The Toronto Raptors walked into their home arena expecting to handle a struggling Charlotte Hornets team. Instead, they got run off their own floor by a pair of fearless rookies and a brutally efficient offense that turned the night into a 111–86 statement win for Charlotte.
A Blowout Nobody Saw Coming
The Hornets entered the game at
6–16, one of the weaker records in the league, while the Raptors sat comfortably above .500 at
15–8 before tip-off. On paper, this looked like a routine home win for Toronto.
On the court, it was anything but.
Charlotte dominated both ends, building a double-digit lead and never really letting Toronto find a rhythm. By the final buzzer, the Hornets had handed the Raptors a
111–86 defeat in Toronto, dropping the Raptors to
15–9 and bumping the Hornets up to
7–16.
Rookie Backcourt, Veteran Poise
The headline story:
Kon Knueppel and
Tidjane Salaün looked nothing like rookies.
-
Kon Knueppel: 21 points, 7 assists, 5 made three-pointers
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Tidjane Salaün: 21 points, 3 rebounds, 5 made three-pointers
Both shot with supreme confidence from deep, repeatedly punishing Toronto’s late closeouts and defensive breakdowns. Knueppel not only scored but also orchestrated the offense, hitting shooters in rhythm and calmly running sets like a seasoned guard.
Salaün, meanwhile, stretched the floor and knocked down big threes that killed any hope of a Raptors run. Every time Toronto looked ready to surge, one of the Hornets’ rookies buried another shot from the perimeter.
Why Their Performance Matters
These aren’t just empty stats in a random December game:
- The Hornets have been searching for identity and floor spacing all season. Knueppel and Salaün gave them both in one night.
- For a rebuilding team, getting this kind of production from rookies
on the road against a strong opponent is a serious confidence boost.
If you’re Charlotte, this is the kind of game you circle as a turning point in a long season.
Immanuel Quickley Fights Alone
For Toronto,
Immanuel Quickley was one of the few bright spots.
He poured in
31 points, added 4 assists, and hit 4 threes, doing everything he could to drag the Raptors back into the game. Possession after possession, he attacked off the dribble, hunted shots, and tried to keep the offense afloat.
The problem: he didn’t get enough help.
The Raptors’ offense sputtered with long scoring droughts, missed opportunities out of timeouts, and a visible lack of rhythm. Without injured wing
RJ Barrett—whose absence has already been felt in recent games—the spacing and creation just weren’t there consistently.
Raptors’ Offense Exposed
Toronto’s issues weren’t just about missed shots; they were structural.
From the broadcast and game flow:
- The Raptors endured multiple
scoring droughts, especially when Quickley sat or was trapped.
- They struggled to get consistent
paint touches, a problem commentators noted has plagued them over their recent stretch.
- Charlotte frequently forced the ball out of primary creators’ hands and dared secondary options to beat them—which they didn’t.
Defensively, Toronto also failed to track shooters, repeatedly losing Knueppel and Salaün on the perimeter, leading to those five threes apiece.
Hornets’ Depth Steps Up
While the rookies stole the headlines, this was a full-team effort from Charlotte.
- The Hornets were
highly efficient from the free-throw line, going 15-of-19 at one point, giving them easy points even when the offense stalled.
- Role players hit timely shots, including threes from the corners that stretched the lead and forced Raptors coach Darko Rajaković into multiple timeouts.
There was even an injury concern:
LaMelo Ball left the game with
left ankle soreness and did not return, according to the broadcast report. For Charlotte to blow out Toronto
without their star guard for part of the night only amplifies how impressive—and worrying, from the Raptors’ perspective—this result really was.
What This Means for Both Teams
For the Hornets
This win is more than just another mark in the W column:
- It validates the front office’s faith in
Knueppel and
Salaün as core pieces.
- It shows the team can compete—and dominate—against quality opponents, even on the road.
- It gives the locker room proof that the system works when the ball moves and shooters are confident.
If LaMelo’s ankle issue is minor, Charlotte can treat this as a momentum-building win rather than a bittersweet one.
For the Raptors
Toronto has some hard questions to answer:
-
Depth and scoring without RJ Barrett: They are now 3–4 without him in the lineup, and his absence was highlighted again.
- Offensive consistency: The familiar pattern of offensive droughts resurfaced, especially when opponents clamp down on first options.
- Defensive focus: Losing track of shooters and allowing 10 made threes from two rookies is not the identity this team wants.
This isn’t a season-derailing loss, but it is a reality check. Teams around the league will study this film and copy the Hornets’ game plan.
The Bigger Picture
Every NBA season has those strange nights where expectations flip. This was one of them.
The Hornets, written off as an early-season bottom feeder, walked into Toronto and:
- Out-shot them from deep
- Out-executed them in the half court
- Out-hustled them on both ends
For a young Charlotte team, that’s the kind of night that can accelerate a rebuild. For Toronto, it’s a reminder that even strong records can hide structural flaws—and that in today’s NBA, you can’t lose track of confident shooters, no matter how new their names are.
Sources
1. HORNETS at RAPTORS | FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS - YouTube
2. Toronto Raptors vs Charlotte Hornets Full Game Highlights - YouTube
3. Kon Knueppel hits 5 3-pointers, scores 21 points to lead Hornets ...
