Who Could Kon Knueppel Look Like as an NBA Star?

While the top three picks sat out for the majority of NBA Summer League, fourth overall pick Kon Knueppel showed out for the entirety of the event. He stole the spotlight with his stellar play throughout, averaging 15.6 points along with nearly five rebounds and four assists per game as he led the Charlotte Hornets to the summer league championship. This accomplishment marked the franchise's first-ever title of any sort, and brought excitement around the future of the 19-year-old standout rookie.

The 6-foot-5 wing shined brightest in his incredible championship game performance. In this contest, he scored 21 points while shooting four-for-11 from three, including a clutch 31-footer to ice the game with just over 30 seconds left. The Wisconsin native then earned summer league MVP honors after the NBA world got a glimpse of Knueppel's star potential.

Knueppel must make significant strides in his game to become an NBA star of any sort, but his mix of size, handling comfort, passing vision, and all-around sharpshooting lays the foundation for high-end upside. Amidst this intersection of skills, Knueppel has the tools to grow into a dynamic offensive engine, setting the stage for a deeper look at how his game might evolve at the next level.

Knueppel's Skillset

The biggest certainty regarding Knueppel is his stellar three-point shooting. The former Duke Blue Devil shot 40.6% on over five attempts per game as a freshman as he mixed in impressive makes off spot-ups, pull-ups and off-screens. All signs point to Knueppel's projection as a truly elite shooter at the next level, while he looks to develop his game around this strength.

His marksmanship may be his calling card, but Knueppel's star upside is truly defined by his off-the-dribble capabilities. He doesn't have amazing burst, but he isn't slow either, and complements his drives with pristine craft in his handling and playmaking.

For starters, Knueppel's handle is tight and resilient, able to set up screens, maneuver into pull-up jumpers, and withstand pressure in tight situations. His strength is a weapon in these off-the-dribble attacks as his 220-pound frame allows him to churn through physicality to get to pressure points and enables him to leverage contact to prod openings in the defense.

This strength-based creation is enhanced by a skillset meticulously developed around this approach. Knueppel boasts an advanced understanding of angles, pacing and help defense as well as impressive contested shot-making and two-foot finishing capabilities, which allowed him to convert just under 57% of his two-point attempts as a freshman.

Further, Knueppel is a high-level passer who can see over the defense and read rotations to facilitate teammate opportunities through both interior feeds and skip passes. This ability shines brightest in the two-man game, where he leverages his pull-up shooting, physicality, change of speed and footwork to carve out looks for his squad.

To fully manifest these skills into NBA impact, Knueppel will need to keep adding strength, expanding his handle, improving his passing and refining his ability to hunt two-pointers. Still, he brings a meaningful foundation in each of these areas to build on with NBA reps.

Knueppel's Future Outlook

Ultimately, Knueppel’s path to offensive stardom will depend on how fully he can weaponize his off-ball scoring. His shot-making and interior finishing, especially when efficient with minimal dribbles, will form the core of his NBA value and create a platform for him to expand as an on-ball creator.

The 19-year-old may not have the high-end explosiveness to ever be an effective primary creator, but should he continue to build upon his shot-making, strength, footwork, touch and passing, he has a clear pathway to developing into a seasoned pick-and-roll scorer. This would allow Knueppel to be a star secondary creator, capable of slotting in next to another creator while seamlessly flexing between on-ball and off-ball offensive duties.

One-to-one NBA comparisons are unrealistic, but reference points across play style, physical profile, developmental arc, and skill function are essential for meaningful projection. In Knueppel's case, his high-end upside likely looks like an intersection of Trey Murphy III and Austin Reaves as he looks to mix a three-point-centric, off-ball scoring attack with shrewd pick-and-roll creation.

In terms of potential one-to-one benchmarks, Desmond Bane and prime Evan Fournier offer insight into what Knueppel’s high-end outcomes could resemble. In a bullish developmental scenario where he elevates his shot-making to top-tier levels, he could even emerge as a player in the mold of All-NBA guard Devin Booker.

In the meantime, it will be fun to watch Knueppel develop alongside teammates LaMelo Ball and Brandon Miller as the sharpshooting trio looks to elevate the Hornets to unseen heights.