CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Before pulling out of town for a potentially season-defining six-game road trip out west, the curtain on the Charlotte Hornets’ reunion tour raised once again at the Spectrum Center.
Two nights after the team welcomed LaMelo Ball back from injury, it was Gordon Hayward’s turn to return to the lineup after an extensive absence. Hayward had missed the previous nine games nursing a fractured left shoulder blade, the latest ailment in a maddening series of aches and pains that have sidelined him during his tenure with the Hornets.
His presence should’ve been a boost, serving as a pick-me-up of sorts for a reeling team in danger of watching its season spiral out of control. Instead, the Hornets found themselves in a cavernous hole they couldn’t escape in a 125-106 loss to Atlanta on Friday night.
