{"id":179180,"date":"2026-02-27T06:00:05","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T11:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=179180"},"modified":"2026-02-27T01:11:05","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T06:11:05","slug":"kon-knueppel-breaks-rookie-three-point-record","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2026\/02\/27\/kon-knueppel-breaks-rookie-three-point-record\/","title":{"rendered":"Kon Knueppel Breaks Rookie Three-Point Record in 59 Games"},"content":{"rendered":"

Charlotte Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel<\/a>\u00a0made history Thursday night against the Indiana Pacers, shattering a milestone that stood for three seasons. With his 207th three-pointer, Knueppel etched his name into NBA record books.<\/p>\n

Kon Knueppel Breaks Rookie Three-Point Record in 59 Games<\/h2>\n

The #4 overall pick from Duke shattered Keegan Murray<\/a>‘s rookie three-point record by drilling his 207th three-pointer against the Indiana Pacers. Knueppel finished with 28 points on 8-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc. Currently, he leads the entire NBA with 209 three-pointers<\/a>. Meanwhile, the Hornets cruised to a 133-109 victory.<\/p>\n

Breaking the Record<\/h3>\n

Knueppel connected on five threes in the first half, his fifth make tying Murray’s record of 206. He broke it early in the third quarter off an assist from Sion James<\/a>, his former Duke teammate.<\/p>\n

The moment was years in the making. For comparison, it took Murray 80 games during the 2022-23 season to set the previous record. In contrast,\u00a0 Knueppel needed just 59 games to surpass it.<\/p>\n

“It’s exciting. It’s refreshing. It’s what elevates our whole culture when you have a guy that’s that good, but that humble, no ego… it becomes contagious throughout your whole organization and environment.” Hornets coach Charles Lee said<\/a> in an interview earlier this week about Knueppel.<\/p>\n

Historic Efficiency<\/h3>\n

Knueppel isn’t just making threes at high volume. More importantly, he’s doing it with elite efficiency.\u00a0 The 20-year-old is shooting 44.2% from beyond the arc this season. That percentage ranks him among the best shooters in the entire league.<\/p>\n

Additionally, he’s attempted 473 three-pointers through 59 games. That’s average of eight attempts per game. As a result, his willingness to fire combined with his accuracy makes him virtually impossible to leave open.<\/p>\n

According to Cleaning the Glass, 93% of Knueppel’s three-pointers come off assists<\/a>. Essentially, he’s thrived as a catch-and-shoot specialist. Furthermore, his ability to move without the ball and find open space has drawn praise from across the league.<\/p>\n

The All-Time List<\/h4>\n

Now, Knueppel sits alone atop the rookie three-point leaderboard:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Kon Knueppel (Hornets, 2025-26): 209<\/li>\n
  2. Keegan Murray (Kings, 2022-23): 206<\/li>\n
  3. Donovan Mitchell (Jazz, 2017-18): 187<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \"Feb
    Feb 26, 2026; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Kon Knueppel (7) celebrates a made basket in the second half against the Indiana Pacers at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

    How High Can He Go?<\/h3>\n

    With 22 games remaining in the regular season, the question isn’t whether Knueppel will extend the record. Rather, it’s how far he’ll push it beyond reach.<\/p>\n

    At his current pace of 3.5 three-pointers per game, Knueppel could finish the season with approximately 280 three-pointers. That would obliterate the rookie record and place him among the top single-season performances in NBA history.<\/p>\n

    For context, Stephen Curry<\/a>‘s single-season NBA record is 402 three-pointers in 2015-16. While Knueppel won’t threaten that mark, he’s already seperated himself from every rookie who came before him.<\/p>\n

    The LaMelo Connection<\/h3>\n

    Knueppel’s success is directly tied to playing alongside LaMelo Ball<\/a>. Ball’s elite playmaking and court vision create wide-open looks for Knueppel on a nightly basis.<\/p>\n

    The two have developed instant chemistry. When Ball penetrates and collapses the defense, Knueppel finds the open spaces. Consequently, Ball consistently rewards him with a perfectly timed pass.<\/p>\n

    Rookie of the Year Race<\/h3>\n

    Knueppel’s historic shooting has thrust him into a heated Rookie of the Year battle<\/a> with his former Duke teammate and roommate, Cooper Flagg<\/a> of the Dallas Mavericks.<\/p>\n

    The two have traded the top spot on the NBA’s Kia Rookie Ladder throughout the season. Breaking the three-point record strengthens Knueppel’s case significantly.<\/p>\n

    He’s averaging 19.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game on 49\/44\/89 shooting splits. Those efficiency numbers put him on pace to become the first rookie ever to join the exclusive 50\/40\/90 club.<\/p>\n

    Playoff Implications<\/h3>\n

    Knueppel’s shooting has helped propel the Hornets back into playoff contention. Charlotte has not made the postseason since 2015-16. With 22 games remaining, they’re fighting for a Play-In Tournament spot.<\/p>\n

    The Hornets started 11-22 but have transformed into legitimate contenders. Knueppel’s gravity on offense opens up the entire floor for Ball and Brandon Miller<\/a> to operate.<\/p>\n

    His record-breaking performance against Indiana showcased why he was worth the #4 overall pick. The Hornets found a franchise cornerstone who’s already rewriting NBA history.<\/p>\n

    \u00a9 Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Charlotte Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel\u00a0made history Thursday night against the Indiana Pacers, shattering a milestone that stood for three seasons. With his 207th three-pointer, Knueppel etched his name into NBA record books. Kon Knueppel Breaks Rookie Three-Point Record in 59 Games The #4 overall pick from Duke shattered Keegan Murray‘s rookie three-point record by drilling […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5766,"featured_media":179187,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,7,62,3],"tags":[4731,48964,4606,49839,48],"class_list":["post-179180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-hornets","category-nba","category-news","tag-brandon-miller","tag-cooper-flagg","tag-keegan-murray","tag-kon-knueppel","tag-stephen-curry"],"modified_by":"Jordan Pagkalinawan","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5766"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=179180"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":179191,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/179180\/revisions\/179191"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/179187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=179180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=179180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=179180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}