Brandon Miller’s night against Boston ended early, and it ended with another injury concern for a Hornets team already juggling bodies.
Charlotte announced Friday that Miller would not return after he exited in the second quarter with right groin soreness. He had played 14 minutes before heading to the locker room, finishing with 8 points on 3-of-10 shooting, 2 rebounds, 1 assist and 1 steal. Every one of his points came in the opening quarter.
By halftime at Spectrum Center, Boston had already built a 70-39 lead in the NBA Cup group-play game, with Jayson Tatum putting up 24 points in the first half.
The Hornets were short-handed before Miller’s exit, too. Moussa Diabaté and Dennis Schröder were both downgraded from questionable to out Friday afternoon, with Diabaté dealing with right quadriceps tendinopathy and Schröder out because of left thigh soreness. It was the first missed game of the season for both players, and Diabaté had started all nine games.
Kon Knueppel was also unavailable again because of a left hamstring strain. He had left his season debut Wednesday at Brooklyn after 5 minutes, 51 seconds with left leg soreness, and the strain had already kept him out for the first eight games. His next evaluation was set for Charlotte after the team returned from the road trip.
"No, I don't have an update yet," Hornets coach Charles Lee said. "We'll evaluate him more, obviously, when we get home from the road trip tonight."
Grant Williams, who is out with a right hamstring strain, still has not played this season. Charlotte also recalled Hannes Steinbach and Christian Anderson Jr. from the Greensboro Swarm on Friday.
The Hornets entered the night having dropped five straight, falling to 3-6 after a 3-1 start. That skid included a 124-91 loss to Detroit on Monday and a 114-104 defeat at Brooklyn on Wednesday.
Miller had been carrying the scoring load before Friday. He came in averaging 22.0 points per game, along with 5.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists, and he led the Hornets in scoring. He had topped 30 points for the third straight game on Oct. 28 in a 97-89 loss to Detroit.
His last two outings before Boston were uneven. At Washington two nights later, he shot 7-of-24 and scored 19 points in a 95-79 loss. Then at Brooklyn, he managed just 2-of-15 shooting, including 1-of-10 from three, but hit all five free throws and finished with 10 points, 4 rebounds and 1 assist.
Lee said after the Nets game that the group’s competitiveness showed up even when the shots weren’t falling.
"That's part of the game," Lee explained. "That's part of who Brandon is as well.
So, not surprised that he wasn't going to let his offensive struggles dictate how he was going to respond and act, and his actions and competitiveness defensively. So that doesn't surprise me.
That's how the whole group is. Now we just got to find a way to keep going, keep building, because there's a ton of really good moments in there."
Miller’s latest setback comes after a long injury stretch. He tore the scapholunate ligament in his right wrist on Jan. 15, 2025, at Utah and had surgery, then finished that season with 27 appearances.
He later suffered a left shoulder subluxation at Philadelphia on Oct. 25, 2025, missed the next 13 games, and returned Nov. 22 against the LA Clippers with the shoulder wrapped. He started all 65 of his appearances and led the team with 20.2 points per game.
On May 6, he had surgery to address instability in that shoulder, and Charlotte listed him out indefinitely with no timeline. By media day on Sept. 28, Miller said he had been cleared for full contact for about three weeks.
"I'm back now doing a lot better," Miller said. "I think the most important thing throughout this process, which is staying connected with my teammates. They did a great job of just keeping me focused on the controllables that I can control during my rehab and just kinda having that mindset throughout the summer has guided me back to where I'm at now."
He played in three preseason games after training camp opened Sept. 29, then suited up for the opener at Brooklyn.
Charlotte’s next chance to regroup comes Monday against the Cleveland Cavaliers at 7 p.m. ET, before a trip to Phoenix on Thursday.
In Other News...
Hornets Fans Have Every Reason To Panic About This Start
The early stretch has been rough enough in Charlotte to make even patient observers uneasy. The Hornets have stumbled through a poor start marked by heavy losses, a low offensive rating and an offense that has struggled to find any real rhythm, especially at point guard. Injuries have only made the picture murkier, leaving the team short on answers while it waits for healthier bodies and a few new contributors to settle in.
For now, the concern is less about one bad night than the shape of the whole opening month. The Hornets have been getting buried on the scoreboard and have not shown much consistency on either end, which is a dangerous place to be this early. There is still time for the return of injured players and some internal improvement to change the mood, but right now the start has given fans every reason to worry about how deep this slide could go. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Hit Another Low As Brandon Miller Concern Grows
Bostons visit only deepened a rough stretch for Charlotte, which was overwhelmed from the start in a 119-80 loss as Jayson Tatum poured in 34 points and Derrick White and Payton Pritchard added steady support. The Hornets never found much rhythm offensively, and the margin kept widening as the game wore on, leaving another flat night for a team searching for answers.
The bigger concern for Charlotte came with Brandon Miller, who exited at halftime because of right groin soreness. For a team already trying to steady itself after another lopsided defeat, any issue involving one of its most important young players adds a layer of unease, especially with the offense already struggling to generate much of anything. [Read more 🡒]
Tatums Big Night May Have Clarified A Celtics Lineup Call
Bostons visit to Charlotte turned into a one-sided NBA Cup night almost immediately, with Jayson Tatum setting the tone in a game the Celtics controlled from the opening minutes. Boston jumped out to an 18-4 run and never let the Hornets find much rhythm, rolling to a 119-80 win behind Tatums all-around impact and a defense that kept the margin comfortable for most of the night.
For Charlotte, the game also came with another concern when Brandon Miller left in the second quarter with groin soreness and did not return. The Hornets were already chasing a game that had slipped away early, and Millers exit only deepened the challenge as they tried to regroup against a Celtics team that looked settled in every phase. [Read more 🡒]