CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The introduction of the guy who typically receives the loudest cheers when public address Patrick “Big Pat” Doughty bellows his name was finally preceded by the person who’s been the starting shooting guard since his arrival.
Terry Rozier, rocking the headband look, returned to the fold Sunday after missing the previous four games with a sprained right ankle. The Charlotte Hornets’ emotional leader was back, ready to step in and be yet another offensive weapon and playmaker. He swished his first shot of the night, too, sinking a trademark catch-and-shoot corner 3-pointer.
“Scary Terry” had been activated. And on Halloween of all nights.
Rozier’s presence sparked the Hornets, giving them a bit of an emotional boost. They rode a team-wide spirited second-half performance to pull out a 125-113 victory over Portland at Spectrum Center.
At least while Rozier was out, they showed they can still get it done. They did win four of five games minus their leading scorer from a season ago.
“It’s been encouraging,” coach James Borrego said. “It shows our depth and the improvement of these young guys, their development, their growth over the offseason. Cody Martin, Jalen (McDaniels) has got more run. Kelly (Oubre), we’ve got better eyes and a better feel for what Kelly can bring to our group as well. So those were all positives. Now we’ve got to integrate him into the system into the lineup and the rotation. That has its own challenges, but this group knows how to play with Terry, which is a positive.”
Besides Rozier looking good in his first outing back in more than a week — and LaMelo Ball scoring 27 points — here are three things we learned in the Hornets’ third loss in their last four games:
CONFIDENT KELLY OUBRE
With Rozier’s return, Kelly Oubre was slotted back into the role he was penciled in when the Hornets inked him as a free agent in the offseason. He was the first player summoned off the bench by Borrego, serving as the sixth man.
Oubre was effective as the starting shooting guard while Rozier was sidelined, averaging 14.7 points and 4.8 rebounds. But his 3-point stroke stood out most. He canned 15 of 42 attempts behind the arc and didn’t cool off much against the Trail Blazers, knocking down a season-high six shots from 3-point range.
He’s putting any questions about his shot from deep to rest.
“I always felt like he was a mid-30, at least a mid-30 percentage from three guy,” Borrego said. “I think he got off to a slow start last year in Golden State and he picked it up. I think we saw what he could do toward the end of last season. I trust his shot. I believe in his shot and I’ve told him that the minute we signed him. I expect him to stay in that range. He’s going to get good looks in our system. I want him to step up, knock them down, keep looking for his threes. So I’m not surprised there, I think he’s even got more to get to and climb in the 3-point area.”
CAREER NIGHT FOR MILES BRIDGES
Miles Bridges earned Eastern Conference player of the week honors on the strength of posting multiple 30-point efforts, an indicator of how polished he’s become offensively.
But against Portland, Bridges proved he has other aspects of his game that have improved dramatically. Bridges recorded a career-high nine assists to go with 19 points and 5 rebounds, distributing the ball in an impressive fashion.
SCRAMBLE DRILL
Something was amiss with the Hornets’ first-half defense against Portland.
They didn’t guard the 3-point line effectively, leaving the Trail Blazers with multiple wide-open looks. Far too frequently, they got caught out of position during their rotations, causing them to chase the ball around the perimeter until it was thrown to a place they couldn’t scramble to.
Portland cooled off in the third quarter, misfiring on all but one of its initial 11 shots from 3-point land. The Hornets finally picked things up a notch on that side of the ball, perhaps understanding there was little chance for them to take down the Trail Blazers if they couldn’t crank up the intensity and muster any stops.
