LeBron James, Lakers Welcome Kon Knueppel to NBA With Flurry of Uncalled Fouls

Hornets rookie had an eventful first quarter.

Kon Knueppel overcame a physical Lakers defense to lead the Hornets to a win on Thursday night. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Charlotte Horners went out to Los Angeles and took care of the Lakers on Thursday night in a convincing 135-117 victory. Rookie Kon Knueppel, playing his first game in front of all the glamorous celebrities courtside, was efficient in his 33 minutes while shooting 7-of-10 from the field and scoring 19 points. He was undeterred by the rude welcome he received from LeBron James and the other hosts early in the first quarter, which included three collisions that could have been called fouls.

Yet none of them were, Knueppel missed his off-balance shot and the Lakers were awarded possession.

It was less than three minutes into the game and the Hornets went on to an easy win so there's no point in complaining about the officials. Unless you want to complain about them. It's a free country and people seem to like pointing out when they miss one. Here they definitely missed two. Or perhaps three.

Spin zone, though. James is 41-years old and is still putting in this type of defensive effort in the early seconds of regular season games. That's almost as impressive as it is when he breaks yet another record long-held by Michael Jordan.

Knueppel should see this as a sign of respect. An initiation of sorts. They don't repeatedly snatch and grab nobodies.

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