HoopsHype put Kon Knueppel in rare company on Friday, slotting the Charlotte Hornets guard at No. 7 on its list of the NBA’s best shooting guards for 2026-27.
That ranking puts Knueppel ahead of every other player entering his second season. It also places him one spot behind San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle and one spot ahead of Philadelphia 76ers guard VJ Edgecombe. Anthony Edwards topped the list, followed by Donovan Mitchell, Devin Booker, Amen Thompson, and Austin Reaves.
Knueppel’s rise is built on a rookie season that jumped off the page. He hit 42.5% from three-point range while taking nearly eight attempts a game, a volume no rookie in league history has matched with a better percentage. Keegan Murray is the next closest first-year player at 41.1% on at least six attempts per game, with Egor Dёmin third at 38.5%.
His shooting numbers weren’t just strong in one area. HoopsHype noted that Charlotte’s rookie ranked in the NBA’s 87th percentile as a spot-up shooter, sitting ahead of Payton Pritchard, Jalen Brunson, and Desmond Bane. On pull-ups, he posted a 56.6 effective field-goal percentage, just ahead of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at 56.2%.
The honors kept coming after the season. Knueppel finished second in Rookie of the Year voting behind Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks, his former Duke teammate, and landed on the All-Rookie First Team with Flagg, Cedric Coward, VJ Edgecombe, and Dylan Harper.
The financial side of the picture is still modest by NBA standards. Knueppel is set to make $10,516,560 in 2026-27, which ranks 171st among NBA salaries.
Charlotte’s roster around him has changed significantly. The Hornets traded LaMelo Ball and Josh Green to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Naz Reid, sent Miles Bridges to the Phoenix Suns for Grayson Allen and Royce O'Neale, and re-signed Coby White for three years and $74 million.
They also added Dorian Finney-Smith from the Houston Rockets and brought in Dennis Schröder from the Cleveland Cavaliers in a five-team trade completed Aug. 20.
The move for Schröder was part of a broader search for a bench organizer. An NBA scout told Hornets Roundtable that Charlotte spent the summer looking for a distributor to run the second unit, and the scout added that Schröder is "somebody that fits the mold of what they're looking for."
Jeff Peterson, Charlotte’s president of basketball operations and general manager, told Marc J. Spears of Andscape that he was comfortable moving Ball because of Brandon Miller and Knueppel.
Miller is now the highest-rated Hornets player in NBA 2K27 at 85 overall. He averaged 20.2 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 3.3 assists in 65 games last season.
Charles Lee is expected to open the year with White, Miller, Knueppel, Reid, and Moussa Diabaté in the starting lineup. Schröder, Allen, O'Neale, Grant Williams, Hannes Steinbach, and Ryan Kalkbrenner are among the reserves.
Charlotte went 44-38 last season but still missed the playoffs for the 10th straight year, the longest active drought in the league. The Hornets were 4-14 through late November before winning nine straight between January and February, the longest streak of the franchise’s current incarnation.
They open the regular season Oct. 21 at Barclays Center against the Brooklyn Nets. The home opener comes against the Atlanta Hawks.
In Other News...
Hornets Just Made A Staff Move That Could Matter For Their Young Core
The Hornets have added Jordan Sears to their staff as an assistant coach and director of player development, a move that fits with the franchises broader offseason push to reshape both the roster and the support system around it. Charlotte has been busy with trades and contract signings, but this hire stands out because player development is such a central part of what the organization needs from here on out.
Sears arrives with a background that includes time on an NBA bench and experience leading a G League team, along with earlier video coordinator work that often gives coaches a broad view of the game. For a Hornets team still trying to build around a young core, the added emphasis on development is the part worth watching, even if the real impact of this hire will take time to show up. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Fans Just Got A Clear Message About Coby White
HoopsHypes latest point guard rankings offered a pretty clear snapshot of where Coby White stands as he prepares for his first season as a full-time starter. The Charlotte guard, who arrived from Chicago in February 2023 and then landed a three-year, $74 million deal in June, was placed 23rd at the position for the 2026-27 season, a slot that reflects both his opportunity and the skepticism that still follows him into a bigger role.
For Hornets fans, the larger point is how much responsibility White is about to carry in a reshaped backcourt. Charlotte has already moved on from LaMelo Ball and brought in Dennis Schrder to handle the second unit, which leaves White in line to run the offense from the opening tip. The ranking does not settle how hell respond to that assignment, but it does make the next step in his career easy to spot. [Read more 🡒]