Against the third-ranked defense team in the league, the Charlotte Hornets had 64 points in the paint compared to 44 from the Utah Jazz; although the Jazz more than made up for losing the battle of the paint with their three-point shooting. Points in the paint accounted for more than half of the Hornet’s points.
This is impressive with the Hornets missing PJ Washington who does a good bit of scoring in the paint. Bismack Biyombo certainly stepped up and scored 13 points on a perfect 6-6 shooting in the paint.
Many Hornets’ players such as Gordon Hayward, LaMelo Ball, Caleb Martin, and Terry Rozier were not afraid to take it right at Rudy Gobert, a master shot blocker and rim protector, who is also a two-time defensive player of the year winner. It’s great to see the confidence from the Hornets to attack elite bigs in order to go for a high percentage shot.