What Charles Lee Said About Knueppel's Injury, Miller's Struggles After Nets Loss

It's been a rough last week for the purple and teal, who have now dropped five straight games, with their latest defeat coming at the hands of the Brooklyn Nets. Even with the added reinforcements of a minutes-restricted Coby White and a brief appearance from Kon Knueppel, who played just six minutes before heading to the locker room with a lower-leg injury, Charlotte suffered arguably its most disappointing loss of the young season.

The Hornets lost the three-point battle, were out-assisted, lost the turnover battle once again, a seemingly nightly occurrence with this current group, and were outscored in the paint. Combine all of that with a Charlotte offense that currently ranks at the bottom of the NBA in both production and efficiency, along with the team's best player, Brandon Miller, turning in his worst shooting performance of the season, and it was a recipe for another uninspiring road loss.

Here's everything Hornets head coach Charles Lee said during his brief postgame availability.

Kon Knueppel's injury status

Sep 28, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Kon Knueppel poses for photos during media day at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"No, I don't have an update yet. We'll evaluate him more, obviously, when we get home from the road trip tonight."

On how Charlotte responded to Brooklyn's physicality

"I thought they handled the physicality pretty well. I think there were a couple stretches throughout the game where we were able to impose our will, and we're playing with pace, and they feel us defensively, they feel us offensively. We created some really good looks for each other. I thought our screeners were a little bit more dynamic tonight. We were able to get a piece of the paint, and then there were a couple stretches where we're careless with the ball and had lapses on defense. But overall, I thought the competitive spirit and the physicality of the group was there all night."

Brandon Miller's offensive struggles and competitiveness

"That's part of the game. That's part of who Brandon is as well. So, not surprised that he wasn't going to let his offensive struggles dictate how he was going to respond and act, and his actions and competitiveness defensively. So that doesn't surprise me. That's how the whole group is. Now we just got to find a way to keep going, keep building, because there's a ton of really good moments in there."

Next up for Charlotte does not get any easier, as the Hornets return home to face the 6-2 Boston Celtics on Nov. 6 in their second Emirates NBA Cup game of the season and their first at Spectrum Center. Charlotte has lost its last four home meetings against Boston. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. EST.

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