CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Many smartphones needed an extra charge due to constant refreshing Sunday.
The Charlotte Hornets’ afternoon tilt against Washington coincided with the three other games that had a significant bearing on their playoff fate. Provided they won, which was expected considering the Wizards sat most of its regulars and had nothing to play for other than adding ping-pong balls to the draft lottery hopper, the possibility of hosting a home play-in tournament game remained intact.
Although it took longer than they would have preferred to put the Wizards away in a 124-108 victory at Spectrum Center, the Hornets did their part. The problem was none of the other simultaneous results were favorable and wins by all three teams ahead of them in the Eastern Conference standings kept the Hornets from climbing above 10th place.
If the Hornets are going to host at least one more game this season at the corner of Caldwell and Trade streets, they must win two games on the road in three days to secure a spot in the true eight-team postseason field. Their play-in tournament journey begins Wednesday when they square off against ninth-seeded Atlanta at 7 p.m. at State Farm Arena.
The winner of that game advances to face the loser of Tuesday’s game between No. 7 Brooklyn and No. 8 Cleveland on Friday for the right to claim the eighth seed and play Miami in the first round.
To get that far, the Hornets (43-39) must follow the same script that propelled them to the most victories they’ve had since 2015-16. En route to earning just their fourth finish above .500 since pro basketball returned to the city in 2004-05, they’ve boasted one of the best offensive attacks all season.
Led by LaMelo Ball, who fell one assist shy of posting a triple-double against Washington, and featuring a versatile roster with several interchangeable pieces, it’s been key in their success. Their offensive firepower was a catalyst in them winning 15 of 23 games following the All-Star break.
“The franchise has hit 43 probably three times in the last 20 years, so that’s encouraging,” coach James Borrego said. “And to know that we have life after tonight’s game as well, I think that’s exciting.”
In a sense, the Hornets are right where they were almost a year ago. They are the lowest-seeded team in the East again and head into the tournament minus their top-paid player following the announcement of Gordon Hayward officially going back on the shelf because he’s experiencing continued discomfort in his left foot and is done for the season unless the Hornets go on an unexpectedly long postseason run.
The only main difference is they didn’t stumble down the stretch as badly as they did in 2021.
“I don’t want to go back to last year,” Borrego said. “It was very complicated. I don’t even want to go back there. I just like where we’re at right now. To be in this position, playing really good basketball and in a very similar vein where Gordon was out and we found a way to get better throughout this season. I’m really encouraged by that.
“Our guys are confident. They’re playing well and it’s definitely a different feel than last year and it’s exciting for our young guys to feel this momentum, feel this energy, positivity and the opportunity in front of us. It’s great. It’s exciting.”
