Notable takeaways from Charlotte Hornets’ loss to Sacramento

Whenever the pregame clock nears the 15-minute mark, it triggers a sound effect that alerts the patrons the home team is about to make a grand appearance.

As the repetitive rhythmic beat reverberates throughout Spectrum Center, the massive video board shows the Charlotte Hornets preparing to run onto the floor, hyping themselves up beforehand. But nowadays, the hallway is half empty, a byproduct of having five key rotation players sidelined.

And with LaMelo Ball, Mark Williams, Gordon Hayward, PJ Washington and Frank Ntilikina still on the mend, maybe the Hornets should’ve asked minority owner and hip hop artist J. Cole to rise out of his courtside seat and check in.

Anything to add some juice to a roster devoid of many healthy bodies and inject life into a franchise searching for something positive to extract from a season that continues to head in the wrong direction following Charlotte’s 123-98 loss to the Sacramento Kings on Wednesday night.

“Nobody, nobody that I’ve ever been around,” coach Steve Clifford said, “nobody can play good if you don’t have the right intensity. And tonight we did not have that. A couple of guys did … but for the most part, hopefully this is a lesson learned for our younger guys because almost to a man, (we were) not close to what we were a week ago. Not close.

“The No. 1 reason you win in any team sport is talent, and then the second is readiness. Because without readiness, not only do you not execute, it’s not just defense and effort things. When you are really ready and purposefully and concentrate, you shoot better than when you are just out there having fun playing ball. It’s’ just the way it is.”

Which is what ticked Clifford off most. Even at full strength, the Hornets’ margin for error is microscopic. Without all their key talent, lackadaisical effort isn’t going to cut it.

“We just didn’t put enough into the game,” Clifford said. “We don’t have that kind of roster, especially right now, and we have to find a way to get back to (how we played) the other night. Tonight, regardless of who the opponent was, and they are very good, we weren’t going to win because we had the wrong intensity, wrong concentration, and there’s no way we’re winning like that.”

This is where the Hornets are: The loudest cheers of the night came early in the fourth quarter and they weren’t for the guys wearing white and teal. Instead, the sparse crowd was appreciative of Kings star De’Aaron Fox clanking a pair of free throws because it earned paying customers eight free nuggets from Chick-fil-A.

Hornets basketball. Feel the excitement.

“They were getting whatever they wanted,” Miles Bridges said. “That was hurting our confidence. Once our offense went down, that’s when all of our energy went down. We’ve just got to play better, come out with more intensity.”

Here’s what else the Hornets (8-27) had to say after dropping their 14th game in their past 15 outings:

On how they can get through this rough stretch

“Just staying together as a team,” Brandon Miller said. “Don’t get too separated from each other. I think our bond on and off the court definitely is going to get stronger by the day. It’s just going into the next game with a different mentality, different bond, try to pull out a win.”

On what they need to correct most

“Just consistency on defense,” Bridges said. “Sometimes we are great on defense and other times we are terrible. So, we’ve just got to play the same every time. We’ve got to have a true identity. I feel like our identity changes every game, so we’ve just got to stick to our identity and have that be us.”

On Brandon Miller fighting through illness to play

“It’s not all just about me,” Miller said. “It’s more guys out. It’s more guys that’s been sick, but we’ve just got to bounce back from this game and go to the next game.”

On the difficulty of minutes distribution due to injuries

“I don’t know,” Clifford said. “Look, I played Cody too many minutes, that’;s why he’s out right now/ Brandon has probably played too many minutes. He was sick the other night, too, but as a rookie you have to be careful how much those guys play. Terry’s minutes are obviously crazy. So, I’ve got to figure it out. But it’s just right now until we get guys back we’ve got to win enough.

“We had two starters and, I don’t know what it would be, five of our first eight guys out. But yeah, I’m going to have to do something because then we will start to get soft tissue injuries and stuff and I’m not sure to you what the answer is. But I do know that I can’t keep doing that.”

On if there is a common thread with the injuries

“They are not soft tissue,” Clifford said. “They are broken feet and PJ’s foot, ankle. Cody’s knee. It’s not like we have had a lot of injuries that are weak. We are getting through long-term things. Mark was a contusion, so it’s a good question but I wouldn’t say there’s anything that really can be prevented.”

On PJ Washington’s health

“He was able to shoot (Tuesday) and today, just very little movement,” Clifford said. “He was able to put more weight on his foot today, so he’s definitely feeling better. I don’t know how close he is, though.”

On who has stepped up with players sidelined

“I think a number of them have done a good job,” Clifford said. “The guy to me that’s the biggest step is Nick Richards. He was a backup last year and that was really his first year as an NBA player where he had that big of a role. He’s playing big minutes. It’s a difference and he’s playing against starters every night. His pick-and-roll defense has gotten a lot better. I think he’s gaining confidence and he’s doing things at both ends of the floor. So, again, this is a good opportunity for him. I think as he gets more confidence, he’ll play better and better.”