Takeaways from the Charlotte Hornets upset win over the Cleveland Cavaliers

In case you missed it while watching the Carolina Panthers blow a golden opportunity at taking firm control of the NFC South, the Charlotte Hornets won a basketball game against a quality opponent.

Charlotte defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 119-111 in overtime, snapping a two-game losing streak that felt much longer due to an extended break as the league descended on Vegas for the NBA Cup.

Lets dive into some takeaways from tonight's contest.

Brandon Miller is back

Injuries aside, it's been an up-and-down start to the 2025 season for Brandon Miller.

When healthy, the third-year forward has struggled with his jumper, but he found something in Cleveland. Miller came into the game shooting 28% from downtown on the season, but he made five of his 10 attempts in the victory, none bigger than the game-tying make with four seconds left in regulation.

His overall shooting line was poor, but Miller found ways to impact the game outside of strictly scoring the ball. He chipped in with a steal (that led to his first points of the game), six assists (including some nifty feeds in tight areas), and 13 rebounds (a new career-high).

The scoring efficiency and the turnovers need to get cleaned up for Miller to reach his full potential, but tonight was a step in the right direction on his path to finding his pre-injury, rookie form.

Sion James and Josh Green are a problem (for opponents)

Having two players that can shadow opposing creators is a luxury that Charlotte wasn't afforded until Josh Green returned.

Sion pestered Donovan Mitchell all night long, leading to a forgettable night for the NBA's fourth-leading scorer. Mitchell finished with 17 points on a paltry 6/23 from the field and was clearly frustrated by the Hornets' relentless ball pressure late in the game.

Green's athleticism has popped in his first two games back in the lineup. The Aussie swingman has added a defensive-centric dimension to Charlotte's bench mob that his complemented by hard cuts, sturdy screens, and three-point shot making on the offensive end.

He is a wonderful complimentary player that was pigeonholed as a leading man in his first season as a Hornet, but Green has quickly acclimated into the role he was brought into play.

Kon Knueppel is a professional scorer

Knueppel can do it all on offense.

His game is built on the foundation of his three-point shot, but Knueppel's three-level scoring bag was the catalyst for the Hornets tonight. When Kon gets two feet in the paint, good things happen.

Whether it is a fall away jumper that softly falls through the nylon or a perfectly-placed kick out pass to a spotted up shooter, the Hornets can rely on Kon to create a good look when he has the controls of their offense.

He earned the NBA's October/November Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month, and at this rate, he'll bring home some more hardware as the season continues.

The light has come on for Tidjane

Tidjane Salaun is hooping.

The box score numbers aren't anything special, but the second-year forward looks like a brand new basketball player after spending some time in the G-League.

As a rookie, his on-ball decision-tree included three options: shoot a looooong three, drive recklessly, or swing the ball.

Now, Tidjane has a slightly deeper bag. When he drives, Salaun looks in control of his movements in a way that rarely showed up as a rookie. In Cleveland, Tidjane drove, drew help, and dished a sweet pass to Mason Plumlee through traffic. Later on, he stumped the Cavaliers defense in transition with a high pickup into a decel step for a contested layup that led Kenny Atkinson to call a timeout.

Slowly but surely, Tidjane has started to deliver on the expectations that come when you're selected at number six overall in the NBA Draft.

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