Oct 30, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets forward Miles Bridges drives to the basket against Orlando Magic forward Paolo Banchero (5) during the second half at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

A Hornets Halloween: Biggest scare, spooky good, trick, and treat

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Oct 31, 2025 2:47 PM ET

The Charlotte Hornets were off to a pretty good start, but two consecutive losses by double digits have quickly soured things. They went from being a few seconds away from 3-0 to 2-3, with a whole lot of questions. Still, there's been plenty to analyze on Halloween as the first "month" of the season comes to a close.

Hornets Superlatives on Halloween

Biggest scare: Brandon Miller

There really hasn't been anything that has gone supremely wrong for the Hornets yet this season, but it is exceptionally disappointing that Brandon Miller is already hurt. There's no telling when he's going to come back. It doesn't look like the whole season is in jeopardy, but he could miss a month or more.

Early on, that's been the biggest scare. If they can't get Miller back, their depth is tested and they're missing their second-best player. It's also scary because the Hornets have dealt with franchise cornerstones being injured for years. Miller is good, but what if he can't stay on the court? That's the stuff of nightmares.

Spooky good: Sion James

How good has Sion James been? He's been so good that he forced his way into the starting lineup, and it was only barely out of necessity. James could've started games last season because of the ridiculous amount of injuries, but he really earned it this season.

He hasn't been as good defensively as we might've hoped, but he's been solid in that area. His offense, however, is way better than expected. His true shooting is 84.7%. He's been incredible, and I genuinely thought he'd be an end-of-bench guy until the G League season began.

Trick: Tre Mann

For a moment, it looked as if Tre Mann was going to be a nice rotational piece for the Hornets, but that has all but faded. He has not been very good this year. He has the second-worst net rating among all Hornets at -12.7. He is coming back from an injury, but we can't sugarcoat how bad it's been.

He has the third-lowest offensive rating on the team and the second-highest defensive rating. He's been awful on both ends of the floor. The only player worse is Liam McNeeley, a 20-year-old rookie who is clearly not quite at NBA level.