Oct 22, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte Hornets center Ryan Kalkbrenner (11) during the first half against the Brooklyn Nets at the Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images Sam Sharpe-Imagn Images

Ryan Kalkbrenner surprisingly leads the NBA in key stat through first week of the season

Originally posted on Charlotte Hornets on SI
By Schuyler Callihan | Last updated Oct 29, 2025 12:21 PM ET

One of the biggest, if not the biggest, surprises for the Charlotte Hornets so far this season has been the play of rookie center Ryan Kalkbrenner. The second-round draft pick out of Creighton was expected to be a part of the center rotation for Charles Lee, but very few expected him to start AND play this well.

It may be a small sample size, but after one week of play, Kalkbrenner leads the entire NBA in field goal percentage, making 19 of his 21 attempts (90.5%). Now, you could say it's a little skewed because he's only averaging 5.3 shot attempts per game, but still... 19/21??? That's an insane start, especially when you take into account that his only two misses were on tap-in attempts that were fairly low percentage shots.

Centers will usually dominate this statistical category since their shot diet isn't usually diverse. They get a lot of looks at the rim, and for Kalkbrenner in particular, he's not exactly a threat from beyond the three-point arc, at least not yet. In college, he went 46/148 (31%) from deep, so he's certainly capable, but with as many shooters as the Hornets have, he's better served carving out space in the paint.

“I think he brings it on both ends of the floor," head coach Charles Lee said about Kalkbrenner following last night's loss to Miami. "He gives us help and the ability to protect the paint on defense. And then offensively, he’s got a really good feel for his screening angles, how to work the dunker. His offensive rebounding and his passing, so a lot of different elements. I thought it was just a better matchup sometimes with some of the bigs they threw out there.”

Shooting the ball at a 90% clip isn't sustainable, of course, but if he can finish somewhere in the high 50s, low 60s, he'll be among the league leaders. Seeing how under control he plays and the looks he's able to generate because of his size, it's more than possible.