The two teams combined for 49 fouls and 67 free throw attempts in an ugly game that the Charlotte Hornets lost to the Portland Trail Blazers, 102-97.

The Summary

Donovan Clingan blocked the Hornets’ first two shot attempts and blocked a third a couple of possessions later. The early returns on a Hornets lineup bereft of offensive talent seemed to be as poor as expected as they struggled to get any easy looks in the half court. However, that changed about midway through the quarter as 3-pointers started to fall, led by Josh Green. The Hornets were able to manage 30 first quarter points and led by six heading to the second.

The better-than-expected scoring bled into the second quarter and the Hornets were able to extend out to a 13 point lead. That’s when we started to see the offense we expected. The threes didn’t fall at the same rate, and the Blazers made a run to get back into the game. Nick Smith Jr. was able to find a little offensive life and did enough to keep the Hornets in the lead at the half.

Several bad possessions to start the second half allowed the Blazers to take a quick lead. Josh Okogie helped stop the bleeding with a couple of steals that led to run outs. He got fouled on one, but only made one free throw. On the other, he went in for the uncontested dunk but didn’t get high enough and smoked the layup. Such is the Josh Okogie experience. However, that did set the tone for a very scrappy quarter that I think featured more foul calls than made shots. That benefited the Hornets, who actually made most of their free throws while the Blazers floundered at the line. The Hornets clung to a two point lead heading into the fourth.

Be it because of depleting energy or just a general lack of sustainability, the Hornets offense dried up at the start of the fourth quarter. At the same time, they had to withstand a bit of a downpour from the hands of Anfernee Simons. The Hornets made one shot across a five minute span through the middle the quarter, which is not going to be enough to keep pace with anybody, even with the Blazers struggling pretty badly outside of Simons. There was no dagger moment or anything. Portland just kept making free throws until the game ended.

The Good

Nick Smith Jr. had a few nice moments with some added offensive burden. The final shooting percentage is pretty poor, but he created a few nice looks for himself and made some tough midrange jumpers. He was particularly good in the second quarter. It was another nice performance from starter NSJ.

Josh Green showed his face on offense for the first time in what feels like forever. He, like NSJ, obviously knew that he’d have to put some extra shots up with the majority of the shot takers in street clothes. He got out and ran on the break a little bit and used his athleticism to attack the rim. He doesn’t do that enough. Maybe last night was a reminder to himself that he’s capable of that.

Josh Okogie gave us the full Okogie experience. He was a pest on defense and on the glass–he tallied three steals and five offensive rebounds. He attacked the basket relentlessly if not recklessly and earned a bunch of trips to the free throw line. His offense is an adventure, but he was arguably the most impactful player on the floor for the Hornets last night. He was the only Hornet to finish with a positive plus-minus, and he was +9.

The Bad

Cody Martin was on the injury report coming into the game and left after just five minutes of court time. If I had to irresponsibly speculate, I’d have to guess he aggravated the groin issue he was on the injury report with.

They made it work for short stretches and the Blazers helped out by sending them to the line a ton, but the Hornets were doomed offensively given the players that were out injured. They ended up shooting just 37.6% from the field and 29% from three. If they were forced into a half court situation and didn’t get fouled, they basically had no shot.

The Hornets finished with 16 turnovers, and it felt like half of those came from trying to get the ball to Mark Williams. The Blazers switched a lot of screening action, which left mismatches, but the Hornets lack of spacing and general offensive talent prevented them from taking advantage. Instead, they ended up forcing a lot of passes into traffic that were knocked away and stolen.

What’s Next

No rest for the weary. The Hornets are back in action tonight against the New Orleans Pelicans.