Silky Smooth Batum Leads the Charlotte Hornets to Victory Over the Chicago Bulls
Nicolas Batum’s triple-double helped the Charlotte Hornets capitalize on a team-wide block party that led to a 103-91 victory over the Chicago Bulls.
Batum followed up his electric performance against the Los Angeles Lakers with his best game of the season. The Frenchman posted his first triple-double of the campaign, dropping in 20 points while adding 11 rebounds, and 10 assists. Kemba Walker complimented his backcourt partner with 20 points of his own.
Headed for a frustrating night shooting the ball, Walker salvaged it in the final minutes, Knocking down three of his last four shots. The Chicago Bulls were led by renaissance man Jimmy Butler’s 26 points. Outside of Butler, the visiting team really struggled to score consistently. A lot of that had to do with the Charlotte Hornets‘ strong defense, marked by a season-high 13 blocks.
Batum Bullies Chicago
Nicolas Batum was the most important player on the floor from the tip and it wasn’t even close. His length and ability to distribute to every Hornet on the floor led to a flurry of easy buckets. Watch the quick decision he makes on this dish to Walker, his court vision is on full display here.
Nice pass from @nicolas88batum ends in another @CodyZeller jam!! 💪 #CHIatCHA pic.twitter.com/A8snLnT8ob
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) December 24, 2016
Batum has now scored 20 points in four of the Hornets past five games and he seems to be finding his groove as we approach 2017. Charlotte would love for that play to continue as they make their case for the wide open three seed in the Eastern Conference.
After the whistle https://t.co/KmYB77Sd0n
— Jerry Stephens III (@JR_Steph23) December 24, 2016
Block Party In The Hive
The Charlotte Hornets only committed 10 turnovers while swatting away 13 Chicago shots; that tends to be a winning formula in this league. Roy Hibbert and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist led the way with four rejections each, as Hibbert threw up a wall down low, while the latter flew around the lane all night denying multiple Chicago players. Charlotte did a great job turning the blocks into
Charlotte did a great job turning the blocks into immediate offense and capitalizing on the break with simple layups. Easy buckets off of MKG blocks like this one were a common occurrence throughout the night.
👍 @nicolas88batum clinches the triple-double with an assist to @KembaWalker!!! #CHIatCHA #BuzzCity pic.twitter.com/UvQgmVr5lg
— Charlotte Hornets (@hornets) December 24, 2016
Simple offense is the best offense for this Charlotte Hornets team, and the continued execution of the fast break attack should summon more victories.
Tie Ups
The Charlotte Hornets are now 6-0 this season following multiple days rest, and they will put that streak on the line December 26th when they travel to Brooklyn for a date with the Nets.
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