Brandon Miller is single-handedly making the Hornets watchable

The Hornets have now lost eight straight after falling at home to the Lakers on Monday night, 124-118. The team made a valiant fourth-quarter comeback to make this a game late after trailing by as much as 21. Miles Bridges set a new career high with 41 points on 16/26 shooting from the field in the loss.

But the story of this game, and what has quickly become the story of the season for the Hornets, was Brandon Miller. Simply put, the kid is special. Miller continued his run of incredible recent play with 33 points on 13/25 shooting and 5/11 from three-point range, adding 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 4 steals.

Beyond the gaudy numbers, Miller completely took over the game in the fourth quarter, scoring 16 points, and almost willing his team to victory all by himself. The Lakers were throwing everything they had at Miller - including double teams with LeBron and Anthony Davis - and it didn’t matter. Miller got inside for buckets and was burying threes left and right, off the dribble and curling off screens.

At one point, Miller even stole a pass and took it coast-to-coast for a thunderous dunk. It was a dynamic performance, usually reserved for veteran superstars, not 21-year-old rookies. It was yet another sign that the Hornets have a star-in-the-making in Miller.

The Hornets have been hard to watch for a long time, but Miller has made it all worth it in recent weeks. He has turned a corner and taken his game to another level, playing as well as any rookie in the league lately - and that includes the phenom, Victor Wembanyama.

Miller has shown everything you’d want to see and more from a young rookie, and all the signs of superstardom have already been on display. It’s an amazing development for the Hornets and their fans, one that’s creating as much optimism as has been seen in years.

This was just the latest in a long line of incredible play from Miller. He’s scored over 20 points in 9 of the past 11 games and has gone for 28, 35, and 33 in his past three outings. In fact, what Miller has done in this recent stretch has been downright historic.

He likely still won’t win Rookie of the Year, but he’s shown that he can be the franchise player this team has been yearning for since its inception. The sky's the limit for Miller and he has biome must-see TV on a nightly basis, even playing for one of the worst teams in the league. Tune in and enjoy this, Hornets fans. This kid is in rarified air already and it’s only going to get better.