Charlotte Hornets: 3 takeaways from 2018-19 season opener

3. The Hornets have kinks to work out on defense

It’s true the Hornets played better defensively in the second half compared to the first, but they will have to be more consistent so they don’t have to try and come back in the final minutes every night.

In the first half, the Hornets struggled defensively in all aspects. They couldn’t get back on defense very easily and they allowed some easy baskets to not only the Greek Freak, but to the whole Bucks team. They didn’t rotate well, allowing some easy points underneath the basket. Milwaukee scored 56 points in the paint, most of which came in the first half.

The Hornets dared the likes of Brook Lopez and Ersan Ilyasova to take 3-point shots and both made one, contributing to the 14 3-pointers Milwaukee made throughout the game. The Bucks were getting nearly everything to fall and most of them came on quick transition baskets or easy, wide open 3-pointers.

The Hornets won the turnover battle (they had just 11 compared to Milwaukee’s 21), but lost the game around the rim. The Buck scored 56 points to the Hornets’ 46 points in the paint and outscored them 13-7 in second chance points as well. The new system from Borrego may leave the team exposed in that area for a little bit, but it could cause a lot of concerns if it continues throughout the season.