Marquette, MI – July 21, 2025 – Only rookies and 2nd-year players are allowed to take part in the summer league. Teams will then fill the remaining spots with players trying to get an NBA contract. The NBA Summer League kicked off with each team playing four games to determine the best four teams, who then face off in a single-elimination tournament. The Charlotte Hornets would go undefeated (6-0) and claim their first Summer League Championship with number four overall pick, Kon Knueppel, showing out throughout the tournament.
Charlotte kicked off their summer league, taking on the Utah Jazz. Hornets star LaMelo Ball was courtside to check out the new talent. Liam McNeely would capitalize on that and explode for 22 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists, leading his team to a 111- 105 win. Hornets would take on the Philadelphia 76ers in game two. Hornets would play their closest game of the tournament, sneaking past with a score of 96 – 94.
Throughout Charlotte’s next two games, they would have had to take on the top two picks in this year’s draft, Dylan Harper and Cooper Flagg. Those teams shut down the Hornets’ superstars for the remainder of the summer league, but he Hornets would capitalize, picking up wins against the San Antonio Spurs (106 – 81) and the Dallas Mavericks (87 – 69).
With the Hornets being undefeated, they would claim a spot in the tournament. Awaiting them in the semi-finals was the Oklahoma City Thunder, the 2025 NBA champs. Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel dove for a loose ball and an opposing player unintentionally landed on his head, causing him to get stitches above his eye. Hornets, led by Jaylen Sims with 25 points, would still blow them out (109 – 80), putting them one win away from the gold.
For a chance to win the organization’s first summer league championship, the Hornets would have to take down a red-hot Kings team that saw Isaac Jones score 36 in their semi-final game. Hornets rookie Kon Knueppel would play after receiving stitches in the previous game. In a very back-and-forth game with the Hornets up 75 – 74 with around 30 seconds left, Kon Knueppel would hit the dagger three-point basket, winning the Hornets the Summer League Championship. Knueppel would lead the team with 21 points. Knueppel stepped up when the team needed him most, which led to him winning the tournament’s Most Valuable Player award.
