Undermanned Charlotte Hornets fall to the Sacramento Kings

As one could have guessed, scoring the ball was a struggle for the undermanned Charlotte Hornets on Friday night. A thrown together starting lineup of KJ Simpson, Seth Curry, DaQuan Jeffries, Miles Bridges, and Jusuf Nurkic, Charlotte's 40th different first five of the season, were stuck in neutral for most of the first quarter.

The problems didn't stop there. Some special shot making by DeMar DeRozan and bully-ball from Domantas Sabonis were essential in Sacramento building a 26 point lead at the end of the third quarter. Charlotte continued to stay pesky, fighting for the entire 48 minutes, but the enormous talent disadvantage was too vast for Charles Lee's young squad to overcome.

Best of the night: Jaylen Sims' first career points

Charlotte's growing synergy with the Greensboro Swarm has been a consistent theme that has echoed during Charles Lee's maiden year in the Queen City. He had this to say about it pregame: "When player development is such an important part of our organization and our culture, to have the synergy (between Charlotte and Greensboro), to make sure that all of our guys are just continuing to get better, it helps."

Sims, Greensboro's all-time leading scorer, had his hard work in the G-League rewarded with a 10-day contract this week. On Friday night, he played in his first career NBA game, scoring seven points in his big league debut. At this point in another lottery-bound season for the Hornets, the individual stories of young players take precedence over wins and losses, and the narrative of a local kid getting a bucket in his hometown during his NBA debut is one worth highlighting.

Worst of the night: Charlotte's assist/turnover ratio

The Hornets' inability to hold on to the ball has been a steady talking point in their second half slump. Injuries, two-way players traveling between Charlotte and Greensboro, and treadmill of prospects on ten day contracts have created tumult up and down Charlotte's lineup, forcing awkward on-court combinations that lack seasoning, but the consistent problems in retaining the rock have taken them out of games that should have been closer.

Highlight of the night: Miles Bridges throwing down the dunk of the year