Kon Knueppel took the basketball world by storm when he and (all of) his brothers were in attendance for the 2025 NBA Draft as he became a first-round pick and got to keep calling North Carolina home, going fourth overall to the Charlotte Hornets.
Then, the former Duke Blue Devil excelled throughout the NBA Summer League and Charlotte's preseason matchups. Now, he and the Hornets have captured their first win of the regular season behind a masterful performance in his NBA debut, alongside his teammates.
Charlotte Hornets capture win behind massive teamm effort
The Hornets walked away from their first game of the regular season with a 136-117 win over the Brooklyn Nets. The most astonishing stat line from the matchup? Charlotte had 33 assists from nine different players who checked into the game.
Afterward, Knueppel was asked what he thought about his team's assist count and the all-around effort it took to secure the victory.
"It was kind of like a potluck tonight. Everybody was eating," Knueppel said. "Everybody's playing unselfishly. I mean, how many guys do we have in double figures... nine? That's fun basketball, and that's how it's supposed to be played. So, hopefully we can keep that going."
He was exactly right, the Hornets had nine players with double-digit points, including all five starters and four players who came off the bench.
Knueppel himself had 11 points, five rebounds, and one assist, earning the seventh-most points on the lineup. Fellow former Blue Devil and yet another pick for Duke in the 2025 NBA Draft, Sion James, earned four rebounds, two points, two assists, and one block.
On Saturday, Oct. 25, Knueppel, James, and the Hornets will face the Philadelphia 76ers at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will be aired on NBA TV's League Pass.