Charlotte Hornets fall to the Boston Celtics in preseason opener

Dwight Howard‘s preseason debut with the Charlotte Hornets was spoiled as they were defeated by the Celtics in Boston.

The Charlotte Hornets (0-1) fell to the Boston Celtics (1-0) as they dropped their first preseason game this year. Dwight Howard, Malik Monk, Julyan Stone, Dwayne Bacon, Marcus Paige and Mangok Mathiang all made their Hornets’ debuts. The Celtics’ newest members, Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward, played well in their first game together.

Almost every player who was available for Charlotte got minutes in this one. Everyone except for Terry Henderson, T.J. Williams, Luke Petrasek, and Isaiah Hicks saw playing time. The team was without backup point guard Michael Carter-Williams (knee procedure) and bench wing Treveon Graham (hamstring) as both are still recovering and hope to make an appearance at some point this preseason.

Turning Point

It was a pretty close affair throughout but Boston took control at the start of the fourth quarter. Charlotte was only down 65-68 to begin the final period but the home team went on a 14-2 run which gave them a comfortable enough lead to see out the game. The Hornets managed to cut it to single digits later in the fourth but never got closer than within nine.

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Who Stepped Up

The Hornets were led by Jeremy Lamb who put up a team-high 17 points on 6-10 shooting and eight rebounds in 24 minutes. He was by far Charlotte’s best player and the most effective off the bench. Kemba Walker scored 12 points while Nicolas Batum had 10 to round out the team’s double-figure scorers.

In his debut, Dwight Howard managed to finish with seven points, 10 rebounds and three blocks but also had six turnovers. Malik Monk only scored 5 points and like the everyone else in teal, he struggled with his shot. It’s the first game of the year so don’t look too much into their poor shooting numbers as players are still getting into a rhythm.

Daniel Theis led Boston with 12 points and seven rebounds. Abdel Nader (10) and Aron Baynes (10) both scored in double digits while Jayson Tatum and Kyrie Irving each had nine points in their debut. Gordon Hayward only played 16 minutes in his first game with the Celtics.

Play of the Game:

Tweet of the Game:

"Quick Stings"

• This game featured eight ties and four lead changes.
• Boston out-rebounded Charlotte 52-45.
• The Hornets committed 19 turnovers.
• Charlotte only managed to shoot 37.5% (30-80) from the field and 28.6% (6-21) from three.
• The Hornets have lost their preseason opener for the second straight year.

With the loss, Charlotte falls to 0-1 on the preseason and against Boston. They will get another crack at the Celtics before the start of the regular season with their second meeting coming in the Queen City on Wednesday, October 11th.

Next: Batum compares Monk to McCollum

Next time out, the Charlotte Hornets will take on the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday, October 4th in Motown. It will be the second of the team’s five preseason games this year. This will be the Pistons’ first exhibition game and their first game in their new home at the Little Caesars Arena.