Recap/Analysis: Hornets dominate Chinese National Team – At The Hive

Bryce McGowens led all scorers with 20 points in a runaway Charlotte Hornets win over Team China, 93-62.

The Summary

The game followed almost the exact same game flow as the Hornets’ opening win over the Spurs. The Hornets came out of the gates en fuego, largely overwhelming China with their physicality and straight line driving. They led 26-9 after one quarter of play (they led the Spurs 23-9 after one quarter on Saturday). That was followed by a lull where the Hornets fired up a lot of 3-pointers with little payoff, and the two teams played the middle two quarters evenly. The Hornets bounced back with a big run in the fourth quarter to run away for the easy win.

The Good

The defensive intensity has been beautiful to watch, especially in the first and fourth quarter. In each of the two games so far, the opponent has found it extremely difficult to attempt a shot with hands swiping at the ball and bodies between the shooter and the basket. The team is clearly taking pride in its defense, and nothing is getting the bench more fired up then high effort plays on the defensive end of the floor. The team is bought in. Like our pal Doug Branson said on Twitter.

The Hornets with a similar roster talent wise to last year’s Cali Classic minus-Brandon Miller and they look so much more organized on both ends. If you bought Coach Lee stock, hold onto it.

— Doug Branson – Subscribe to Every Hornets Boxscore (@DougBransonLOH) July 7, 2024

The last few years, the Hornets have been a listless, disorganized mess in the Summer League. This team is different.

Bryce McGowens had a good bounce back game. His best attribute in the NBA to this point is his ability to get downhill and draw fouls, and he was able to do that with ease against team China. He scored 20 points on just eight field goal attempts from the field thanks to 12-of-14 shooting from the free throw line. He took advantage of the slower defenders to get runways to the rim, and the Chinese Team didn’t have the athleticism to meet him at the rim without fouling him.

The point guard play has been so much better than we’re used to seeing in Hornets summer league games. Zavier Simpson had another sound game with eight points, four rebounds, four assists, and three steals. He’s been a pest out front defending the point of attack. I’ve also been a fan of Matt Morgan’s game. He’s got a good looking shot from deep and has some burst from a standstill. He had a modest statistical game, but I like how he plays basketball.

Jake Stephens can shoot it.

The Bad

Nick Smith Jr opened the scoring with a 3-pointer for the second straight game. He went 2-of-9 from the field and missed all five of his 3-point attempts after that. We know he can shoot it–he showed that over a full NBA season in sporadic minutes last season, but it’s frustrating to see him struggle so badly against weaker competition.

Mouhamadou Gueye played only six minutes before leaving the game with an ankle injury. Hopefully he’ll heal faster with the new athletic training staff and make it back in time to get some minutes in Las Vegas.

What’s Next

Everyone in California gets a day off on Monday. The Hornets will take on the Kings on Tuesday for traveling out to Las Vegas.