Your bag is empty.
The three-point era is upon us, as evidenced by the Phoenix Suns’ loss to the Charlotte Hornets. In the game, both teams set new franchise three-point records. These two teams are among the most prolific and effective from deep, and the two players who set the records prove that.
Kon Knueppel sets Hornets’ 3PT record
Kon Knueppel set the NBA rookie record for threes made just 59 games into his career. Now, with a few remaining on the calendar, he has set the Hornets’ franchise record. The rookie passed franchise icon Kemba Walker with four more threes.
The current favorite for Rookie of the Year, Knueppel said he is a little surprised at how well he’s transitioned to the NBA. “I think maybe I’ve surpassed my expectations for myself a little bit,” the guard said.
Once Knueppel tied Walker, the arena lived and died with his every attempt. After two misses, he finally made it, and the crowd roared. “You definitely feel it,” Knueppel said. “It makes the ones that go in real, real sweet, but it is also like pretty reassuring as a shooter when the ones you miss the crowd an audible like ‘ooooh.’ That’s reassuring as a shooter that fans believe in that every shot you take is going in.”
Knueppel now has the record with 261 threes, and the Hornets have five games left for him to add to that tally. He also leads the NBA in that stat while shooting a blistering 43.1% from distance. He has made seven more threes than Luka Doncic, who got hurt last night. LaMelo Ball is third with 243, so Knueppel is on his way to leading the league this year.
Collin Gillespie sets Suns’ three record
In the same game, a different franchise’s record fell. Before Kon Knueppel hit his 261st three, Collin Gillespie made his 227th. It surpassed the record of 226 three-pointers, which was set by Quentin Richardson over two decades ago.
“It’s a great accomplishment,” Gillespie said after the game. “And I’m extremely grateful and thankful to everybody here for helping me, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really mean much right now with the loss.”
Despite setting the record, it came in a disappointing effort. He shot just 2/7 overall and finished with six points. It was enough to set the record, but it wasn’t enough to help the Suns win a game, as they’ve now lost six of seven road contests.
“I gotta start finding it again — offensively, defensively, pressure-wise,” Gillespie said. . “And then just continue to move in the right direction. We just got to continue to talk to each other and figure it out on the fly here as we get guys back.”
What happened?
The way in which these two players set their records for their franchises is emblematic of how the game went. Collin Gillespie hit two three-pointers early to set the Suns’ record, and during that time, the Suns were leading.
In fact, they led for much of the contest until just before halftime, when the Hornets went on a run. Kon Knueppel was fairly quiet during much of that, but he got hot in the second half, as did the Hornets. As he went, so did the team, and as Gillespie went, so did Phoenix.
So when Knueppel surged towards the record, the Hornets put distance between themselves and the Suns. And with Gillespie unable to keep it going after setting the record, the Suns faltered and lost a key matchup.
Both teams are currently in their conference’s respective Play-In tournaments, and both are still alive for a top-six seed, albeit with dwindling hopes in these last few games.
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