Hornets stay hot, now second in East; can Bulls, Hawks gain ground?

Steven J. Gaither

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Hornets stay hot, now second in East; can Bulls, Hawks gain ground? image

When you think of the elite teams in the Eastern Conference, a couple squads may come to mind, but the Hornets probably aren’t on that list.

But then you look up at the standings and see Charlotte is in second place in the East, ahead of teams like Miami, Indiana, Chicago and Atlanta. Steve Clifford's guys sit just one game behind the Cavaliers for the No. 1 seed after their 99-81 win over the Heat on Wednesday — their third straight victory.

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It’s OK to be surprised, as the Hornets have generated little buzz while winning 13 of their first 21 games. Even across the Carolinas they’ve taken a backseat to Charlotte's NFL franchise, the 12-0 Panthers.

As for the Hornets' brass, they saw the success coming after a busy offseason. Over the summer, they dealt Lance Stephenson and Gerald Henderson, traded for Nicolas Batum and Jeremy Lamb and added Jeremy Lin.

Batum is having a career season, averaging 17 points per game, while Lin has thrived as the leader of Charlotte’s second unit with 10.5 points and three assists per game. Lamb is averaging 12.3 points a night on 49 percent shooting —not bad for a guy who could barely get on the court in Oklahoma City.

Then there’s the frontcourt, where the most notable name — Al Jefferson — has been solid, but not spectacular. He hasn't had to be amazing, because Marvin Williams, Cody Zeller and Frank Kaminsky have played well and spaced the floor for Kemba Walker.

Williams and Walker paced the Hornets with 18 points apiece Wednesday while Batum notched a triple-double (10 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists). The bench, led by Lamb, contributed 38 points in a game that was never really close. 

If the Hornets keep this up, their buzz will certainly build across the nation.

Stud of the night 

James Harden notched his sixth 40-point game of the season against the Wizards, which only second to Stephen Curry who has seven such games. Harden followed his 10-point performance on Tuesday with 42 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in the Rockets' 109-103 win Wednesday.

Dud of the night

The Knicks' starters shot just 12 for 31 from the field and scored 32 points in New York's 106-85 loss to Utah. Carmelo Anthony was held to 12 points, and rookie sensation Kristaps Porzingis managed a season-low four points in a little more than 13 minutes.

Tweet of the night

Do we even need to explain this one? 

Looking ahead: (all times Eastern)

Clippers (13-9) at Bulls (11-8), 8 p.m.: Both teams are streaking, albeit in opposite directions. The Clippers have won three in a row while the Bulls have lost three in a row. Chicago could use its ugly loss Wednesday to the Celtics on national TV as motivation for this one.

Hawks (14-9) at Thunder (13-8), 8 p.m.: Two teams many expected to be among the NBA's best will square off, both riding two-game win streaks. Kevin Durant and his 27.9 points per game (third-best in the association) will be face a shaky Atlanta defense that has fallen from top-five last season to middle of the league this season.

Steven J. Gaither