Charlotte's front court woes, Sion James' two-way brilliance, and more from the Hornets' loss to the Bucks

The Charlotte Hornets and the Milwaukee Bucks playing each other is like your favorite hand-crafted Spotify playlist: bangers only.

A Giannis Antetekounmpo dunk with 4.7 seconds on the clock tonight was the final blow in what has been an exciting season series between the two squads who won't face off again until next season.

Below are a series of thoughts, stats, and highlights from the game bundled into a neat package I like to call the four-point play.

1 Highlight of the Game

Sion James throws it up for Miles Bridges

This was a perfectly executed play by the Hornets that will be lost to the history books because of what happened next.

Using Kon and LaMelo as screeners and Brandon as a dummy to clear the lane is awesome. Great execution from all five Hornets on the floor. https://t.co/FElyBCHpN3 pic.twitter.com/pGwfEnhr4y
— Matt Alquiza (@malquiza8) January 3, 2026

The Hornets used their three best players, LaMelo Ball, Kon Knueppel, and Brandon Miller, as decoys to open up a runway for Miles Bridges to take flight. Sion James lofted the pass softly towards the cup and Bridges finished the chance through some turbulence before converting on a free throw that gave Charlotte the lead.

The unsolvable conundrum that is Giannis Antetekounmpo eventually reclaimed the lead for Milwaukee just seconds later, but for a moment, it looked like Charlotte stole one because of this perfectly executed sideline out of bounds set.

2 Game-Defining Stats

Milwaukee 82.6% shooting at the rim
31 Bucks assists

PJ Hall, a 6'8" center who has been with the Hornets for just over a week, was inserted into the starting lineup due a swath of injuries at the center position. After picking up two fouls in the first five minutes of the game, Hall was relegated to the bench alongside Moussa Diabate, Ryan Kalkbrenner, and Mason Plumlee, and the Bucks went to work.

The lack of a true rim protector was predictably Charlotte's undoing tonight. Milwaukee got whatever they wanted in the restricted area (48 points total) as the Hornets were powerless to slow them down. Hall, Tidjane Salaün, Miles Bridges, and Sion James did an admirable job at moonlighting as centers, but you can only do so much when Giannis and company come barreling down the lane.

Because the Hornets were undersized, they were forced to send help from all angles when Antetekounmpo or Bobby Portis got the ball on the block. Milwaukee diced up Charlotte with the extra pass once their defense went into scramble mode after sending two to the ball.

For stretches, the Hornets' defense was as connected as I've seen it all season, but attempting to defend a team like Milwaukee without size in the paint is like securing your car's bumper with duct tape: it can only go for so long without falling apart.

3 Players of the Game

Kon Knueppel - 26 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 9/16 shooting, 3/8 from three
Sion James - 7 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal
Collin Sexton - 16 points, 6 assists, 1 steal, 5/8 shooting

Can we just pencil in Kon Knueppel for 25+ points every time he plays a game in his hometown of Milwaukee? His stellar rookie campaign keeps on keeping on, and it's a bit of a shame that Charlotte didn't offer him a chance to knock down a big shot in crunch time tonight.

Fellow rookie Sion James was sensational on both ends of the floor tonight. Just 50 some odd hours after shadowing Steph Curry through the Warriors' gauntlet of off-ball actions, James was tasked with guarding Giannis Antetekounmpo for multiple possessions in crunch time tonight.

His malleability as a defender will keep him in the NBA for a long time, but it's his savvy on offense that will increase the dollar signs he is offered when his four-year rookie deal expires.

James is a master of the little things: cutting into space, relocating on the perimeter to open up passing windows, manipulating defenders in the short roll; he's just a sound all-around basketball player who's impact transcends traditional counting statistics.

I thought tonight was one of Sexton's best outings as a Hornet.

Tougher to sit in zone when the threat of Kon Knueppel is on the perimeter.

Defense over extends to cover Kon, Sexton drives into space and Tidjane cuts into the vacated area for a hammer dunk. pic.twitter.com/nMhPUmAJeV
— Matt Alquiza (@malquiza8) January 3, 2026

The veteran point guard orchestrated Charlotte's offense with expertise, both getting shots for himself and working the ball to open teammates. His tunnel vision is frustrating at times, but Sexton was able to see the entirety of the floor tonight and Charlotte thrived in his 27 minutes on the court because of it.

4 Takeaways from the Loss

1. Tre Mann on the move?

Mann's inability to crack Charlotte's rotation is a major bummer.

It's undeniable that his poor play is a contributing factor to his benching, but the ascendance of Sion James and the return of Josh Green are important reasons too. Charlotte's defensive-minded wings need to play as the roster is currently constructed, leaving Mann's undeniable shot-creation skills left to rot on the bench.

His three-year, $24 million salary is non-guaranteed in its final year, making him an intriguing, frugal yet cost-controlled option for a rival team that needs to add some scoring punch off their bench at the deadline. If Mann does get traded, which seems more and more likely with every DNP-CD (this is his second-straight), his tenure as a Hornet will be a weird one to look back on.

2. Tidjane Salaün keeps chugging along

Another game, another impressive outing from Tidjane Salaün.

The second-year forward chipped in 12 points, four rebounds, and this sweet assist to a cutting Sion James in 22 minutes playing an uncomfortable role as a small ball center.

Sion James has been great tonight.

Rewarded for some hard work on defense with a dime from Tidjane. pic.twitter.com/MMBQs9aLHv
— Matt Alquiza (@malquiza8) January 3, 2026

His two-way play was superb for the majority of the contest. Salaün's newfound ability to move his feet and comfortably mirror ball handlers has allowed him to maximize his physical gifts in isolation settings on defense. His on-ball defense is night and day from just a few months ago, and the Hornets are reaping the benefits of this developmental boon.

3. Kon Knueppel's IQ shines

One possession late in the second quarter provoked this thought.

Charlotte loves to run zoom actions out of timeouts (a pin down into a dribble handoff), and Milwaukee clearly had that tendency scouted. Instead of going through the motions and fighting through Ryan Rollins' over-aggressive top side defense, Knueppel cut backdoor and received a slick bounce pass from PJ Hall for a dunk.

The good stuff from PJ/Kon.

Hornets run a ton of zoom action out of timeouts and Ryan Rollins knows it, so he tries to top lock Knueppel.

Kon rejects the screen from Bridges, goes back door, and Hall slips in a slick bounce pass pic.twitter.com/h7I9sNfDOP
— Matt Alquiza (@malquiza8) January 3, 2026

Once or twice a game Kon will do something like this and you need to remind yourself that he was in college this time last year.

4. Baby steps

This could probably be a takeaway after every game these Hornets play, but it's so obvious: the franchise is moving in the right direction.

The pieces are starting to fall into place for this Hornets roster and the man directing them, Charles Lee, is doing a fine job at maximizing the strengths of his cornerstone pieces. If either Ryan Kalkbrenner or Moussa Diabate were healthy Charlotte wins this game.

A road game against a pantheon-level superstar and his teammates fresh off an embarrassing game and fighting for their lives.

The exact type of game previous iterations of the Charlotte Hornets get smoked in.

Progress.