Charles Lee eyes key improvement from Kon Knueppel after rookie season

The Charlotte Hornets’ 2025-26 season is officially over following their play-in loss against the Orlando Magic this past week. But one of the bright spots of the Hornets’ impressive season was the emergence of rookie wing Kon Knueppel. Now that the Hornets’ offseason has arrived, head coach Charles Lee is looking for specific improvement from the budding young star.

During the Hornets’ exit interviews, Charles Lee stated that one particular area of improvement he’d like to see from Kon Knueppel going into his second year is his leadership. For Knueppel, he knows growing as a leader is key to his continued development as a player.

“That definitely is an area of improvement. As a rookie, you’re kind of just trying to figure it out, and that’s hard to do,” Knueppel said. “But every time I had something to say, he [Charles Lee] would text me and say, ‘it was great to have you talking. We need your voice.’ That will definitely be an area of emphasis, just coming in next year and being more vocal.”

The No. 3 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, Knueppel finished the season as one of the top frontrunners for the Rookie of the Year Award alongside former Duke teammate Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks. The award has not yet been given out, but it would not be a surprise of Knueppel took home the honors.

Knueppel appeared in 81 out of 82 games, including 80 starts, at a little over 31 minutes per game. He averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists with splits of 47.5 percent shooting from the field, 42.5 percent shooting from the 3-point line and 86.3 percent shooting from the free-throw line.