5 Reasons Why the Charlotte Hornets are Struggling

Nov 26, 2014; Charlotte, NC, USA; Charlotte Hornets center Al Jefferson (25) in a time out during the first half of the game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Sharpe-USA TODAY Sports

Failure to Close Out Games

Another facet of the game that has killed the Hornets is their inability to close out tight games.

5 of their losses have been decided by 8 points or less, and so far, they’ve only been able to win 1 game when the score is within that margin.

Swarm and Sting’s Reece Helms recently gave his take on Charlotte’s shortcomings, and accredited many of their close losses to their inconsistency on both ends of the floor:

"Their inability to close out games has killed them. They have blown 20+ point leads twice during the streak, and they have struggled to score the basketball. You can’t win games if you can’t score."

And Reece hit it right on the money.

The Hornets rank 27th in field goal percentage, 7th in turnovers committed and 3rd in opponent’s points allowed during clutch moments (when there’s less than 5 minutes left in the game or overtime).

It’s paramount this team keeps their composure and intensity balanced during the final minutes of a game, or else they’ll continue to give away potential wins and rack up more losses in the long run.