When the Charlotte Hornets drafted Kon Knueppel with the No. 4 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, the majority believed he was the best shooter in the class. No one knew he would be knocking on the door of a club reserved for the league’s most decorated shooters in history as a rookie. The 50-40-90 club is a benchmark that over 99 percent of players don’t reach in their lifetime, as only nine players in league history have ever reached that mark. However, Knueppel’s mini‑slump across the last three games is beginning to hurt his chances.
There is no denying that Kon has blown past every expectation placed on him, transforming from a promising rookie into a franchise cornerstone. What was once a crowded Rookie of the Year race has quietly turned into a two-man duel between Knueppel and Cooper Flagg. And yet, the sacred shooting milestone that many will never reach could be considered more important than that race.
A prolific shooting profile
Knueppel’s game stretches well beyond his shooting touch, but that remains his most unique talent. The rookie phenom is currently averaging 19.2 points per game on 48.8/43.6/86.9 shooting splits. With about 19 games left to play, Knueppel is running out of time to push those numbers higher.
Over the last three games, Knueppel has finally looked mortal, hitting just 43.1 percent from the floor, 31.0 percent from three, and an uncharacteristic 28.6 percent at the line. For most rookies, this would simply be a rough patch. For Knueppel, whose bar has been set absurdly high, these numbers feel jarring to Hornets fans. With each passing night, the possibility that he could fall short of joining that exclusive club becomes a little harder to ignore.
Bigger picture
The Hornets are winning at a historic pace, so it’s safe to assume Knueppel isn’t losing much sleep over falling short of the legendary 50‑40‑90 club as a rookie. His rise has been one of the driving forces behind Charlotte’s surge, helping transform the Hornets into one of the league’s hottest teams and reshaping the franchise’s identity in real time. For years, this organization felt trapped in a loop of perpetual rebuilding with LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller battling nagging injuries, draft swings that never quite landed, and momentum that always seemed to stall.
In the end, missing the 50‑40‑90 club shouldn’t be viewed as any kind of failure. Knueppel has already shown he’s far more than a set of shooting splits—he’s a legitimately high‑impact player who’s helped steer the Hornets back onto a winning path as a rookie. The real injustice would be if he somehow walks away without the Rookie of the Year award. His fingerprints are all over Charlotte’s resurgence, and that should matter more than any missed milestone.