Charlotte Hornets Player Grades: Fourth Quarter Blues

Charlotte Hornets Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images)
Charlotte Hornets Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (Photo by David Sherman/NBAE via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

After competing in quarters 1-3, the Charlotte Hornets once again fell apart late in the game, ultimately losing to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night.

You have to be able to put teams away and win close games in this league, and that is something that the Charlotte Hornets have struggled with all season long. It was a tied game going into the fourth quarter against Minnesota tonight, but the Hornets were outscored 35-18 in the last period.

This is a major problem, and something that the team needs to fix as soon as possible. It’s not going to happen overnight, it’s going to be a process, but you can’t keep dropping games like this. This was a winnable game for the Hornets, and every game counts towards making the playoffs.

It began as a promising looking night for Charlotte, as they got off to a fast start against the Timberwolves, getting contributions from everyone who played. Andrew Wiggins had a thunderous dunk in the second quarter that really shifted momentum Minnesota’s way, and changed the game completely.

The Charlotte Hornets have now lost three straight games, and will take on the Denver Nuggets up next, who had won seven straight games. Charlotte really could have used a win tonight, but they couldn’t get the job done.

Every active player checked in for the Hornets tonight, so without further ado, let’s hand out these grades.

C-. <a rel=. SF/SG. Charlotte Hornets. DWAYNE BACON

NICOLAS BATUM. B. This was probably <a rel=. SF/SG. Charlotte Hornets

Charlotte Hornets. BISMACK BIYOMBO. C-.  <a rel=. C

SF/PF. Charlotte Hornets. MILES BRIDGES. B. The rookie’s got some momentum right now, as he is shooting the ball from the perimeter at a high level. He hit two three-pointers tonight, and ended up with 10 points in 20 minutes off the bench.

DEVONTE' GRAHAM. C-. <a rel=. PG. Charlotte Hornets

C. With <a rel=. C. Charlotte Hornets. WILLY HERNANGOMEZ

B. <a rel=. C/PF. Charlotte Hornets. FRANK KAMINSKY

B-. MKG started in place of <a rel=. SF/PF. Charlotte Hornets. MICHAEL KIDD-GILCHRIST

B. My player crush for the ’18-19 season thus far has definitely been Mr. <a rel=. SG/SF. Charlotte Hornets. JEREMY LAMB

MALIK MONK. C+. <a rel=. SG/PG. Charlotte Hornets

TONY PARKER. C. <a rel=. PG. Charlotte Hornets

C+. The Hornets need to get <a rel=. PG. Charlotte Hornets. KEMBA WALKER

Marvin Williams out with shoulder strain. dark. Next

CODY ZELLER. C+. Cody Zeller struggled to contain <a rel=. C. Charlotte Hornets