Story by
Sion James Calls Out Hornets' Careless Mistakes After Fifth Straight Loss
- Story by
- Sion James Calls Out Hornets' Careless Mistakes After Fifth Straight Loss
(Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images)
Sion James played 30:46 off the bench Wednesday night and did not commit a turnover. The rest of the Charlotte Hornets committed 17, and the Brooklyn Nets beat them 114-104 in Brooklyn.
It was Charlotte's fifth straight loss. James finished with 10 points, 2 rebounds, 1 assist, and 3 steals, scoring 7 of those points in a third quarter he played start to finish.
Advertisement
James said Charlotte's pace slowed down and the turnovers that followed were careless.
"We beat ourselves, so that never feels good," James said. "We got away from doing things we were supposed to be doing. We showed flashes of the way we're supposed to play. So for us, it's just about being more consistent with that."
57 Points Before Halftime, 47 After
Charlotte scored 57 points in the first half, making 17 of 41 shots and 9 of 25 from 3-point range. After halftime, the Hornets went 14-of-36 and 3-of-15 from deep.
Brooklyn had 12 fast-break points in the second half. Charlotte had 2.
Advertisement
The Nets scored 13 points off Charlotte's 7 second-half turnovers. In the first quarter, the Hornets turned it over 9 times, but Brooklyn turned those into 4 points, and Charlotte led 24-21 after one.
James had two of his steals 17 seconds apart late in that quarter. The first led to two Naz Reid free throws. On the second, James drew a foul and made one of two to tie it at 13.
The Hornets assisted on 11 of their 17 first-half field goals and 9 of their 14 after the break.
"The ball's popping around, moving quickly," James explained. "Guys are making quick decisions. That's what it looks like when it's going well. Whether a shot's going or not, sometimes the first half we're getting great looks. [They] weren't going. It's part of the game."
Advertisement
"But things start to slow down and get a little — we just slow down too much on offense," James continued. "We start turning the ball over in ways we're not supposed to, and it's just hard to play that way."
Turnovers Two Nights Apart
On Monday, the Hornets turned it over 27 times in a 124-91 home loss to the Detroit Pistons, who scored 37 points off those giveaways.
Brooklyn committed 12 turnovers Wednesday, and Charlotte scored 15 points off them. The Nets scored 17 off Charlotte's 17.
Hornets coach Charles Lee said there were stretches when Charlotte was careless with the ball and had lapses on defense.
Advertisement
Coby White, back since Monday from a left calf strain , had 2 turnovers in 18:06. Brandon Miller had 3, one of them on the final Charlotte possession of the third quarter with the game tied 80-80.
James in Year Two
Charlotte drafted James 33rd overall out of Duke in 2025. He appeared in all 82 games as a rookie, with 19 starts, and averaged 5.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.0 assists in 22.5 minutes.
He had been starting in place of Kon Knueppel this season. Knueppel made his season debut Wednesday and started, and James replaced him with 6:09 left in the first quarter after Knueppel came up with left leg soreness. Knueppel did not return.
The Hornets are back at Spectrum Center on Friday to face the 6-2 Boston Celtics . Tip-off is 7 p.m. ET.
