Charlotte Hornets Five Best Games
Oct 8, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Kemba Walker (15) drives to the basket between Philadelphia 76ers center
Henry Sims(35) and forward
Nerlens Noel(4) during the first quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
April 4th, 2015
Charlotte Hornets 92 Philadelphia 76ers 91
OK, yeah, the Philadelphia 76ers are really bad. However, the Charlotte Hornes came into this game with three of their starters injured. Al Jefferson, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, and Cody Zeller were all in street clothes.
The Hornets were still in the thick of the playoff race, and suddenly guys like Jason Maxiell, P.J. Hairston, and Jeffrey Taylor were playing big minutes in an important game.
Philadelphia may not a great team, but those are NBA players on that squad and they play hard. Many of these guys know this could be their last year in the league, and they do not take anything for granted.
This was a close game throughout, with the Hornets’ prospects looking dim as Philadelphia guard Ish Smith headed to the line late in the game with his team up by one point.
Make those free throws, and a poor shooting Hornets team would have to make a three just to tie the game. However, Smith missed both free throws, and that set up Gerald Henderson for the game winning shot.
Henderson drove to the basket and made a lay-up to put Charlotte up by one with just seconds left. Smith tried to redeem his misses at the line but his shot failed to go in as time expired.
At the time, this win kept alive the notion that the Hornets might make the playoffs. While Charlotte will not be in the post-season tonight, this game showed the fight and the never-give-up attitude that has defined this team.