Charlotte Hornets: 3 takeaways from win at Memphis Grizzlies

The Charlotte Hornets beat the Memphis Grizzlies by a score of 118-108 tonight, snapping a five-game losing streak that started last week.

The Hornets finally found a way to win, fending off a comeback bid from the Grizzlies on Wednesday night. After finally ending their losing streak – one which occurred in-part due to the West Coast trip – Charlotte’s upcoming schedule includes the New York Knicks, Golden State Warriors, and Washington Wizards.

Without further delay, let’s get into some game takeaways.

Charlotte Hornets takeaways: Kelly Oubre had his best game of the season.

Kelly Oubre had his best game of his night – one that he will remember for a long time. Oubre finished with 37 points on only 17 shots. He made seven 3-pointers, didn’t miss a free throw, and may have single-handedly been responsible for the Hornets getting the win tonight.

Leading up to this game, Oubre struggled mightily, with his shots simply not falling and the attentiveness defensively not being there. Tonight was a different story, though, as Oubre set the Hornets’ franchise record for most points coming from a bench player. Keeping up this particular form is unlikely, though hopefully the consistency gets better.

Charlotte Hornets takeaways: The Hornets can pass the ball when they want to.

The Charlotte Hornets did really well from a passing standpoint tonight. Each of the team’s starters had at least five assists, with LaMelo Ball leading the team with eight. The Hornets as a whole had 32 total assists.

This was not a spectacular scoring night from Charlotte, but grabbing 32 of their 41 buckets is a testament to how good the overall passing can be from night-to-night.

Charlotte Hornets takeaways: The zone defense was a positive step.

The Charlotte Hornets went to a zone defensive scheme in the first half after Ja Morant killed the team in the first quarter. It worked, as the Grizzlies missed a tremendous amount of open 3-pointers.

Early in the game, the Hornets played a drop coverage scheme to counteract the Memphis pick-and-roll, but Morant was not the mid-range floater – and James Borrego adjusted. Whether this will continue remains to be seen, but Borrego did run a lot of zone last season – and the Hornets did downgrade defensively.

The Hornets’ next game is against the New York Knicks, beginning a 4-game long home stand.