Gordon Hayward's career night is just what Hornets needed after an exhausting day
He registers 44 points, the most he's ever scored in a game, to lead Charlotte to a slump-busting win over Atlanta hours after what happened at the Capitol.
They weren’t completely impervious to the events of the day and how could they be?
Here they were in the city that took center stage in a runoff election the night before, right in the Georgia metropolis that was going to help determine the direction of the agenda of the 46th president of the United States. The political element was practically already surrounding them, only to be further fueled by what transpired some 640 miles up I-85, I-95 and over to the Beltway.
There was the footage of the disturbing actions of rioters busting into the Capitol, essentially taking the building over temporarily on a day both chambers of Congress were officially tabulating electoral college votes, being broadcast on just about every channel. Social media was ablaze with eye-popping images, the kind that may have otherwise been thought of as photoshopped if it wasn’t for the day’s grim reality.
America was watching it all unfold and the events that gripped much of the nation for most of Wednesday made it quite difficult for the Hornets to simply focus on basketball against the Hawks.
“It feels a little odd to play a game tonight to be honest,” coach James Borrego said. “The pain, the hurt in our country right now, it’s real. … It’s disheartening. It’s disappointing. It’s embarrassing for our country to be at this point. It’s not the country I want my kids to inherit and it’s extremely sad. It’s hard not to be around my kids and my family at this time. But we have a job to do tonight and we’ll do that. I’m just extremely disappointed and disheartened.”
So like the other 21 teams on the night’s schedule, the Hornets still went out and played. And they got a standout performance from their prized offseason acquisition to help deliver a slump-busting 102-94 win.
Tossing in a career-best 44 points, Gordon Hayward jumpstarted Charlotte’s offense from the game’s opening minutes, keying an effort that snapped a three-game losing streak. Hayward nailed 15 of 25 attempts, went to the free throw line 12 times (he made 10 of them), sank a season-best four 3-pointers and also had seven rebounds.
When they were starving for a bucket, Hayward was the guy they turned to. And he delivered, particularly in crunch time. He rattled off five straight when Atlanta took its first lead of the night late in the fourth quarter, spurring the Hornets on a 16-6 run over the bulk of the game’s final four minutes.
He left his imprints all over the game. His impact was huge.
“This was a career high in my basketball career,” said Hayward, who eclipsed his regular-season mark of 39 set twice. “I never scored 40 in high school. I scored 40 once in the playoffs, but I think it was a lot of fun man. Credit my teammates for finding me early. A couple of threes go down, it definitely makes your night feel like it’s going to be a lot better. People were finding me all night and I’m so thankful to them, thankful to Coach for putting me in those positions to be successful.
“But absolutely with everything that has gone on for me in my career injury-wise, I’ve put in a lot of work. This one was fun. This one was a lot of fun so hopefully I can build off it.”
Same goes for LaMelo Ball. Once again, the rookie’s nifty knack for delivering pinpoint passes was on display. He recorded five assists to go with his 16 points and eight rebounds in 24 minutes.
Sure, he’s had a few miscues turning the ball over. He’s made some mistakes with his shot selection — such as the ill-advised off-balance 3-pointer while looking for a two-for-one attempt to end the first half. Still, nights like Wednesday remind you of the tantalizing potential.
“I have no idea what's going to happen when he touches the ball,” Borrego joked. “I have no idea. His teammates don't know, and most importantly our opponents don't know. Nah, look he sparks us. He energizes us and you better have your hands ready, because that ball could be zinging my way any second.
”He’s special. He just ignites us. I thought he had a really poised game tonight. I felt very comfortable wit him out there. But you better be ready to catch the ball.”
Ball has registered six consecutive games with at least five assists, tying for the second-longest stretch by a Hornets’ rookie in franchise history. But he’ll need to do it for four more games to break Raymond Felton’s mark set in 2006.
In his last four games, leading up to Friday’s matchup with big brother Lonzo Ball and the New Orleans Pelicans, Ball has totaled 25 assists and seven turnovers. Yeah, he’s learning on the job. And quickly, too, considering he’s only been with the team for two months.
“He’s got this knack that’s special,” Borrego said. “He’s able to find open bodies, and it’s he and I working this out on when to let loose and go play. And then rein him back, and make sure we are running good offense and we are getting good shots. And there’s a balance going on right now. I love his ability to create and make plays. I have to let that play out a little bit. That’s his gift. That’s what makes him special. But I also need him to make good decisions. And he understands that. This is a bright kid. We are talking every single day about his decision-making and he gets it. And there’s going to be some turnovers from him. But I’m starting to see him make better decisions every single game.”
Ball’s growth is one of many things the Hornets’ success this season hinges on. Kind of like the play of Hayward. And for a couple of hours on a day people will not forget any time soon, the Hornets were able to not only give themselves something to smile and feel good about. But perhaps it brought the slightest glimmer of joy to some of their fans stinging in the day’s anguish.
“It’s a bizarre world that we are living in,” Hayward said. “I actually, just with my game day routine, had no clue what had happened until getting to the arena and it was on TV in the training room. So still, I don’t know exactly (about) the events that went down. I saw a little bit of it before the game. Certainly it was shocking and disappointing. But it was something where we are trying to play a basketball game, and at the same time we are dealing with COVID, dealing with tests, different routines for guys trying to get ready for games, being limited in the amount of times you can be in gyms.
“There’s a lot going on in this world and it’s something that I think basketball is a place where we can kind of get away from that a little bit, and hopefully provide some hope and some joy for some fans. But certainly it’s also just a game and there a lot bigger things that are going on out there in the world. … Certainly, it’s disappointing.”