The NBA’s regular season has officially entered the “sprint to the finish” phase. With 10 or fewer games remaining for all 30 teams, the seeding battles in both conferences have become a nightly war. Out West, the top 10 is essentially a closed circle; barring a statistical miracle, the Warriors, Trail Blazers, and Clippers are staring down the Play-In gauntlet.
However, the Eastern Conference is where the real chaos lives. The distance between the 5th and 10th seeds is a razor-thin two games, meaning every single possession carries the weight of a playoff series as teams fight to avoid the single elimination trap.
Kon Knueppel Hit in the Head by a Fan with DaBaby Defending Him
Perhaps the biggest shock of the 2025-26 season has been the resurgence of the Charlotte Hornets. Back in December, this squad looked destined for another high lottery pick, but that narrative is officially dead. Charlotte is currently making a legitimate push to skip the Play-In and qualify for the playoffs directly, which would snap the NBA’s longest active drought of nine consecutive seasons without a postseason appearance.
Led by the trio of LaMelo Ball, Brandon Miller, and rookie sensation Kon Knueppel, the Hornets aren’t just playing for today, they are proving they can go toe-to-toe with the league’s elite.
Their most recent 114-103 home victory over the New York Knicks provided plenty of highlights, but one bizarre moment in the stands stole the headlines. During a dead ball, a fan sitting courtside got his hands on the rock and decided to launch a wild “shot” toward the basket. Instead, the ball caught Knueppel square in the back of the head while the rookie was looking the other way.
Rapper DaBaby, who was sitting right next to the fan, immediately jumped to the rookie’s defense. “Let’s get this man outta here… he done hit the Rookie of the Year with the ball,” DaBaby was heard saying, turning a potentially frustrating moment into a viral bonding experience between the players and the Queen City crowd.
The ROY Deadline: Why Kon Knueppel’s Historic Shooting Could Edge Out Cooper Flagg
The race for Rookie of the Year has essentially narrowed down to a two-horse battle between former Duke teammates: Kon Knueppel and Cooper Flagg. While Flagg remains a defensive unicorn with better “all-around” counting stats, Knueppel has built a case based on two things: availability and historic range. Knueppel has missed only a single game all season, providing the kind of “Iron Man” stability that coaches crave.
But the real “value add” for Knueppel is his record-breaking perimeter shooting. He is already the rookie with the most three-pointers made in a single season and recently became the fastest player (and the only player under 22 in NBA history) to reach 250 triples in a season.
He is on track to set the all-time Hornets franchise record for three-pointers made in a single year, rookie or not. For a franchise that has only played in three playoff series over the last 20 years, Knueppel’s ability to space the floor might be the missing piece that finally completes Charlotte’s “turnaround” from league doormat to playoff fixture.
