative late, driving to the basket a little out of control at times, leading to some of his turnovers. But once Miller and others return it may open up Ball to play more within himself.

2. Defense has room for improvement

To the Hornets’ credit, not many Heat shots went uncontested. Lee thought Charlotte showed Miami multiple defensive looks, especially in the second half to throw them off rhythm and make shots difficult. Sometimes, teams are just going to hit them.

“So proud of the effort that our guys gave tonight,” Lee said. “I thought we switched up coverages and gave [Miami] different looks. To compete and battle and be in a position to win the game, I thought they did a really good job.”

Lee added that Charlotte gave up three point attempts they wanted, but on some of the 50/50 plays it didn’t go their way, as well as being a little bit tighter on ball switches, which resulted in a few open looks that the Heat capitalized on.

Miami shot 41.2% from three-point range and 46.5% from the floor. Lee, as a defensive-minded coach, will want those numbers to come down.

3. Charlotte needs to get healthy

It sounds like a broken record with this team and injuries, but three games into the regular season and it is already a point of concern.

Center Mark Williams and guard Josh Green have yet to play. Green was ruled out of the opener due to an Achilles injury and Williams is still rehabbing a leg injury. Getting Green back will add another shooter that can space the floor. Once they get Williams back, it adds rebounding and shot blocking.

First round draft pick Tidjane Salaün started a bit shaky but there were a few glimpses of promise as he tallied a steal and a few good defensive possessions in limited minutes.

“He definitely looked like it was his first NBA action,” Lee said. “But, from an energy and effort standpoint, it was really high. I think just kind of understanding the league, and actions and personnel tendencies wasn't quite there in the first half. But I think once he kind of settled in and got his feet wet, the second stint that he had in the second half was much better. He was more active. He helped us rebound and helped us guard a lot more.”

Looking forward

After the game, Lee was asked to grade himself through three games. He was reflective.

“Average,” he said bluntly. “I think that I keep learning about myself every game. I tell the guys I’m not perfect either, and so I have to continue to get better, and I'm getting more comfortable in a lot of different ways.

“My staff has been absolutely phenomenal in terms of communicating and helping me organize my thoughts or messaging to the players and to the team. So, average, but I'm going to get better and check in with me at the end of the year.”

Charlotte is off until Oct. 30 against Toronto at Spectrum Center.

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