If we remember back to June, the Charlotte Hornets' fanbase was a bit split over whether Kon Knueppel was the right pick for this team with the fourth overall selection. Fast forward not even five full months later, and he's currently the runaway favorite to take home the Rookie of the Year award.
Knueppel put up a masterful performance in his hometown against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night. He set a new career-high with 32 points, making 12 of his 20 shot attempts and four three-pointers in an overtime loss. With reportedly over 2,000 of his family and friends in attendance (who even has that many friends?), it was certainly a night to remember.
Kon's raw numbers in his first month as an NBA rookie have been impressive enough on their own. He's already become the first player in NBA history to score 150+ points and hit 30+ threes in his first 10 career games.
But what has consistently blown away not just the fanbase but also Charles Lee and the coaching staff has been how composed and ready he has consistently looked. Last week, Lee credited Duke coach Jon Scheyer for getting Knueppel and Sion James ready to play at such a high level night in and night out.
"Coach Scheyer might as well be on the staff," Lee said. "He did such a heck of a job laying a foundation with those guys. I owe him a lot ... Both of them are just about team basketball and winning."
Kon Knueppel has seized control of the Rookie of the Year race
That mentality of being all about winning and playing as a team shows up every time Kon steps on the floor. He plays with the composure of a multi-year veteran in the association, making good reads with the ball in his hands, shooting with consistency, moving well without the ball, and maintaining strong defensive fundamentals no matter the opponent.
He's the kind of player that you would say is a coach's dream. And it's the performances he has put up thus far that make Knueppel the unquestioned favorite in the Rookie of the Year race right now. Many would have thought that Kon's Duke teammate and number one overall pick Cooper Flagg would be leading the race right now, but he's struggled with efficiency in a new role.
Others like Cedric Coward and VJ Edgecombe have made strong cases for themselves as well, but neither can boast the consistency nor the highs that Knueppel has reached in his young NBA career. There's a lot of season left, but number seven in purple and teal has to be the favorite for the award right now.
Friday night's career-high for Kon felt like the moment he firmly established himself as the top rookie this season. And we can't neglect mentioning that his career night happened after the Knueppel family graciously invited the Hornets as a team to visit their home in Milwaukee for dinner on Thursday. LaMelo Ball, Miles Bridges, Brandon Miller, Collin Sexton, Tre Mann, Mason Plumlee, Moussa Diabate, KJ Simpson and Sion James were all in attendance.
"Taking the bus down my street, going home, that was weird," Knueppel said. "And a bunch of NBA players in my house. It was a lot of big people, but my family enjoyed it." When Kon's mother, Chari, was asked on social media how much food they could possible have in their house to feed that many people, she answered decisively: "25lbs of chicken fajitas."
The Charlotte Hornets truly have something special in Kon Knueppel. And if he keeps up what he's been doing, we shouldn't be surprised at all to see his name sitting comfortably at the top of every Rookie of the Year ballot by springtime.