New York Knicks: Who Stepped Up Against The Charlotte Hornets?

Courtney Lee

There was a stretch during the Charlotte Hornets game that Courtney Lee missed five consecutive shots. He still managed to step up defensively, space the floor, and create offense off the bounce against his former team.

The New York Knicks needed their starting shooting guard to step up against Nicolas Batum and that’s exactly what he did.

Lee’s signature possession was late in the fourth quarter when he forced Nicolas Batum into a terrible shot. It was a microcosm of a performance that wasn’t necessarily pretty, but undoubtedly aided the Knicks’ pursuit of victory.

The ultimate proof of Lee’s value to the Knicks against Charlotte was his +/- of +13 during his 38 minutes on the court.

Lee posted 12 points, two rebounds, two assists, and two steals on 4-of-10 shooting from the field, 2-of-4 from 3-point range, and 2-of-2 from the charity stripe. More importantly, the Knicks were a +13 with Lee on the court and a -11 in just 10 minutes without him.

Part of that was Justin Holiday missing parts of the game with an injury, but just as much was the quality of Lee’s performance.