Watch the Hornets

Nightmare first-round opponent

Since January 1, LaMelo Ball and the Hornets have been elite by every measure and might very well eliminate a contender like the Celtics, Pistons, or Knicks in the first round. The Hornets have three regular-season games left, and—amazing—those games are against the Celtics tonight, the Pistons on Friday, and the Knicks on Sunday. DAVID BERDING/GETTY IMAGES

Along with the Raptors, 76ers, Magic, and Heat, the Charlotte Hornets are in the thicket of East teams that’ll finish with about 44 wins.

But unlike those other teams, the Hornets will terrify their first-round opponent, because they’re only so low in the standings because they started 15-27. Since then, they’ve been one of the best teams in the NBA, with wins against the Spurs, Rockets, Celtics, and Knicks. 6-10 24-year-old forward Moussa Diabaté has electrified the starting lineup, second-year coach Charles Lee has the team fighting, Kon Knueppel is one of the most effective rookies in years, LaMelo Ball has found a new resolve, and the Hornets are certain to be a tough out.

David Thorpe and I just recorded more than two hours of an early team-by-team playoff lookahead, the bulk of which we’ll publish on Wednesday. But once we started really digging into Charlotte, it seemed pressing to publish a little something today.

DAVID: You can bet that the teams at the top of the East standings are eager to face anyone except the Hornets.

I don’t think they have a chance to be champions this year. I do think they have a chance to make a good run. This is a group that’s really figured some things out. They have a number one starting five in the league. They’ve got three high-level shooters in Brandon Miller, LaMelo Ball, and Kon Knueppel. And they’re, they just play with so much swagger and confidence.

They would be a scary first-round matchup for the Knicks.